A Wave During an Uncommon Meet. Already running 16 hours late, Amtrak's southbound Coast Starlight has taken the siding at Camarillo to meet it's northbound counterpart - running right on time this morning with the engineer throwing up a wave in the cab as the two head-end's meet. The extremely tardy train, seen here to the right, came after a horrific storm in the Pacific Northwest held up the train for hours. Since then, the crews have done their best to try and make up a little time...but decisions by the local UP Dispatcher to allow a southbound Pacific Surfliner depart San Luis Obispo just before the Starlight has resulted in the train running on "color" as it continuously catches up to the smaller train, which stops at more stations on its way into Los Angeles. Following the passage of the northbound Starlight, the southbound will have a chance to be able to run at track speed for a little before it finds itself entangled in the Metrolink commuter rush as it drops into the LA basin.
Running daily between Seattle and Los Angeles, this train offers running alongside the Pacific Ocean and through the Cascade Mountains. It has been one of Amtrak's long-distance success stories.
