I was walking along the Santa Ynez River and as I passed under a railroad bridge the corrosion and decay caught my attention. Then the album
Rust Never Sleeps by Neil Young and Crazy Horse in 1979 started running through my mind. Now I can't seem to get the image out of my head and I'm searching for a meaning. It's probably nothing more than the nagging realization that I'm getting older, or it's the arthritis in my hips sending unwanted messages to my brain. So there I was, at the confluence of river, ocean, and a passenger train bridge. A subtle signal from the universe suggesting it's time for me to travel again?
Just a short hike away was the Surf Beach Amtrak Station. This is a desolate spot if I've ever seen one. It could easily be a location for Clint Eastwood spaghetti western film. It's perhaps a 10 mile drive into the town on Lompoc, and sits on a windswept beach right in the heart of the Vandenberg Air Force Base. The parking lot was deserted, which I suspect it frequently is. Aside from the various railroad paraphernalia, the only other evidence of humans passing this way was an impromptu memorial to a surfer who had the misfortune of being eaten by a shark the previous year. That, and a electronic marquee which announced the impending lateness of the next train. No surprises there. But, I could almost hear the wind whispering into my ear, "Take a train..." Perhaps it's time.
