This trip was a multipart adventure that was extremely rewarding. I also used new gear for the first time that I’ll talk about.
The trip started with the decision to take the Sammamish and Burke Gilman trails around the north end of Lake Washington on the way to get to King Street Station. This is clearly not the straight route to the train station, but it is the flattest of routes. I wanted to try out the Burley Travoy and also check timing overall since this is also my first trip from Redmond – new home – to downtown Seattle and King Street Station. I checked the google times on the trip and the most direct was 2 hours and 7 minutes, and this longer stretch was 2 hours and 23 minutes. With the trip being as long as it is to start with, another 16 minutes didn’t seem like a big deal.
Thus off I went, departing Redmond heading north, up through Woodinville, Bothell, down the west side of the lake into University District, through downtown, and finally to King Street Station.
Burley Travoy
Upon arriving at the station I had my first *in the field* attempt at breaking down and stowing the Burley Travoy in its included bag. You can see in video, with these two images, that it went quickly and smoothly. It’s a great product and really easy to use.
Boarding Coast Starlight Southbound
Once the ride was complete, Travoy packed, bike loaded on the train, I was ready to board myself.
After boarding, a tradition I have is whipping together a traditional “train coffee”. Yes, it’s commodity beans, yes it is indeed drip, no it is not premium stuff but anything on the train just has an air of leisure to it, thus “train coffee”.
At this point in the video I play an acoustic improv bit that I felt matched the passing scenario.
Train Power Brick: Ankor USB Power Strip Surge Protector!
When taking train trips, specifically the long ones, you should bring yourself a power brick. At least, if like me, you have more than one or two pieces of gear you’d prefer to be able to plug in or recharge. In the past I’ve used a particular strip I have, and have talked about in past videos, but now I’ve picked up a new one with some additional features and hardware! Introducing my new train brick strip, the Anker USB Power Strip Surge Protector(300J), 5ft Extension Cord, Flat Plug, 331 PowerStrip with 6 Outlets & 3 USB-A Ports!
For more details on the Ankor, give the video a watch @ 8:48 along with final arrival at Portland Union Station.
- 0:21 – From Redmond to King Street Station.
- 3:17 – Packing the Burley Travoy.
- 4:03 – Bike stowed, boarding the Coast Starlight.
- 8:48 – IMPORTANT! Getting an appropriate power strip for the train trip. (Anker USB Power Strip Surge Protector(300J), 5ft Extension Cord, Flat Plug, 331 PowerStrip with 6Outlets & 3USB-A Ports – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09…)
- 10:18 – Arrival in Portland, Oregon.
That’s it for this episode. Catch some of the earlier episodes and be sure to subscribe the channel on YouTube. Albeit, if you’re subscribed to this blog, I’ll be posting them here too just a little delayed along with more details about what’s up with each video.
Transit Sleuth 