Consider the Downeaster

Consider the Downeaster

The other Tuesday my daughter, her husband, my wife and I took the Downeaster to Boston for a day trip. We took the 7:00 train which arrives in Boston at 10:25am and there were around 20 to 25 people who got on the train in Brunswick.

One gentleman who got on the train in Brunswick got off in Freeport. Also a young man who was visually impaired got on the train in Brunswick. He had an aide help him onto the train but the platform being level with the coach aided him in this effort. He got off in Portland and again there was an aide to help him off the train and into the station. Again the platform being level with the coach aided them in this endeavor. So the Downeaster provides a service as well as getting people from one place to another.

There was a small group who got on the train at each station stop in Maine so by the time we left the Wells transportation center our coach was just about full. It is not about how many people get on at each station but the cumulative effect of all the station stops in Maine.

Our daughter had booked us on a trolley tour of Boston, but we did not know where the trolley stop was at North Station so we took a taxi to the aquarium which is stop number one on the tour. The tour she booked also included a tour of Boston harbor so we took that first. After the harbor tour it was time to eat, so we ate at Joes on the waterfront down at the aquarium.

After lunch it was time to board the trolley for the tour of downtown. Due to time constraints of catching the 5 p.m. train back to Brunswick, we didn’t get off of the trolley at any of the stops, but stayed on until we arrived back at the North Station stop. We had a light snack in North Station before boarding our 5 p.m. train. We departed right on schedule and there were so many people on the train we had two gentleman standing in our coach because there were no seats open on the train.

We were delayed by an incoming MBTA commuter train north of Boston so we arrived in Brunswick at 8:45 p.m. instead of 8:20 p.m. When we pulled into Brunswick Wayne Davis of Train Riders Northeast was on the platform to greet us. Also there was a small group welcoming us to Brunswick and hoping we would enjoy our stay here. Where else but in Brunswick could you have a group when you get off the train welcoming you to the town and hoping that you enjoy your stay here.

So if you and your family are looking for a fun thing to do consider a day trip to Boston on the Downeaster, we are planning our second trip in October to see some of the things we didn’t get to see this trip.

Raymond T. West,
Topsham