This
post represents another installment in The Big Switcheroo series – tales from
last spring’s epic journey from the northeast to the Florida Keys and back –
involving family, friends and an extraordinary range of adventures. Having just overnighted at Twin Oaks RV Park in Elko, Georgia, Alan and I were on our way to Crooked River State Park in St.
Mary’s, Georgia. This post details our
adventure in between the two.
My Dad was a trackman and a machine operator with the old Penn
Central Transportation Company which was better known as the Penn Central
Railroad or, simply, the Penn Central. The
Penn Central ran through more than a dozen states in the east and mid-west,
carrying freight to cities far and wide.
My father always said that “the railroads are the backbone of the
country,” and he backed his belief with the purchase of Penn Central
stock. Unfortunately, Dad was a better
trackman than he was an investor and, following mergers with several railroads
in the late 1960’s, Penn Central filed for bankruptcy in 1970. Despite the financial predicament of the Penn
Central, my father’s belief in the railroad system never wavered. Having crisscrossed the United States six
times, so far, and having seen the number of active freight trains along the
way “from Kalamazoo to Timbuctoo” and further down the track, I’d have to say
that most people give no thought to and remain unaware of the great volume of
products moved by the rail lines and the trucking industry on a daily basis. But, when Alan and I are out there logging
several hundred miles a day, we do see – and appreciate. I don’t think my Dad was wrong.
Although I wouldn’t consider myself an aficionado, trains were
always intriguing to me and important to our family as they provided employment
for my father until the day he retired.
So, what does all this have to do with the Folkston Funnel? I’m getting to that; please be patient. Regular readers probably know
that I consider trip planning an Olympic sport and take it quite
seriously. When I was scrutinizing
travel guides and reading articles in preparation for our trip down the east
coast of the United States to Florida, I stumbled upon what, to me, was an
obscure little gem called “the Folkston Funnel.” Once I learned what the Funnel was, I knew we
had to add it to our itinerary.
