Soul train 

Trains are awesome. You can eat in them. You can drink on them. You can read a book. You can go for a walk if you feel like it (kind of). Of course, only in America, though, would people ride trains just for the sheer fun of it, but that’s what makes us special. Tickets are on sale now for the Central Coast Railroad Festival, happening Oct. 4 through 8, when you can book an excursion to wineries, beaches, or historic downtowns. But it’s not the destination that matters, really, so much as the excuse to ride on a train, just like in the Old West.

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• PHOTO COURTESY OF CURTIS REINHART
• SPEEDER RIDE AT SLO FREIGHT HOUSE:

Three Family Excursions ($19 kids/$29 adults) take place Saturday, Oct. 6, and two Wine Rail Excursions on the Coast Starlight ($39 kids/$59 adults) will take place Friday and Monday, Oct. 5 and 8. Here, let me break it down for you:

• Friday, Oct. 5: Special Festival Wine Rail Excursion starts in SLO and visits Café Roma & D'Anbino Winery

• Saturday, Oct. 6: Festival Family Rail Excursion No. 1 starts in Grover Beach at the Station Grill and includes a Round Trip Ride on Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner between Grover Beach and SLO

• Also Saturday, Oct. 6: Festival Family Rail Excursion No. 2 starts in Paso Robles and includes a ride on Amtrak's Coast Starlight between Paso Robles and SLO, Amtrak gifts for the kids, and a visit to the SLO Railroad Museum's Freight House

• Also also Saturday, Oct. 6: Festival Family Rail Excursion No. 3 starts in SLO and includes a ride on Amtrak's Coast Starlight between San Luis Obispo and Paso Robles, with a return on a private bus

• Monday, Oct. 8: Special Festival Wine Rail Excursion starts in SLO and includes a visit to Pomar Junction Winery and a ride on Amtrak's Coast Starlight between Paso Robles and SLO.

All excursion groups will have the opportunity to visit the Saturday Open House at the SLO Railroad Museum’s Freight House and listen to the sweet tunes of the Crustacea Jazz Band as they perform on the SLO Amtrak Station’s platform in the afternoon.

Festivities kick off with a booth at the San Luis Obispo Farmers Market on Thursday night, Oct. 4. Check it out at the corner of Higuera and Chorro streets.

For more information, visit the festival’s website at ccrrf.com.