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Trekking along the CSX Just past John Schwab's home,
Howell Branch Creek passes un-
der a long,high trestle supported
Continued from Page 1 Being wise hikers, we packed by enormous logs and gigantic
rightbehind a school and nextto a peanut butter sandwiches and root steel spikes. We look down be-
large recreation area, but it beer for lunch.After only 45 min- ingwtbeGesandseesxattlyBow-
shouldn't be.Lake Jesup isnearby, utes our tastes have changed. We in If thes.
on the other side of that waving want Gatorade. If these rails are converted to
wall of green fronds. 10:05 a.m.-Heading south into trails someone needs to plug the
The school finally recedes be- Tuskawilla proper,we encounted Baps between the ties. Many
hind us. Somewhere next to it is our first living creatures, white- acrophobic hikers would rather
Winter Springs City Hall,but we faced cows.They watch in exquis- creekthan walk acrosthatbige.
will never get a view of it iteboredom as we march past their creTheviewonbothssdesispris-
the trees. wire fences. The view on both sides is more
A small house appears ahead The reason CSX wants to close tine, peaceful. This seems more
on the left.What looks like a Rocky this route and not fix it is that anethlusive residential area.Mountain elk is lying on the lawn, business is almost nonexistent. an exclusive residential Area.
chewing a bone. It stands as we Just past the cows is the first of Ahead is a switch point, with
pass, barks once. The huge Do- many indicators of the slump, one track going straight and the
berman is not concerned with rail- left branch headed d northacross
spurs ad sidings old buildings that SR branch n veere north across
road walkers, but he leaves no back yards of old.buildings that SR 434, then veered east to haul
doubt hat we had better not tread once housed thriving enterprises. fruit and celeryfromthe farmlands
on his lawn. The track is almost completely north of Oviedo.
This track deserves tobe closed. overgrown by weeds, the rails I On another day we will follow
The petition to abandon filed with rusted into pocked red ridges. It that route,eventhoughwe already
the InterstateCommerce Commis- sidles up to a large white building know it will disappear before we
sion cites high repair costs. In so covered withclingingvinesthat reach 434. The eastbound sector
downtown Oviedo the track is in it resembles a hairy man's back. may one become an important
pretty bad shape, but conditions These images of what used to y y thrtent
lathe Florida Trail,out here in the wilderness make cast melancholy shadow a t this i for it is barely recogniz-
the rails in town seemalmost new, those who pass by.This hairy fac- able asatormer railroa d.
Not one tie is unbroken or tory was once filled with people From the turnoff we can see the
unshredded. Some of them look doing their jobs,earning a living. GreeneWay overpass, and we
like ropa vieja,the Cuban shred- Now it's a thing, an almost- y
ded beef dish. Some are rotted know we Ahead nearing homes,forgotten built around it, Houses built cloer to tartacman,twith
completely,Ieavingahollowshell are beingbuil[around it,and soon � built closer to the track and with
ofcreosote-treated splinters.They even the cows will be gone. littleornobujfer.Pasttjiatisdow,i..
resemble hollow trees,only hod- The designers ofthe Tuskawilla ■ town Oviedo.
zontal. PUD were obviously very con- If CSX abandons this piece of
A few ties are broken in several scious of the railroad. Rarely are P
pieces,each pointing in different homes visible from the track,and railroad dinateeffortstogetper-
directions. will mission ootomate ita mu ti pur pos-
there is always a barrier of trees il Bicomakeita week multi-purpose
Ironically, the gravel seems separating the two. tail Bi cleswillbewelcom,a
new. It still sparkles and is un- We hear the sound of wood ( cY e.lor
weathered,sharp and pointed un- hikers will be able to travel all or
derfoot. � P being chopped coming from one part ofit.
of those buffer zones. John If the entire route is accepted
Up ahead a huge tree with a Schwab is cutting back vines to I into the Rails to Trails program it
diameter of more than two feet lies
would help close a pedestrian link
where it fell across the track long allow the trees more room to grow. connecting such diverse locales
ago. Someone cut big chunks out Schwab grew up along a rail- as Fashion Square Mall, UCF,
of it to allow trains to pass, and road track inPennsylvania.When Oviedo and Winter Springs
they still lie in the ditch.The two the mines closed in that area the P gs high
halves of the tree still face each 70-mile route was converted to a schools,and possibly even South
other across the clearing. trail. Seminole Community College.
9:50 a.m. -We reach the only "I likethetrains,"he says."The It's hard to imagine a more
oasis on this trip, convenience pleasant way of getting to any of
P, right-of-way means a greenbelt. those places.
store at the corner of SR 434 and They can convert the track to a John Schwab is right.Makeita
Tuskawilla Road. path, but I don't want houses' trail.We don't need houses there.
there."
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