I know what he meant! Like Robert we were to be afforded panaoramic grandstand views of one of England’s most beautiful stretches of coastline – but things did not start out well! As the Exeter train approached the station, the unusually large crowd of passengers waiting stoically inched forward - en masse - to the edge of the platform. We were glad we had reserved our seats.

Ominously, the train belched black greasy diesel smoke as it cranked in, brakes squeaking and bodywork groaning. Things did not bode well - where was the sleek, streamlined Virgin Voyager train I had promised the kids? This had everything apparently ; Wi-Fi, mobile phone points, headphones, buffet, Family Carriage. Initially disappointed, but resigned, (the usual demeanour of a typical British Train Passenger!) we lugged our bags on board along with everyone else, but later on we were to be grateful for the age of the train. It was an outdated model which still had those pull-down windows. We were to be afforded close-ups of the most important and beautiful Estuary Nature Reserves in the country, important for Wading Birds, Saltwater Marsh Habitat, and Bird Migration – The Exe Estuary, where the oft-swollen moorland river Exe halts its boulder-strewn gallop, to a more sedate pace and meanders gently through the wider mellower expanse of its salt marshes out to the English Channel, like the fields in Dylan Thomas’ “Under Milk Wood”……..

Turning our backs on the stuffy air, discarded newspapers and sandwich boxes, sleeping passengers and crying children, we wound down the window to a rush of sea-salty air blasting noses and throats. We were nearing the sea, the long caterpillar of the train snaking towards the first of the tunnels through the ancient Devonian rock of the red Devon cliffs. Hurtling through a tunnel with the window open was an exciting new experience for the children. The walls flashed by, near enough it seemed, to touch. Better than watching them through the tame safety of a modern plate-glass train window. Rocketing through the dark, the sound racketing off the walls, we talked of the men who had built them.

Some had said he was mad and now those nay-sayers would probably feel vindicated. Global Warming may seal the fate of this stunning line. Already, smashing waves have stopped the most state-of-the-art Virgin Voyager train in its tracks, its passengers having to be helped off and evacuated by tractor and land-rover one dark stormy evening, leaving he train stranded beside huge seas.

'a pound and a half of rushes will supply a family all year long".Gilbert White, the great English naturalist, calculated that there were approximately 1,600 dry rushes to the pound and that "a good rush, which measured in length two feet four inches and a half..., burned only three minutes short of an hour... .'(The Natural History of Selborne 1789)

The stuffy air behind us in the overcrowded carriage was forgotten as we gazed out across an opalescent sea, glittering with hues of malachite and tourmaline. Below the track, soft limegreen transparent seaweed floated, and we even tasted the odd drop of seaspray thrown up by the breaking waves. Rattling along, this felt better than a theme park ride. It would even be possible at this point to break the journey at one of the attractive little seaside stations, catch a crab sandwich on the beach a few steps away, and then stroll over an hour later to catch the next train going down.

There are, of course, disadvantages, to bird-watching from a train - a small group of round plump little waders with pretty faces and pinkish legs flew by near the brackish tide-line - too fast for us to identify them - evocative names like sanderling, dunlin and sandpiper sprang to mind - although I think the sanderling runs so fast that it is unmistakeable?

SEATING CLASSES
We, as usual, travelled Second Class! (Who are these First Class Types anyway and where do they reside? Do they all live in Palaces? Seriously, I expect a completely different version of events would be experienced in First Class. (except for the 20 min late arrival - their carriage didnt come in 20 mins ahead of the rest of the tain lol) This carriage seemed peaceful and spacious at all times.

TICKETS
Tickets can be collected at Fast Ticket Machines - ours duly arrived 2 days later in post ALTHOUGH we thought we were booking Virgin!! I have a feeling they must be sharing trains as this is the 2nd time this has happened to us and we specifically wanted a Virgin train. We will be ringing them instead of booking online next time so we can make enquiries!

FACILITIES
Toilets dirty and badly stocked
Mobile Buffet looked expensive but O,K, Tea and Coffee was fine as on-board refreshments go - portions large.
Shop Buffet looked very bare!! More like a Bar (probably wouldn't let youngsters use it alone - the day we used it it felt like a pub on tracks! The peanuts were fine if a bit overpriced.
Family Pack - this was amusing for about 20 mins (my son is 7) although we had to ask for it at the Bar - er I mean Buffet! - we were quite glad of it as it helped pass the time for him.