The Royal Scotsman and Orient Express are also occasional visitors while the Friends of the Kyle Line– who've fought to keep the line open – organise steam engine trips from time to time.
It's spurred the development of over a dozen meta-search engines, trip trackers, and trip planning tools.
The engine went one trip by way of rehearsal, when the accidental explosion of a small copper tube caused a delay.
"I love it out here at night," Mr. Rodriguez said, revving the engine for the trip back to shore shortly before 11 o'clock.
In the first settlement below Jyanta La, when the tumbling alpine stream had become a gentle river, we encountered the first internal-combustion engine of the trip, a motorcycle, probably brought in by helicopter.
The more far-off dreams include efforts to build a plug-in hybrid, which could let you do your commuting and shopping without consuming any gas while still having the gasoline engine for long trips.
David Ko, a committee spokesman, said in an interview at the protest that the group's aging fishing boat, the Kai Fung No. 2, had suffered hull and engine damage during its trip last month to the islands.
The seller, using the name Rita, reported by e-mail that the 280TE had a mere 75,000 kilometers (about 46,600 miles) on it but that mechanical troubles with the 2.8-liter straight-six engine would require a trip to the garage.
Once during the trip the engine briefly kicked on to assist an apparent hard acceleration.
The airline has routes from 12 North American destinations to 24 cities in Europe, giving travelers plenty of flexibility; simply select the "Iceland Stopover" option from the airline's booking engine to plan your trip.
