A day of Junctions.

Today we decided to go scope out a new railfanning location down in Front Royal, VA called Riverton Junction. This area is along the Shenandoah River and both the NS and CSX lines. After a stop at RadioShack to pick up a roof top antenna (to strengthen our signal) we found our location and I started to find the perfect spot for taking pictures. While waiting for some traffic I played around with the settings on our camera to get this neat picture of one of the train bridges which crosses the Shenandoah.



This bridge combines the CSX and NS lines to cross the Shenandoah River.

This picture is of the bridge that carries just the NS line over the Shenandoah River. Just to the right on the picture you can see the diamond where the CSX line crosses to the other bridge.



After about an hour or so of waiting and no chatter on the radio we decided to head up to Shenandoah Junction, WV. We took US-340 all the way up to Route 9 and got there in about an hour.

We spent about 3 hours in Shen Junction and got word on the radio that we had a WB train on approach. I hopped out of the car and to my favorite spot in anticipation of a CSX rounding the bend. Little did I know that we were waiting on the Capital Limited (Amtrak). I must say that I was disappointed but happy to have had at least ONE train that day.

Here you can see the engineer giving us rabbit ears.



The day was a bit of a bust but I couldn't imagine spending it with anyone but Eric (well except for maybe my family). :)

A journey is best measured in friends rather than miles. - Tim Cahill

Hitting the Rocks...Point of Rocks.

Eric and I headed up to Point of Rocks after work today.



Nothing like the grinding of metal to ease the stress of a long week. Weeknights bring us the opportunity to see the MARC train and the multitude of rail commuters. In our short time up at Point of Rocks we had 3 MARC trains. I always love the looks we get from those commuting as we just stand and watch the train. There's just something so calming about the sound of the train...almost a feelng of freedom.

We were first greeted with a CSX intermodel heading WB. A couple MARC trains and an Amtrak later we got our 2nd freight train of empty coal hoppers. I took this picture of the train passing by the Point of Rocks station.



Night was fast approaching and the traffic was starting to slow. I took this final picture of the night of the signal towers and the sun setting over the mountains.



It was the perfect ending to a busy day. Just Eric, the sound of trains and me. What more could a girl ask for?!?

Families are the compass that guide us. They are the inspiration to reach great heights, and our comfort when we occasionally falter. - Brad Henry

Shenandoah Junction, WV and Brunswick, MD

So after 3 days of being cooped up in the house with bronchitis I decided it was time to get Eric out and about. The day welcomed us with warm weather and sunny skies so it was time to do some railfanning. We headed up to Shenandoah Junction, WV our now favorite hotspot. When we arrived there were 2 other vehicles there and all red signals. We didn't have to wait to long until we got our first WB train.



The rails were busy that day with 6 more trains through Shenandoah Junction in about a 2 hour period. After our last train went through we decided to head out as it was starting to rain a little bit. We headed towards home by way of US-340. I had an idea of a possible place to catch some train action and headed that way. The place we headed to is a park like area right along the Potomac River north by northwest of Harpers Ferry, WV. The view of the tracks is slightly hindered by several very tall trees. Walking towards the road and a clearer view of the tracks I saw this very old and beautiful passage with a stream flowing through.



We took some time while waiting for a train to come to admire the beauty of the Potomac River.



We struck out on catching a train through here and headed on towards Brunswick, MD. On approach to Brunswick we saw a train slowly moving WB and were disappointed by this missed opportunity. We pulled onto the road that takes us down to the commuter lot where we park and saw that the barriers were down over the tracks. I put the car in park and jumped out and Eric got behind the wheel so I could investigate as to what was going on. I looked westward and saw that the train we originally thought we had missed was moving EB into the yard.



While I snapped some pictures of the train moving into the yard, Eric informed me that they were moving into the yard to couple with some additional cars. About 5 - 10 minutes later they got clearance to head WB. Their destination was Cumberland, MD and after further information on the radio revealed they had a 3 hour window to get to Cumberland otherwise the crew out be considered "outlaws". Here is CSX 4826 (lead engine) heading WB past the Brunswick Train Depot. I really love this shot and am very proud of it. :)



Another awesome day of railfanning with my partner in crime.

Half the fun of the travel is the esthetic of lostness. - Ray Bradbury

Birthday's in Baltimore

I celebrated my 29th birthday on Friday (February 1) and in celebration of my day Eric and I snuck off to Baltimore for the weekend. We got up early on Saturday and made the drive up. Traffic was very light which made for a nice drive. We checked into the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/bwish-renaissance-baltimore-harborplace-hotel/ and when we got to our room we were greeted with this amazing view.



After unpacking and admiring the view we headed to the National Aquarium. http://www.aqua.org/

We first went and checked out the Australia exhibit and then made our way towards the sharks, into the rainforest and finally to the dolphin show. This is what I was looking forward to the most.





Sadly my battery died right after this photo. I was so upset about this. I tried to enjoy the show but was mad at myself because I didn't charge the battery fully. Oh well I guess.

After the aquarium we wandered around Inner Harbor and then went and had lunch at J Paul's.
(http://www.j-pauls.com/) This place was very good. What was neat was they serve you FRESH soft pretzels while you wait for you meal. I ordered a rueben and it was the BEST rueben I have ever had. After lunch we headed back to the hotel to rest and relax. We had plans to go to Morton's (http://www.mortons.com/) that night for dinner but decided that we just wanted to enjoy each other's company in our room and have a quiet dinner. We went across the street to one of the pavillion's and picked up sushi and burgers and fries from Five Guys (http://www.fiveguys.com/). What a combination. But hey...it's what we wanted. :)

We enjoyed dinner while overlooking the city.



Sticking with the quiet theme we ordered room service for breakfast (plus we just couldn't leave that view).

After we checked out we headed for Ellicot City, MD and the Ellicot City B&O Railroad Museum (http://www.ecborail.org/).



We enjoyed walking back in time and learning about the history of the station and the B&O Railroad. We got a bonus of a CSX coal train heading EB. :)

It was an amazing weekend, with the most amazing man I know (aside from my dad ;) ). I always dread my birthday but Eric always seems to go above and beyond to make it a special day.

Full album of our trip can be found here:

Baltimore 2008

You can fall in love at first sight with a place as with a person. - Alec Waugh