I'm like the US Postal Man.....

I'll brave all weather elements to catch me some trains.


Eric and I headed up to Dickerson, Maryland today to check out a new place for some railfanning. When we got to the car we had clear blue skies, but as I was getting ready to back out of our spot I looked left and saw some big dark clouds moving in rather fast. Eric said let's just go since we are already down here so we took off. The wind was a blow'n and the rain was a fall'n, but we found that it was tappering off as we drove past Point of Rocks on our way to Dickerson.

As we were crossing the Monocacy River we noticed traffic was stopped and a fire truck backing up towards us. As we came off the bridge we saw that cars were turning around and that the police had the road blocked due to trees that had fallen in the roadway. We got turned around and were going to find a different route but that was going to take about 40 mins. We decided to backtrack our way back to Point of Rocks.

We pulled in behind the station and got setup with the laptop and converted scanner so that we could monitor the rails for movement. About 20 mins after our arrival we were greeted with CSX 279 heading WB from Rockville with empty coal cars. We were so excited to get some action from the tracks coming from this direction for a change.



After the train passed I headed back to the car to escape the cold and wind. Eric informed me that we had some movement on the "hot tracks" as I like to call them and I headed towards the station to find my spot. I happened to notice the time and had a gut feeling that I was going to have a little disappointment. Sure enough. I got this great picture of Amtrak's Capitol Limited (enging 59) on a WB approach from Washington, DC.



The slight disappointment was that it wasn't a freight train which I truly prefer. But it was a train nonetheless.

After the train cleared I headed back to the car and we called it a day since the rails were looking pretty quiet and the skies were starting to look questionable again.

As always...it was worth the short trip from home. Next time we'll definitely check out Dickerson but will probably...more than likely end up at the ole Rocks.

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

Point of Rocks, MD and Shenandoah Junction, WV

When you read the subject line you would think that we did a LOT of driving today. We drove less than 100 miles and covered a lot of road in 3 states. Ah yes...the 3 state tour. Eric and I both stayed home from work today....a little R&R or what have you. We slept in and then decided around 10:30 to head out for Point of Rocks. We picked up some blunch (breakfast/lunch) on the way and got to Point of Rocks a little after 11. We heard some chatter of an EB train and headed over the tracks to park. We climbed up the bank to get in position and got what I think is my best railfan picture ever. The shot I was talking about with Eric and my parents of hoping to get one day....yes friends...I got the train coming through the tunnel.



I told Eric that all we need now is a cam corder so we can get audio AND still shots. hehee....it would have been awesome to hear the sounds of the whistle bouncing off the tunnel walls.

We hung around to catch 2 more trains after this one and then got into that lull where there isn't a lot of movement on the rails. We decided that we would head out and started back towards home. All of a sudden I got an idea to head up to Shenandoah Junction, WV to a hot spot for railfanning. We turned around and headed back towards Point of Rocks up through Lovettsville and Brunswick and into WV via US - 340.

When we got to Shenandoah Junction there were a couple of other railfans there already so we grabbed a spot and waitied. Not long after we got an EB train and then a SB on the Norfolk Southern line. It was a busy day.

SB NS.


We stood outside with the other railfans and had a good time talking with them and getting info on different sites, webgroups, etc.

It was an awesome day and a much needed one. Here is a link to all of our pictures from January 21 and January 28. I'm working on captions so you have the feeling of actually being there. :)

Railfanning

Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living. - Miriam Beard

Monday is Maryland Day.

Eric and I were both off of work today for the Martin Luther King Holiday so we headed up to Maryland to visit Barnes and Nobles and take in a little railfanning. We had heard on the local news talk radio station that there was a closure on Route 15 north of Lucketts so we took a detour through Loudoun County by way of Route 9 to Route 287 and then through Lovettsville. We hit Brunswick, Maryland and then got on US - 340 from there. We went to Fredrick and the Francis Key Mall to hit up B&N. I got a couple of books from the bargain table and I think Eric picked up one of my birthday presents. :D After we were done there we headed back towards Brunswick, MD in search of some trains.

We saw 2 engines with a lumber car heading WB towards the 84 Lumber there. After awhile the 2 engines came back EB towards the yard. From the chatter on the radio it sounded like they were doing some track testing. Not long after we got a WB of mixed use cars (coal, box, intermodle). Things got quiet after that so we headed down to Point of Rocks, MD.

When we pulled into Point of Rocks there was an EB Amtrak waiting for clearance to continue through. Come to find out they were waiting for a CSX work truck to clear the tracks. The radio was pretty quiet so we decided to drive down towards the west end of the tracks where the signal towers are to see what they read. All red. Bummer. I remembered an entrance to a park just after you turn onto MD-28 from US-15 so we went down there to wait for some action. I saw a bridge that went across the tracks and the old Canal so we got out of the car and started walking towards it only to realize that it was a vehicle bridge. So we jumped back in the car and drove over there. Boy was I happy to have found that. I was finally able to get a picture of the Point of Rocks tunnel which we always see from the bridge but can never get a good picture of.
It's not a straight on picture as I dare not cross the tracks. But I'm happy with it. :D



A couple minutes after we got to our new found spot we got a WB train. It was such an awesome spot to capture the train moving along the tracks. Here is the train on approach.



And moving along the tracks. Yes, that would be snow on the ground. On January 17 we got about 4 - 6 inches in Leesburg. Most of it has now melted (aside from the areas that don't get direct sun).



I love this photo a lot. The shadows from the support pilar of the bridge we are under and from the surrounding trees. I just like it a lot. heh. :)



After the train passed we moved down from the tracks and headed back to the car (since it was colder than we like). Soon after we headed home and called it a day. We had a lot of fun and wish we had more 3 day weekends to do some railfanning.

All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware. - Martin Buber

The 3 state tour.

Our first road trip of the year took us in search of a train museum I remember seeing multiple times on US - 11. For some reason I thought that is was in Pennsylvania, but lo and behold it was in Maryland. We hit the road late that day but made the best of our time (and what little day light we would have left). We headed up US - 15 to US - 340 and then to US - 40 before jumping on the interstate (our last resort of travel).




We got into Hagerstown and found a Sheets to grab a bite to eat before we headed over to the museum. When we pulled into the parking lot at the museum there was a lot of train activity in the yard.



We headed into the museum and were a little disappointed to find that it is mostly geared towards model railroads.


(click on picture to see full view...for some reason it is getting cut off)

While we don't mind watching the model trains for a few minutes we were hoping to find a museum along the likes of New York Central depot in Elkhart, Indiana. Though we were met with disappointment we talked with some of the gentlemen there and they gave us some pointers on places that are decent for railfanning.

We headed back to the car and back down US - 11 to Shenandoah Junction, WV to locate and mark on our GPS a possible railfanning spot. It is usually pretty quiet in our neck of the woods as far as train travel goes (on the weekends that is) so we hope to make it out there on a week day at some point.

After we got the place marked we headed towards home with a stop in Brunswick, Maryland as we heard some chatter on the scanner of a possible west bounder. Not to long after we heard whistles and the arms went down and we were met with Amtrak 29. Though it was a train it is never as exciting as your old freighters.

After the Amtrak went through we went full steam ourselves towards home.

Another good day on the road, another 3 state tour* and a couple trains to boot.

It is not down in any map; true places never are. ~Herman Melville

*editors note: The 3 state tour is when you hit Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland all in one trip. ;)

Reflections on the Ohio Turnpike

** backdated entry **



I love how the sun breaks the clouds both in the early morning and during a storm. This is a shot of the sky and the traffic behind us along the Ohio turnpike. I've always seemed to have a love/hate relationship with the Ohio turnpike, but today I have a love for it as it is taking me home. Though our journeys this weekend will have some good times the purpose of our trip is to join my family in a celebration of my Uncle Tod's life. When we went to Michigan in September it was to visit with my Uncle who was battling cancer. Little did we know it would be our last time with him. On the morning we were to head home he passed away. So today we are on our way to be with my family and to have a memorial service for him and celebrate his life.


But before we get to Michigan we are making a pit stop in our new found spot for some serious railfanning, Deschler, Ohio. We'll be meeting my parents there for some train watching and who knows what else.

Can I just say that one thing I love about my parents (and one of the things I love that they taught me) is that it is never too cold to do anything. That's right my friends...we had a cookout in the park right along the tracks.



This park is for all railfans and you will find people camping and just hanging out at all hours of the day to catch some trains. It was windy and cold at times but it was so worth it. We built ourselves a perfect fire and it kept us very toasty.

We had some good train action and even caught some engines and trains from lines/companies we've never seen before. I think my favorite (behind Norfolk Southern and BNSF) is Union Pacific. I can't give you a real reason as to why they are one of my favorites but they just are. :) Here is a shot of 3 UP engines heading East through Deschler.



After a full day of train watching we headed towards Michigan to my parents to get ready for Saturday and my Uncle's memorial service.

"We may run, walk, stumble, drive, or fly, but let us never lose sight of the reason for the journey, or miss a chance to see a rainbow on the way." - unknown