Railfanning the former RF&P - Day 1

Hi, Friend Jim Kleeman and I decided to spend a couple of days on the former RF&P on April 11 and 12.

Our first stop was along Featherstone Road in Woodbridge, VA. There is a small park here and this view is available from the roadside. This is VRE #312, the final VRE morning train inbound to Washington, DC.

Relocating to Leetsylvania State Park in Neabsco, VA netted two northbounds; a regional train and the Auto Train (shown above).

Continuing south we caught Amtrak #90, the northbound Palmetto, at Brooke, VA.

Stopping at Fredericksburg, VA netted a number of trains including #89, the southbound Palmetto,

Amtrak #94, a northbound regional train and

a southbound CSX freight with trash containers on the head end.

At Jones Crossing, about a mile north of Woodford, VA we encountered CSX Q300 with Tropicana cars head out (above) and Amtrak #80, the northbound Carolinian.

Amtrak #95, a southbound regional train showed up at Doswell, VA.

A few minutes later a Buckingham Branch crew arrived and put their locomotive away.

Ashland, VA was our final stop of the day. Among the trains we photographed here were southbound Amtrak regional #125 (above and below) and

Amtrak's southbound Auto Train.

Thanks for looking.
 

A Day with Dale Diacont - March 29, 2022

Hi, I met friend Dale Diacont in Union Bridge, MD for a day of railfanning at 8 AM. Maryland Midland train UBEG would operate that day to Emory Grove, MD and return. 

We set up for our first photo just east of New Windsor, MD. Our intention was to get the train at Westminster, MD but traffic foiled that plan.

We did, however, beat the train to Reisterstown, MD. Next we checked out Emory Grove. However, the power was already up at the west end of the interchange tracks so we headed back west.

 

Having more than enough time we waited at Westminster for the train when it came west.

Getting to the eastside of Union Bridge before the train was a piece of cake.

Our photography of the Maryland Midland ended with the crew switching in Union Bridge.

After lunch at the Buttersburg Inn in Union Bridge we drove to Brunswick, MD where we would spend the rest of the day. First up was a train switching the west end of the yard. The Dogwood Trees were in bloom making for some nice backdrops.

Later a MARC train arrived. The caboose on the left is on display.

Coal empties were next.

 The final train for us was the westbound Capitol Limited a few minutes after 6.

Thanks for looking.

A Day in Cumberland, MD

Hi, On Saturday, February 26 I was joined by friends Bill Holdsworth and Alex Koehler on a trip to Cumberland, MD. Our primary focus was to photograph former C&0 2-6-6-2 #1309 on a chartered photo freight operated for Trains Magazine. Our first stop was Helmstetters Curve, about 5 miles west of Cumberland, where we found the train doing photo runbys. Once the charter participants vacated an area we could move in for our photos. Three of the photos I took there are below.

Our next stop was Trimble Road in Mount Savage, MD. The charter participants rode between photo locations in a passenger train with Western Maryland painted diesels on either end.

After the passenger train cleared the freight came up the grade (above and below).

Our final photograph of the photo freight was taken as the train entered Frostburg, MD.

Alex learned that the CSX Law Enforcement unit would be leading an eastbound stack train and that it was fairly close so we found a location a mile or so east of Corriganville, MD to wait (above and below).

Our final location was in Cumberland. The photo in Cumberland is courtesy of Alex Koehler as, unfortunately, I fell just before the train arrived and my camera hit the concrete. As a result my lens would not focus.

Thanks for looking.
 

Railfan trip to PA, OH, IN and MI, 8-9 to 8-20-2021 - 9

Hi, When we arrived at the Adrian & Blissfield engine facility in Blissfield, MI on Tuesday, August 17 we learned that a broken rail needed to be repaired so they would not be running that day.

After some thought we headed for Defiance, OH to check out the Napolean Defiance & Western. There was a job working in the yard and we caught it heading down to the CSX interchange a few blocks away

 

where, after dropping their set off, the crew waited for CSX to deliver their interchange. we decided to leave.

Having learned from a local railfan that Indiana & Ohio turn from Lima, OH was in Leipsic, OH we drove their and found it sitting on the south side of town. Th I&O uses trackage rights on CSX from Leipsic to Lima with the possible exception of Ottawa, OH where they have their own track around the east side of town.

Since the I&O sat for awhile we surmised it was waiting for a train on CSX and eventually a northbound appeared (above and below).

Then it was off to the races. We skipped Ottawa as we did not know which track to set up on and I omitted the shot at Cairo, OH.

We moved on to Columbus Grove, OH where Q561 was the next train to arrive (above and below). The I&O must have been run around; possibly in Ottawa. 

There had been a grade crossing accident here a few days earlier and wreckage was still scattered around (above and second I&O photo below). A semi truck attempted to turn off the crossing and was unable to do so when a train came along and demolished the trailer; also taking out some of the crossing gates and lights. Thus, the crossing had to be flagged allowing for a number of photos.

Following soon behind Q561 was the I&O train (above and below).

Above and four of the photos below are some of the ones I took in Lima, OH. The photos above and below were made at the north end of their yard where a second I&O train of the day was dropping its cars.

At the south end of the yard the power for the train we followed from Leipsic (on the left) is next to the power we photographed at the north end of the yard.

Q561 was first out of town shown here crossing the Chicago Fort Wayne & Eastern (former PRR New York to Chicago main line) in Lima.

Finally, the I&O, now on its own track crossed the CF&E.

The last series of images of the day were of this GE 25 ton switcher at the Heritage Cooperative Elevator in Ada, OH; and yes it is still used.

I hope you enjoyed the photos.