A Heron surveys the Susguehanna River as a southbound Acela passes by on the Amtrak span.
MARC local approaches West Baltimore station on the NEC.
Amtrak GP38H-3 works a tie train at Halethorpe. These units were rebuilt from ex-GO Transit GP40TCs by NS's Junitia Shops.
Work train is passed by MARC local at Halethorpe, Md.
A southbound Acela passes trackside flowers at Halethorpe.
MARC local to Perryville crosses the Susquehanna River near Perryville, MD.
The southbound Crescent crosses the Bush River.
Northbound and Southbounds pass on the Bush River bridge.
A Southbound conventional Amtrak train passes a angler working the Susquehanna River.
A Northbound CSX fright is silhouetted as it crosses the Susquehanna.
Double AEM7s cross the Susquehanna as a sailboat race takes place in the river.
CSX Q416 crosses the Potomac River on The Magnolia Cutoff with a Cumberland bound train.
CSX Q401 exits Graham tunnel and sails across the Potomac River behind an AC6000.
CSX Q398 rolls eastound into the cut just prior to Randolph tunnel as it makes it way toward Brunswick, Md.
CSX T104 rounds the curve at Drywall as it heads toward the Maganolia Cutoff. A reactivated AC6000 leads the train.
CSX U306 rolls through Grasshopper as it hears Hancock.
CSX Q217 exits Carothers tunnel and passes the CPL signals as it heads toward Paw Paw, WVa.
CSX D720 exits Graham tunnel as it sails across the Magolia Cutoff Saturday afternoon.
CSX Q401 passes the signals at Magnolia on the Magnolia Cutoff.
Sunrise on the mountain. Two NS trains converge on Cresson, Pa.
in early morning light a pair of SD40E helpers lead an easbound down into the Portage Tunnel on track one.
Rebuilt SD40E shove hard on the rear of 412 a coke train at Cresson, Pa.
NS on the NS. North Shore train KH25 enters the NS Buffalo Line at Muncy, Pa. a few minutes before sunset.
Northbound 651 rolls through Sunbury, Pa as it heads north on the Buffalo Line.
The BP SIJB awaits its crew at Salamanca, NY.
BP SIJB rolls long the waters of Bradford Pa on it run to Johnsonburg, Pa.
Buffalo and Pittsburgh SIJB rolls south at Linestone, Pa. behind a trio of SD45 carbody style units.
BP SIJB climbs the horseshoe curve south of Bradford, Pa.
BP road trin SIJB rolls south at the New York/Pa state line.
MMID eastbound plow train heads east at Lynnwood, Md.
MMID plow train at New Windsor, Md.
MMID eastbound plow train heads toward Westminster, Md.
MMID eastbound plow train at Stone Chapel Raod near Westminster, MD.
Westbound plow train departs Union Bridge, Md. enroute to Highfield, Md.
Second westbound plow train heads west to Highfield, Md.
MMID plow train at Union Bridge, Md. heading east.
The Gettysburg and Northern road train heads out of Gettysburg behind ex-Algoma Central FP-9 1755. The G&N runs the F when tonnage requires two units. A working F unit is freight service in 2010 is a rare site indeed.
G&N 1577 passes a farm north of Gettysburg, Pa.
The G&N road train heads into Biglerville, Pa.
G&N 1755 is an ex-Algoma Centeral FP-9 still in AC colors.
The G&N backs upgarde to switch Knouse Foods.
The G&N switches the Knouse Foods at Biglerville.
Getty train departs Biglerville after preforming switching.
The G&N road train heads north near the village of Guernsey, Pa.
MARC 11 arrives in Frederick on P893. The horns on these units are behind the pilot and while KL5s, have a sound that is different.
A long time coming! Marc 12, the first MP36, leads solo on a regular service train at Dorsey. Md. Thursday morning.
The photo that started the decade, a Cartier Mining Company M636 exits the truss bridge near Able siding as it heads north for a load of taconite in 2000. This trip, a landmark multi-week trip to eastern Quebec and Labrador may rank as my favorite. The railroad rolled open the welcome mat and then assisted our efforts by running the most trains possible each day. The icing on the cake was the nearly 2 weeks of clear weather in an area that is often said to only get two weeks of sun in an entire year. These units would come home to the US and would be the subject of addition trips in the decade. (See last photo in the post.)
CSX Q217 passes the Pont of Rocks station a few minutes after midnight on May 07 night. This photo taken for the book the Railroad that Never Sleeps shows that both railraoders and photographers have to sometimes be up late at night.
A constant over the last decade is the Maryland Midland railroad based out of Union Bridge, Md. The classy shortline is an example of how shortlines should look. Clean attractive power and a great attitu de. Here train UBHF rolls downgrade aboveThurmont, Md. returning from the CSX interchange at Highfield. I hope GW will allow this railroad to remain a favorite.
Over the last decade Indiana has been another constant in my life. My wife's family lives in the state and numerious trips west have resulted in the exploration of a most facinating state. Indy is he semaphore capital of the US and I have explored every line over the last few years. CSX's southbound local splits the blades at Romney, In on Black Friday 08.
October 06 finds the few remaining FL-9 units running on Metro North. These, the last of the covered wagons, have lead a remarkable and long life and are a subject i photographed for the first time before i could drive on family trips to New York. When it became clear the end was at hand, a final trip to see these locomotives was in order. The sound of the 567 could be heard long before the train appeared in this view on the Wassaic Branch.
A September sunrise in 05 finds an Iowa Traction electric motor awaiting its crew to start the day. The Iowa Traction of Mason City is like no other railroad in the US and no trip to Iowa would be complete without a visit.
My very first digital train photo! And it's of an F-unit. On 12/5/01 the newspaper handed me my first digital camera to play with and I headed out to look for a subject, I found MARC's non-powered cab car on the test train running on the yet to open Frederick Branch.
October 07 resulted in a new way to vacation. I made a week long trip to Florida that was equally divided between shooting the FEC and scuba diving in the Keys. (See 2 photos at end of this post, below, for other photos from this trip.) FEC's morning northbound intermodal 202 crosses the river at Jupiter, Fl.
An April 08 trip to KCS resulted in my single most succesfull trip. The KCS is a difficult railroad to photograph due to very few scheduled freights. With lots of down time we used every minute to explore and came away with some great images. This view at Heavner, Ok. shows a northbound empty train heading to Kansas City.
A January 07 trip to the CSX's West End during a snow storm resulted in a nice selection of photos. The view at Keyser, WV of a easbound coal train crossing paths with a herd of deer was the favorite from the trip. In this view the train is running at track speed and the deer didn't change their path despite some horn work by the engineer. I feared the last deer was not going to make it and I was about to get an action shot of that end. However with inches to spare the last deer cleared the pilot.
We close out the decade with the Cartier Alco M636s still at work on the Western New York and Pennsylvania railroad. Here the DFT splits a pair of position lights on the NS Buffalo Line. I visited these units in Quebect to start the decade.
A photo of your author diving on the City of Washington off Key Largo, Florida. This photo taken by a fellow diver was part of a combination diving FEC trip.
A shark swims near the ocean floor of the Mexican coast on my very first diving trip.
Merry Christmas Winchester and Western style. Wednesday's train 86 from Inwood to Hagerstown featured and extra board guy, Bobby Stevens, spreading holiday spirit.
MMID UBEG, a plow train, clears the eastend of the railraod near Finksburg on Monday morning. The MMID ran two plow trains monday morning, one east, the other west.
MMID UBEG cleans switches on the wye at Union Bridge using both shovels and air power from the MU hoses.
Santa on WW 86 as it heads southbound at Williamsport. MD.
WW 86 departs Hagerstown for the run south.
Above and below: Southbound WW 86 on the roller coaster profile near Williasport, Md.
Santa on WW train 86 as the train nears Bedington, WV.
WW train 86 northbound at Martinsburg, WVA with a jolly ole extra board guy on board.
Santa, Bobby Stevens, rides on WW tain 86 near Berkeley Station, WV. Many thanks to Jon Wright.
MMID 306 departs Woodsboro, Md. with the return leg of the UBST stone train. The 306 shows off the new GW logo on the nose.
Nose view of MMID 306's new nose art.
MMID 306, crosses Y Road in Keymar, Md. This view from the side shows the rear of hood logo placement.
Emerging from the fog at Highfield, Md. CSX B702 local has a pair of test engines on the train.
Progress 2005, a 3 engine genset provides the power of CSX B702 as it enters Highfield.
CSX B702 rolls by the MMID interchange in Highfield as it makes a run to the ISP mill.
B702 with a interesting mix of power crosses the main road in Highfield on the Hanover sub.
Progress rail 2005 is the sole power of 4 units on the B702 as it crosses Pa. 116 in Highfield.
B702 drops down grade east of Highfield to switch the ISP mill on the Hanover sub.
Day Light action on the Port Road. NS 590 departed Harrisburg eastbound in the morning destined for the York Haven power plant.
Harrisburg off the Beaten Path
NS 37Q departs Harrisburg for Hagerstown passing though a local corn field. The big GE's have the train up to track speed.
Conductor to engineer, "I need another car." Engineeer replied, "um, I don't have it to give." NS 590, same train pictured at top, reaches the extreme end of track at power plant at York Haven, Pa. 590's engineer is demonstrating excellent train handling skills as he brings a loaded coal train up the end of track while attempting to clear a switch back in the yard. Several cars on the rear had to be cut off to allow the train to clear the switch.
NS 12R departs Harrisburg on the Buffalo Line bound for the Canadian Pacific at Sunbury and is running along the cliffs between Stoney and South Ferry.
NS 20T at last light departs Harrisburg for Altoona with a wall of stacks. The lingering fall colors and golden light created a nice end of day shot.
Maryland Midland's UBEG brings cement loads out of Lehigh Cement on the New Line.
Maryland Midland trains heads out from the company heaquarters at Union Bridge, Md.
Maryland Midland's stone train comes off the MDOT line at Keymar, MD. behind unit 302. The signal at this location indicates the switch postion, in this case the yellow is for the diverging route.
Maryland Midland pulls cars up the new line into Lehigh Cemeent in Union Bridge, MD.
Maryland Midland brings cement loads out of Lehigh Cement in Union Bridge, Md.
Union Bridge residents cross the street as a Maryland Midland train makes the last move up Farquar St.
A Maryland Midland conductor releases handbrakes as the stone train is prepared to depart.
Maryland Midland switches cars on the east end of the railroad near Finksburg, Md. on a warm evening.
Maryland Midland hauling till the cows come home. MMID's UBHF rolls throught the hamlet of Detour, Md.
Marc's last Martinsburg train of the day arrives at the station opposite the B&O roundhouse.
Conductor Russell Bly is ready for P891 to depart Frederick, Md. for its run to Washington D.C.
Three Marc GP40WH-2s roll into Baltimore with an early afternoon run to Camden Station.
An Express train moving at 100 MPH on the center track passes a local making a station stop at Halethorpe, Md. The yellows signs above the GP40 tell Amtrak trains to reduce speed to 100 MPH.
A Patch of sunlight catches the nose of a Marc penn line train as it blasts off from its station stop at Halethorpe, Md.
A Pair of Marc GP-40WH-2s, each going in opposite directions, pass on the North East Corridor.
A Martinsburg train arrives at the Harpers Ferry station at dusk as a lone passenger waits on the platform.
P891 arrives at Frederick, Md. the end of its run.