Midweek Photos 3/30/2016

A westbound Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern freight rolls through tiny Whitewood, SD on an overcast afternoon. Taken 3-28-16.

Same train passing the Black Hills National Cemetery.

 
Finally made it trackside for the first time in 4 months, 2 hours spent along NS's x-PRR Cumberland Valley line north of Hagerstown.
First was Maugansville,MD. for NS290, a racks and stacks train. This is the only place in this area where the RR turns to the west/northwest, allowing decent lighting for afternoon eastbounds (northbounds in actual direction).

 Moved north to Marion,PA for NS202 coming out of the Greencastle Intermodal terminal, the main jogs east, then west through Marion in what was apparently double track territory in PRR days. A local fire engine found its response halted by the long stack train.

Finally, NS 203 comes west from Chambersburg after meeting 202. Intermodal has really taken over this x-PRR route. The pole line to the right marks the parallel path of the Chambersburg,Greencastle, and Waynesboro trolley, abandoned since 1928.

The Owosso roundup

Been playin' a bit with black and white.

Ed

Looks like I'm not the only one out in the dark this week!   Some of you are seeing what fun it can be.     I'll call this week's chapter, "Spring in South Dakota."  No, there aren't any flowers, Just more snow.  I didn't get many shots the past week, partly because of the high winds and rain/snow, and partly because it was Easter weekend.  I did a chance to use my new camera though.  It's a c.1926 Gundlach Korona, shooting 5x7 inch film.  The dark cherry  wood is gorgeous!   I have a small assortment of very nice c.1910--1930 lenses for it.  I hope to get it back out this weekend.  So anyway, to the trains!

1.   MILW freighthouse, Bridgewater SD.  This is the current BNSF Mitchell Sub.  At one time this was a busy railroad town, but it's all quiet now.  The train no longer even stops here--all the grain traffic is at a new elevator complex in nearby Marion.  Setting up my camera I found myself wishing it was 1926 like the camera.  There would have been some fantastic action going on!  The people there then would never have believed me if I told them that 90 years later the thriving town would be a backwater, and only a couple of grain trains a day would be whizzing through without even slowing.

2.  One day last week, must have been Saturday,  it started snowing pretty hard.  I went out and caught an empty coal train from the nearby  hump bridge at Manley, MN.  A s/b on the BNSF Marshall Sub.  I took a couple of shots.  This is one of my favorite spots. 

3. I followed the Marshall Sub on down into Iowa, hoping to hear something on the radio.  The snow was wet and heavy, and getting deep enough to make driving on the gravel roads a bit dicey.  I heard a n/b get a warrant just ahead of me, so I turned around to get far enough ahead to set up a few lights and catch it.  The snow had apparently clogged up one of the engines and the heavy grain train was only able to make 30 mph.  However, the six inches of wet snow had also clogged the roads and I was only able to make about 35 mph.  With the wind, drifts and visibility were becoming a problem too!  I finally found a spot near Jasper MN at a gravel crossing and set up a pair of flash, and the train was on me immediately.  Lead engine was a CSX C40-8. 

4. The D&I (Dakota & Iowa Railroad) continues to run into early evening.  I got a tip from the conductor that they had a n/b headed my way.  I set up a pair of big flash at the Fall Trestle in Sioux Falls SD.  This is another one of my favorite spots.

And, I guess that's all.  Next week my wife and I head to Chicago.  I like to ride the Loop trains & subway.  My wife will indulge me, up to a point. 

Kent in SD

That is some great photography! Good eye and great technique!  Thanks for sharing