Over the last month of so, Kris and I have paid weekly visits to Pennsylvania’s Strasburg Rail Road to observe and photograph their trains.
During this time, former Canadian National Mogul-type 89 has been the star attraction. However, on Friday, we observed the 5 and 7pm trains that ran with former Norfolk & Western 4-8-0 number 475.
I really like the way this locomotive looks and sounds. It had a long tapered boiler and smoke box that gives it a classic appearance, while its whistle makes a low mournful cry that stirs a vision of the past.
We waited at Esbenshade road for the return of the 7pm train, listening to the engine work upgrade and sound for the crossings.
I made this sequence of photos with my Nikon Z digital cameras as the train approached.
On our way home, we paused along Jefferson Drive in Greenfield, Lancaster, PA, to roll by Amtrak Keystone 620 on its run from Harrisburg to Philadelphia.
The sun had dropped under a textured evening sky, making for a stunning display of natural color.
Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom set to 50mm; f4.5 at 1/800th of second at ISO 2000.Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom set to 50mm; f4.5 at 1/250th of a second at ISO 2000.Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom set to 50mm; f4.5 at 1/160th ofa second at ISO 2000.
On February 27, 2021, I posted ‘Reading Company 2102 Location Unknown’, that featured a photograph my father made back in May 1963. Previously, I’d run this photo across the gutter as an opening spread in my book Locomotive (published by MBI in 2001).
At the time I was preparing the book, I quizzed my Dad about the location of the photo, and he was unable to recall the details, except that it was a Reading Iron Horse Ramble ‘somewhere in Pennsylvania’.
In the two and half two years since I first posted “Reading Company 2102 Location Unknown” on Tracking the Light, I’ve received considerable response regarding the location of the photo.
In the meantime, I built an HO-model railroad based on the Reading (my ‘Wee Reading Company which included a model of 2102), got married to my fiancée Kris, and then during May and June this year we moved New Hampshire to Pennsylvania . ( And I had to sacrifice the Wee Reading Company in the process).
Several readers acted as detectives and narrowed the location of my father’s photo and provided me great detail . As it turns out location is less than an hour from our new home in Lancaster.
The other day, Kris and I drove to the crossing in the photo and I made a sequence of ‘Now’ photos to pair with my father’s original slide.
I didn’t have a copy of the photo with me and had to work from memory. (I’d hoped to use the image as posted on Tracking the Light, but the signal in the Brandywine Valley was poor and I could pull up TTL on my phone).
Interestingly, the first photo I made matches up nearly perfectly with my Dads. I sent him a phone photo with my iPhone once we signal, and he wrote back, ‘Yep! That’s the place’.
Special thanks to everyone that helped find location Pop’s ‘Unknown Location’, including Robert Mastrippolito, George Legler (who also supplied the vintage 1/4 mile map), John Hartman, Scott Snell and Chris Bost. Thanks guys!
Back in May 1963, Pop stood at the crossing south of Coatesville near Embreeville in Newlin Township, PA., where Youngs/Harveys Bridge Road, crossed the Reading Company tracks. The view is looking south toward Harveys Bridge, which was located between milepost 26 3/4 and milepost 27 on the former Reading Company’s Wilmington and Northern line, a line now part of the East Penn shortline system.
Photo exposed in July 2023 with a Nikon Z7-11, 24-70mm set to 70mm.
Two weeks ago, Reading & Northern’s Class T-1 4-8-4 2102 was the star attraction that captured most of the pixels that day.
I think back to the photos my dad made of a Reading Iron Horse Ramble led by a T-1 back in 1959. This was assisted by a pair of Reading Company Baldwin diesels. The T-1 is still with us. The Baldwins have been gone for a half century.
So, in another 60 years, I’ll bet 2102 is still around, but how about the GP38-2s that were also in excursion service that day.
There was a time when a GP38-2 was just about as common as diesels get. I hardly paid them any notice at all. But these days, some of those GP38-2s are now a half century old.
I made a fair few photos of Reading & Northern’s GP38-2s in between bursts of pixels of T-1 2102. Here are a few for your consideration.
Last weekend, Kris, Boomer-the-dog and I, timed our arrival at Blackhorse Road in Strasburg to catch the 1900 (7pm) evening train that only runs relatively infrequently.
I like the evening run because it is relatively quiet and the light tends to be better. Midday sun in July is a bit harsh and rarely results in optimal photographic conditions. Although it was partially cloudy, the softer light allowed good photos in both directions without harse contrast.
I made these views with my Nikon Z digital cameras of the evening train coming and going on its way to and from Leaman Place where it runs around to change directions. There’s no wye on the Strasburg Rail Road so the engines face westward.
On our evening drive we nipped over to Leaman Place to roll-by a Philadelphia-bound Amtrak Keystone.
Last week I picked up two new pairs of glasses. One is a general pair of progressive tri-focals that I wear most of the time. The other pair are tinted, polarized sunglasses designed to correct my long range vision and intended as my driving glasses. They do little for my near vision, and are useless for anything close up.
As I waited a Leaman Place, having checked the ASM tracking app to check the progress of the train, I tried to make some adjustments to my Nikon Z6. However, I found to my frustration that between the polarized lenses and the lack of close-up lenses, I really couldn’t see what I was doing.
While I was mucking with the Nikon’s menus, the rails on the Harrisburg Line started to sing.
I’d hoped to take a burst of images with the camera in ‘H’ (Continuous High’ release mode. However with my driving glasses induced functional blindness, I’d set the camera to ‘S’ (single frame). An error I discovered as the train raced by at 100 mph with the locomotive at the rear
I made two frames; one chopped the trailing cab on the engine, the next frame is more distant than I would have liked. By the time I realized what went wrong the train was a half mile down the line.
You can’t win all the prizes. I’ll try again, using my normal glasses!
Last week in the early hours the air was thick with moisture, yet the sky was clear above. As the sun rose, mist clung to the ground as billowing clouds formed before our eyes.
The lighting conditions were cosmic, compelling and rapidly changing.
As we drove through the fields around Strasburg, Pennsylvania, I made these images using my 70-200mm zoom lens.
I like the back lit effects of the rosy sun behind fog.
On these long summer evenings, the sun sets to the north of Amtrak’s Harrisburg Line along Jefferson Drive at Greenfield near Lancaster, PA.
Kris and I pulled over to watchAmtrak Keystone 618 glide east as it caught the evening glint. Running cab car first, this trainhad a pleasant surprise for us at the back: Amtrak ACS-64 642 specially painted to honor American Veterans.
My Nikon Z6 has a rapid burst exposure setting that exposes a sequence of images in quick succession which allowed me to catch this ununally painted locomotive on the move.
Kris and I paid another visit to the former Pennsylvania Railroad bridges along the Susquehanna River at Safe Harbor, PA.
We have stopped here a couple of times before, but on this visit I wanted to take a look at the upper level bridge which now hosts the Enola Low Grade Trail.
A connecting trail has been built here to reach the high level trestle.
My challenge will be returning here at an appropriate time to catch a Norfolk Southern freight. Owing to a curfew on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor with which the NS line connects, most of its freight moves through here during the hours of darkness.
The bridges are very impressive and offer a great view of the Susquehanna and the Safe Harbor Dam. See the link below the photos for information the Low Grade Trail
The high level trestle at Safe Harbor was last used by Conrail in 1988. It now hosts the Enola Low Grade Trail. The line on the lower level is the old PRR Port Deposit route used by Norfolk Southern.
Photos exposed using my Nikon Z7-II.
My technique for getting a sunburst and retaining definition in the sky is using a very small aperture (in this case f22) and exposing manually for the sky.It has been more than 40 years since Conrail discontinued electrified operations and yet the catenary masts remain as a legacy to Pennsylvania Railroad’s high voltage electric operations on these lines.Afternoon view of the Safe Harbor dam powerhouse from the Enola Low Grade Trail.
To learn more about the trail, click on the link below.
Last weekend’s Reading & Northern Iron Horse Ramble was more than just a trip. It was an event and a confluence of railway people, railway fans, railway photographers, train riders, and even members of the general public.
I sent my dad an SMS text with a of photo of 2102. He wrote back, ‘take photos of the fans.’
He has photos of Reading Company’s rambles with the railroad’s class T-1s surrounded by fans and photographers.
Below is a selection of my people photos from Saturday July 1, 2023.
A few days ago, a storm had cleared away the hazy dust and for once there was some sweet evening light at Gap, Pennsylvania along the old Pennsylvania Railroad Main Line.
We’d stopped at a nearby Rita’sIce to get a treat for Kris and pulled up to a park-like setting in view of the famous clock tower. I was tracking Amtrak Keystone train 669 and knew it was close.
When Amtrak Siemen’s ACS-64 663 rounded the bend with train 669, I exposed a sequence of photos with my Nikon Z6 and 70-200mm lens then raised my Lumix LX-7 for coming and going wide angle views, followed by another sequence with the Nikon. Kris made a phone video of me taking photos.
I’d just sat back in the car, when Kris said, ‘Look! Another train,’ as an eastward Amtrak train squealed into view. My Lumix was still in my hand and ready to go, so I made a couple of grab shots. I assume this was a deadhead move, as it hadn’t appeared on the tracker. The engineer gave us a friendly toot! as the train passed.
I love bonus trains that I wasn’t expecting!
Keystone train 669 led by ACS-64 663 catches the light at Gap, PA. Nikon Z6 with Nikkor Z-series f2.8 70-200mm.Lumix LX7 view of Amtrak Keystone train 669 westbound at Gap. This was the first time I’d seen ACS-64 #663 in motion and so I was delighted to catch it in such nice evening light.My Lumix LX7 is a wonderful camera. However, one of it’s limitations is a comparatively narrow dynamic range. In this instance the sun has completely washed out.Trailing view of Keystone train 669 at Gap.A Lumix LX7 grab shot of an unexpected dead-head move eastbound at Gap, just a minute after westward 669 had passed. The best camera is the one you have with you and ready!Lumix LX7 trailing view at Gap, Pennsylvania.
I like to put the railroad in the context of its environment, but I also like to make macro views of the equipment.
Last weekend I had several opportunities to get up close to Reading & Northern’s T-1 class 4-8-4 #2102 to make a selection of detailed views of the machinery.
Reading & Northern 2102 ‘rods down’ at the beginning of the day.Headend crew viewed from the fireman’s side of the cab at Reading Outer Station, Reading Pennsylvania.Detailed view showing the valve gear and crosshead.Smokebox view of 2102 at Jim Thorpe, PA.
Last week my sister-in-law Isablle phoned to say that she found the perfect place to meet for dinner. ‘It’s like a pub, it’s near an antique place, it has a train parked out front, and its only about a half an hour away from where you live!’
And she was right!
So Kris and I arranged to meet my brother Sean and Isabelle, and our friend Pat Yough (long time TTL reader).
Pat and I took turns to walk up an photograph the engines of the East Penn Railroad that were parked across the street by the old Reading Company Station.
The restaurant/pub was old school with a classic tin ceiling, big windows and pool tables.
I made these photos with my Lumix LX7. The staff were friendly and we all had a good time!
The other day, photographer Mike Gardner (and TTL reader) sent me a photo he made of me on a trip back in October 2004. “I think you had two Nikon F3s and a Contax G2 around your neck.” That sounds about right.
So, when photographing Reading & Northern’s 2102 with Dan Cupper on July 1st, I worked with my two Nikon Z-mirrorless cameras in tandem.
As previously described on TTL, I have my Z6 set up with a Nikkor Z-series 70-200mm zoom, and I made the following photos using this combination.
These are all relative long-telephoto views, and offer a contrast to the more traditional approach presented on my earlier TTL posts of R&N 4-8-4 2102 in action.
Molino, Pennsylvania.River Road, Near Atlas Park in West Penn, PA.Nesquehoning, PA.Nesquehoning, PA.Nesquehoning Junction, PA.Nequehoning Junction, PA.East Mahanoy Junction, PA.
Among the challenges of the July 1st chase with 2102 was haze and smoke stemming from Canadian wildfires—conditions that had affected eastern Pennsyvlania for days. This produces some unusual color temperature and made for some unusal lighting conditions.
To celebrate American Independance Day, I’m posting this view that I made of Conway Scenic Railroad’s North Conway, New Hampshire station during the July 4, 2021 fireworks display.
This was a 6 second time exposure using my Nikon Z6 mounted on a tripod. ISO 200, f9.0 24-70mm Z-series lens set to 29mm. Highlights, shadows and color balance adjusted in post processing. Photo exposed July 4th, 2021 (two years ago)
Monday evening, July 3, 2023, I’d just collected my new glasses. We were driving east on highway 741 as a brilliant rainbow graced the eastern sky. We arrived at the Strasburg Rail Road just as the colors started to fade. All around us were dramatic clouds in a stormy sky. The contrast was fierce.
I made these photos using my Lumix LX7, exposing in RW2 (RAW). I made minor adjustments in Lightroom to better balance the ground and sky.
I’ve been sifting through hundreds of photos that I made of the July 1, 2023 Reading & Northern Iron Horse Ramble to Jim Thorpe, PA.
The railroad put on an amazing show of steam and I was very impressed by the performance of the locomotive and its crew.
Below are a couple sequences made on the outward leg of the trip. These were exposed using my Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm Nikkor Z-series zoom.
My goal was to capture Reading & Northern’s 4-8-4 steam locomotive at work. In these images, I’ve tried to picture the engine in the classic ‘rods down’ position that was favored by many traditional locomotive photographers.
More 2102 images soon!
Hamburg, PA.Hamburg, PA. Lens set at 43mm.Crossing River Road near Atlas Park, West Penn, PA. Lens set at 49mm. Lens set at 49mm.Crossing River Road near Atlas Park, West Penn, PA. Lens set at 24mm.
In the 1950s and 1960s, my father photographed and traveled on Reading Company’s famous ‘Iron Horse Rambles’ over its lines in the coal country of eastern Pennsylvania.
I grew up hearing stories of these trips and viewing his many black & white and color photographs that feature the railroad’s mighty class T-1 4-8-4 steam locomotives.
I’d visited several of these engines over the years; in Baltimore, Scranton, and last year at Port Clinton, PA. But until yesterday, July 1, 2023, I’d never witnessed one under steam.
When I began my Reading Company model railroad project in 2020, among the models Kris and I purchased was an HO scale interpretation of Reading Company 2102. And this engine was a regular feature on the Wee Reading Company’s coal trains, until I dismantled the railroad back in May in preparation for our move to Pennsylvania.
Yesterday, I traveled with Dan Cupper to Reading & Northern’s Reading Outer Station (not to be confused with Reading Company’s original Outer Station) to photograph 2102.
We spent the day photographing the engine at work. These Nikon Z7-II photos at R&N’s Outer Station are merely prelude to our chase to Jim Thorpe and back photographing Reading & Northern 2012 in action. It was an exhilarating day of photography! Stay tuned . . . .
We arrived at Gap, PA about ten minutes ahead of Amtrak Keystone service 618 on its way east from Harrisburg.
I made my first photos in this curve at Gap on a visit 16 years ago—June 2007.
Thick smoky-haze filled the air and filtered the evening sun.
I made this telephoto series of images as Amtrak 618 (led by ACS-64 606) glided through the curve at Gap.
Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm zoom set to 200mm; f4.0 1/1600, ISO 400;Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm zoom set to 200mm; f4.0 1/2500, ISO 400Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm zoom set to 74mm; f4.0 1/1600, ISO 400;Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm zoom set to 200 mm; f4.0 1/500, ISO 400;
Yesterday evening the air and sky were thick with particulates. The landscape took on a surreal unworldly appearance.
As Kris and I drove around Strasburg, Pennsylvania, I made a few photos with my Nikon Z6 and 70-200mm lens.
The lighting was about as strange as anything I’ve worked with naturally.
The sun looked like a floating glob in a lava lamp. The sky was a pasty gray-lavender while wafting clouds of thick green-gray haze filled the air near the ground.
The sun didn’t so much set as it melted into the haze.
I exposed these images of Strasburg Rail Road’s preserved J-Tower and the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania’s former Reading Crusader tail-end observation car, and the nearby farm.
Yesterday evening (June 28, 2023), poor air quality made for a rosy sunset in Lancaster, PA.
Kris and I took a short drive over to Amtrak’s Harrisburg Line to catch Amtrak’s Keystone service train 653 that was down about 18 minutes from the advertised.
I especially liked the trailing view because the stainless steel train caught the rich evening light.
I made some minor adjustments in Lightroom to make the most of the reddish glow.
Amtrak Keystone train 653 westbound. Nikon Z6 with 80-200mm Nikkor Z-series zoom set to 175mm; f2.8 1.1250 sec, ISO 800.Clear signal at 64 dot 5. 175mm f2.8 1/2000th of a second, ISO 800.Glinting Amfleet at Greenfield.Sunset in a smoky sky. June 28, 2023.
Amtrak’s former Pennsylvania Railroad Main Line from Philadelphia to Harrisburg runs a short distance from our new home. While this is primarily the route of the Keystone and Pennsylvanian trains, it also hosts Norfolk Southern locals that use the line to reach secondary lines and serve local industry.
Since we moved in, I’ve heard a few NS trains but not had the opportunity to investigate their movements in daylight. However, last night we saw this local near Greenfield Road in Lancaster, PA.
As a trainman was setting up the telemetry device on the locomotive that would become the rear of his train, I made a few photos with my Lumix LX7.
Lumix LX7 photo. Exposed handheld at f1.8 for 1.5th of a second at ISO80. Locomotives were positioned at each end of the short local freight. GP38-2 5607 was being set up as the rear of the freight.
Esbenshade! What a great name for a crossing suited to silhouette?
The other day I presented an example of a telephoto view of Strasburg Rail Road Number 89 leading the Saturday 6pm excursion at Esbenshade Road in Strasburg, PA.
Today, I’m offering two examples of wideangle views at the same crossing. These were exposed as NEF RAW files with my Nikon Z7-II, which has incredible dynamic range.
In this situation to make a silhouette, I set the camera in ‘M’-mode (manual) and used the in-camera meter to expose for the sky. I have my display showing an exposure histogram, the helps me best balance the detail captured in the extreme highlights and shadows. Although this detail isn’t evident in the thumbnail camera display, it has been captured in the NEF RAW file.
After downloading the camera, I import the NEF files into Adobe Lightroom, and use the ‘Light’ slider controls (including ‘highlights,’ and ‘shadows’) to adjust the images to better reveal details across the range of exposure. Again, by keeping an eye on an exposure histogram, I can avoid pushing the limits of adjustment and minimize data loss.
To allow for individual control of the sky, I made some adjustments using the ‘select sky’ mask.
Below are two examples of unadjusted NEF RAW files and the corresponding adjusted images.
This is how the unadjusted NEF RAW file appears (file converted to a scaled JPG for internet presentation) Note the lack of detail in the shadow areas.This is the adjusted version of the same photo.Unadjusted NEF RAW file. This is adjusted version of the same file.
The old Pennsylvania Railroad station at Christiana is a neat place to catch Amtrak’s Keystone trains. Over the last few months I’ve visited this location several times.
Saturday evening Kris and I stopped by Christiana to make a few photos an approaching eastward Keystone.
I track Amtrak’s trains on my phone using the ASM.transitdoc.com app, which updates about every 5-6 minutes and shows the train’s last reported location, operating speed, and indicates if it is on-time or runnng behind, while providing a full schedule of station stops.
This is often more useful than either Amtrak’s own website, which can be difficult to navigate quickly, and more up to date than 3rd party printed schedules.
We wanted to photograph Keystone Train 674. As it turned out this was operating on a special schedule owing to track work. I only discovered the train’s schedule alteration after the fact when researching the timetable for this Tracking the Light post.
However, since we used transitdoc App, the on-line interactive map provided all the information we needed and was up to date and literally at our finger tips!
So, despite the schedule alteration, we only had a short wait at Christiana and made some neat photos of the train coming and going at speed.
In my monthly column for the July 2021 Issue of Trains Magazine, I featured a discussion of Conrail SD40 6281:
“During the 1980s, I made forays to the former Pennsylvania Railroad crossing of the Allegheny Divide, the route famous for its sinuous Horseshoe Curve west of Altoona, Pa. And here I witnessed SD40s . . . Among the locomotives in Conrail’s Cresson, Pennsylvania-based helper pool was former Penn Central 6281, a January 1971 graduate of EMD’s LaGrange, Illinois plant . . . I wonder how many times I crossed paths with this locomotive over the years, both on Horseshoe Curve on New England Central. After Genesee & Wyoming acquired NECR in 2013, old 6281 was sent to Brookville’s Locomotive Division for overhaul and returned to NECR wearing fresh orange, yellow & black paint carrying its road number 3405.”
The other night while scanning slides at my new home in Pennsylvania, I came across this view from November 1986 of 6281, second unit out on Conrail’s BUOI (Buffalo to Oak Island) at Gang Mills Yard on the former Erie Railroad route near Corning, New York.
It was like the younger me had anticipated the question the older me asked. There I was standing on a bridge in the wind to make a photograph of a common SD40 while looking far into the future.
With Norfolk Southern SD70ACe 1021 leading a heavy freight [train symbol 11Z] in our review mirror, we drove south on Highway 11 toward Nicholson, Pennsylvania—location of the famous Tunkhannock Creek Viaduct.
As regular readers of Tracking the Light are aware, in recent months Kris and I have made several visits to this momental vestige of the late, great, Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad.
From our earlier visits I had my spot picked out on a side road a little ways from the village. I wanted to arrive with ample time to get into position set up in to time to catch the train crossing the bridge.
Dappled sunlight filled the valley as we heard the freight approaching.
I made a sequence of digital images using my Nikon Z7 with 24-70mm lens. Five locomotives were in the lead with a lone DPU (locomotive set up as a radio controlled remote ‘distributed power unit’) toward the rear of the freight. [NS 11Z runs from East Binghamton, NY to Roanoke, Virginia via Enola, PA.]
Afterwards we drove back under the viaduct and paused at the visitor’s parking area where there is literature and photos of the bridge on display. Our dog Boomer got to stretch his legs and mark his spot. He was delighted, it was his first visit to the big bridge!
I wrote about the DL&W bridge in my book Railway Masterpieces (Krause 2003) The viaduct was designed by DL&W’s bridge engineer Abraham B. Cohen and completed in 1915. The late historian-photographer William S. Young researched and wrote extensively about this bridge and Lackawanna’s early 20th century line relocations. He had interviewed Cohen’s descendants. I met with Young on a couple of occasions while researching bridge projects.
Last Sunday, we exited Interstate 81 at New Milford, PA to get gas. This was the last leg in our big move, and our third drive from New Hampshire to Pennsylvania in the last month,
My plan was to follow old Route 11 toward Clark’s Summit. This avoids the traffic on I-81 and largely follows the old alignment of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western. In fact in many places Route 11 is built on the old right-of-way.
We had Boomer-the-Dog with us and this was his first trip to Pennsylvania.
As I was fueling the car, I heard the unmistakable roar of modern EMD diesels. It was a southward freight on the Lackawanna!
I concluded pumping gas before the tank was filled, and we headed south after the train.
Several miles south of New Milford, Route 11 runs adjacent to the Lackawanna, now operated by Norfolk Southern. We pulled over to roll the train by at milepost 637.
Here, Kris made a video with her phone, Boomer got to witness his first BIG freight train, and I exposed this sequence of digital photos.
Milepost 637 as measured from Mattawamkeag, Maine, dating from the brief period in the 1980s, when Guilford Transportation controlled the Delaware & Hudson, which then own this section of DL&W line.A wink of sun at just the right moment made for an even better image.NS 1021 is an EMD SD70ACe.
Soon we were off after an even bigger prize . . . (stay tuned).
After Plymouth, we drove south along the old Boston, Concord & Montreal route to Ashland, New Hampshire, where I photographed the restored Boston & Maine station there.
We had visited this location a couple years earlier. So far as I could tell, very little had changed since our previous visit.
I made these photos with Nikon Z7, and few supplemental images with my Lumix LX7. All were processed using Adobe Lightroom.
Next stop was the White Mountain College for Pets in Holderness to collect Boomer-the-Dog.
Nikon Z7 photo.Historic Ashland station photo on display in front of the station museum (copied using a Lumix LX7).Historic Ashland station photo on display in front of the station museum (copied using a Lumix LX7).Nikon Z7 photo.Nikon Z7 photo.Nikon Z7 photo.Nikon Z7 photo.Nikon Z7 photo and self portrait.Nikon Z7Lumix LX7 photo.
Saturday, on the final stage of our move from the White Mountains to Pennsylvania Dutch Country, we drove to the White Mountain College for Pets in Holderness, NH to collect Boomer the Dog from his training.
It’s a long drive and we budgeted plenty of time to get there. I used the padding in our schedule to explore a few places on the old B&M Boston, Concord & Montreal route, including the station at Plymouth, NH.
It has been an age since Plymouth was an important place on the old B&M, but the rails, albeit rarely traveled, remain in place. The station building is now occupied by the local seniors center.
The sky was swollen and spitting rain, when I made these photos using my Lumix LX7. (RAW files adjusted in Lightroom)
Strangely, while this was the first time I’d photographed at the Plymouth Station, I had a distinct sense of de ja vu. I can’t explain why.
At the end of May, I was traveling on the back platform of Conway Scenic’s 125-year old open observation car Gertrude Emma on its morning run to Conway.
Working with my Z6 fitted with 70-200mm lens, I made this pair of trailing views looking back at the iconic North Conway Station. Both images were made with the lens set at 200m and the aperture at f2.8.
Notice the relative position and aparent size of the semaphore to the station as the train pulled away from the station.
These photos are symbolic as well as literal. Yesterday, Kris and I watched as movers loaded our belongings into a truck. By the time you read this we will be on our way to our new home in Pennsylvania. I’ll still work for Conway Scenic, albeit remotely via internet and phone.
On June 4th, Trains Magazine’s web edition featured me in its ‘meet the author’ style series ‘Beyond the Byline’.
A few months back, the magazine’s Prodution Editor Nastassia Putz asked if I would participate and sent me a list of questions. This sounded like fun.
My replies included some short essays and a variety of photos, including this variation on the first photo I had published in the magazine.
In February 1984, I’d traveled on Massachusetts Bay Railroad Enthusiast’s New England States Limited. During a layover at Brattleboro, Vermont, I made a series of black & white images of this train with my Leica 3A. It was raining and I got soaked. Later I made prints and sent some to then Trains editor David P. Morgan who published this one in the News section of the magazine. I was a senior in high school at the time and I was very excited to see my photo in print.
My other answers and illustrations can be viewed by going to the Trains site. I’ve included links below. The top features a photo that my wife Kris made of me at Conway Scenic Railroad a few years ago.
I thought May 10th would be the perfect day to announce the publication of my new book titled Union Pacific and Its Predecessors.
This covers more than 150 years of Union Pacific history and includes the modern day railroad and most of its primary components (among the them Chicago & North Western, Missouri Pacific, Southern Pacific and Western Pacific)
If you ask, ‘Why May 10th?’ then you will need to read the book! (See chapter 1, pages 16 & 17).
My old pal TSH (and Tracking the Light reader) made the cover photo of UP freights at Norden, on Donner Pass.
In mid-October, I was on my way over to Connolly Station, when I noticed the Ad-wrapped Sky LUAS tram gliding west on the Red Line near the Loop Line Bridge.
Working with my Lumix LX7, I made this view as the tram passed below the bridge.
The unusually decorated tram looked good in the rich morning sun.
