I’ve often found that a place appears very different lineside compared to the view from the train.
On a rainy evening, we photographed Amtrak No. 50, the eastward Cardinal, plying the old Chesapeake & Ohio along Old Goose Creek Road between Staunton and Waynesboro, Virginia.
A couple of evenings later we rolled through in the same direction aboard the dome on Virginia Scenic Railway’s Blue Ridge Flyer and I had a complete different impression of this location.
All photos exposed digitally using a Nikon Z6-III with 24-70mm Nikkor Z-series zoom.
Tracking the Light Explores Railroad Photography Daily!
Having enjoyed our journey aboard Virginia Scenic Railway’s Appalachian Special from Staunton to Goshen, we decided to book another adventure—this time traveling east over the Blue Ridge on the Blue Ridge Flyer. (Same train set, different run).
Under clear blue skies, we boarded the Budd Vista Dome Shenandoah, with our seats upstairs in the dome this time.
Before departing Staunton, Kris and I watched Amtrak No. 51, the westbound Cardinal, work up the old Chesapeake & Ohio grade. It had been nearly ten years since I last traveled on Amtrak’s train over the C&O route.
One of the great pleasures of riding in a Vista Dome is the expansive view both forward and aft—especially when meeting opposing traffic.
Approaching the siding at Afton, we got a “white eye”—a lunar white signal aspect. This is a restricting signal.
“We’re in luck! Our train is taking the siding. I’ll bet there’s an empty coming against us.”
Where else on a short line tourist excursion train do you get a signaled meet with a 197-car freight?
At Crozet—named for the 19th-century civil engineer who laid out the route—we paused for the runaround, where our locomotive changed ends. On the return leg, we watched a Blue Ridge sunset from one of Budd’s finest cars.
Joining the main at Staunton.View of C&O’s Staunton station from the dome. It seems quite different than from street level.Meeting coal empties near Afton, Virginia.For me this was the highlight of the trip!Run around at Crozet. Returning to Staunton; the old C&O main climbing west on the right.
Tracking the Light Explores rail photography every day!
The former Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad station in Staunton, Virginia, is a classic structure set in a tight location.
The old C&O main line—now operated by short line Buckingham Branch, which hosts Amtrak, CSX, and the Virginia Scenic Railway—is situated on a sharp curve, pressed against the rocky base of a hill that rises south of town. The street side of the station is bordered by cobblestones and faces a collection of historic buildings characteristic of Staunton’s downtown.
The station was designed by T. J. Collins and built in 1902 to replace an earlier structure.
Using my Nikon Z6-III with a 24–70mm lens, I made this selection of photographs in the late afternoon during the first of several visits to the station in late March. The high-contrast, directional light emphasizes the textures of the brickwork and cobblestones.
I’ve arranged the images below in the order in which they were exposed.
