Shall We Chase a Train?

Friday was the end of what seemed like a long work week to me. The trip home from Two Harbors was staring me in the face after meeting with some folks Friday morning, and that's a long ways from Wadena.

After a stop at Carr's Hobbies in Duluth, where I scored 7 decorated 53' trailer kits for an average price of less than $6 each, it was back on the road. At least I had my great buy on intermodal equipment and satellite radio to keep me company. Highway 210 rolled on and on, when all of a sudden, wait, isn't that a westbound coal empty peeking through the trees? Why it sure is! It should be easy to catch him and take a photo. First one is somewhere east of Tamarack:


The empty was moving right along, but the Escape was moving faster so the next shot came from the overpass at McGregor. The train was a bit sidelit, but that makes for interesting shadows.


I tried it as a black and white as well, not sure which one I prefer.


After a NASCAR speed pit stop at the Holiday station it was back in the saddle. Things worked out nicely as the train and I both approached Aitkin at the same time. A few miles down the road a crossing offered the chance to get a bit better lighting on the nose, although the clouds had really moved in by this time. Went from code blue to overcast in less than half an hour.


After a stop at the Menards in Brainerd the trip home continued. Once again I caught the train, this time as he was entering the Staples Sub. The clouds and poor sun angle didn't offer much in the way of photo ops. A stop in Verndale to reserve the park shelter for VR2K12 was too much to resist, though, and I shot him one final time. That makes at least four locations where this GE powered coal empty was photographed. That's the way to chase a train.