"Dash"ing Through the Woods

8:00 AM found me bound for Randall. It was a lovely morning and dreams of trains were dancing in my head as I left Wadena. The tracks were quiet until I had almost reached Dower Lake when a westbound showed up on it's journey to Dilworth. I didn't get a good look at the power but decided to continue on. I'm satisfied with that decision. 

Before reaching Philbrook I spied the rear end of a stopped crude eastbound. Luckily in a matter of moments a westbound stack train had obscured my view. With any luck the crude train would be next, so I stopped catch the cantilever doing its job one more time. 

Since he was pulling from a dead stop, there was probably time to reach  Quiken Road. I quickly drove there and had time find a location to catch the train rounding the curve. Third unit was as shiny an H3 Dash 9 as I've ever laid eyes on.

 Then it was time to go to work. After spending a few hours in Randall, I check the ATCS before leaving. Sure enough the railroad had served up a westbound for my viewing pleasure. Sadly Mother Nature had also served up a nice helping of overcast. Here's what you get when you take a train and add haze.

4 more Dash 9's, these all matched in H2 paint. It was kind of pretty.

I also shot a train in the Staples yard on the way down, but due to the mixed power it didn't fit the theme of this post. I'll try and process it for Flickr. The overpass construction makes shots that once were easy quite a bit tougher.

That's my story of "Dashing" through the woods today.

Central Intelligence Agency

The CIA is rumored to have its headquarters in Langley, Virginia, but I think there is a branch office somewhere near Alexandria, Minnesota since lots of really good intelligence comes out of that area.


For example last weekend I received word that a Z train with a pair of new GEVO's on point was headed west. With plenty of advance notice, I was able to keep one eye on ATCS and time my adventure almost perfectly. Given the sun angle it seemed like the best shot would be at Bluffton. Sure enough, just as reported, the train showed up with fresh paint leading. When the trucks and fuel tank are as silver as these were you know the power has to be just out of the factory.

I want to take this opportunity to say thanks for the heads-up, not just for this particular piece of information, but for a lot of different tips. They are greatly appreciated, please keep them coming.

Hey Mr. Cloud, Who's Boss?

Father's Day, what to do. ATCS shows three westbounds possibly "in range". With the first one getting fairly close it seemed only natural to set up at the Bluffton curve for a shot. It looked lovely sweeping around the corner, not so much when that big old cloud reached out and gave me a beating.


So, I'm 0 for 1. Let's go to Staples, and see if we can do something productive with the next train. I knew it would be tight timewise and sure enough a headlight appeared as I neared Dower Lake. After a short hike through the ditch a pile of ballast provided a perch for shooting the train.


The Staples DQ provided supper, which was consumed while sitting at the Dower Lake crossing. I was hoping that the Ferromex unit in the yard would head west, but an eastbound cleared up a warrant so after a short wait I got to try an artsy backlit shot that focused on the rail that had been replaced but not yet picked up and hauled away.


There was a DPU facing the right way on this Becker train, and that gave a chance for a nicely lit going away shot. At least the clouds let me have this one.


Mrs. L4T and bumped into someone we knew at the Staples Depot and had a nice conversation. Time flies when you're having fun, and soon enough the last westbound showed its face for me. Once again, Mr. Cloud showed who was boss.


Having given up hope that the visitor from the south would come out and play, I had to try one shot of it hiding behind a bare-nosed MAC. Here's what I came up with.


With that we headed for home. Even though the clouds reminded me once more who was boss, it was a fun outing.

Homebound under the Clouds

It's funny how times change. Not so many years ago, there were extensive discussions on the OMR list about who had been lucky enough to catch a BNSF loco in the new "swoosh" paint scheme. Those who had captured their first loco decorated this way were envied by the many of us still waiting for a first real-life sighting of such a unit. Oh, how we lamented the seemingly endless string of DC-powered coal trains behind warbonnet SD75's, green giant SD60M's, and the fleet of Oakway lease "power by the hour" SD60's in their attractive blue paint scheme.

Fast forward a few years, and it seems the worm has turned. Nowdays probably a majority of the trains, or at least close to a majority, have at least one of the H3 units in the consist. We railfans have lamented the demise of many models of locomotive, including the SD40-2 series and just about every other EMD 6 axle unit with the exception of the MAC's and ACe's.

But for some reason these old friends seem to be making a comeback. The 40's started to reappear, now designated SD39-2 and derated on paper to 2999 HP. They have become fairly common on work trains and other low-priority service, with new numbers in the 1600 and 1900 series (among others, I'm sure). Their old numbers are being swallowed up by the hordes of new GE's that continue to appear on the railroad. The 40's were followed by the SD75's, some in H2 paint and many others still in good-looking warbonnet paint schemes. The SD60M's, renumbered to make room for new coal power in the form of SD70ACe's, have been showing up for some time now. And finally, rumor has it that some of the blue SD60's are once again out and about, hauling freight trains across the countryside and earning their keep.

Today I returned home from a trip to Hallock, and of course followed the Noyes sub from Hallock to Crookston. Somewhere near Argyle, a headlight showed itself far to the south. It was soon obvious a train was on the way, and I pulled over at a crossing for a shot under the clouds. This train was led by an ES44AC, and had an unusual mate in its consist. First, the leader:


And here's the trailing unit-the first Oakway I have seen underway in I don't even remember how long. Obviously, this called for a going away shot to record the moment for posterity.


Well that was interesting. And so I continued on, anxious to get home. The BNSF's Grand Forks Sub and the CP's DL Sub were thoughtful enough not to disturb my travels. In fact, the next train I saw was stopped on the west side of Perham, but far beyond photo range. With no time to cut through town for a shot under overcast skies, on I went.

Then, this appeared, also stopped, this time on Main 1 east of Perham, near what I call the "Big Woods". 4 matched units, a Z train, what the heck, I'll grab a shot even though it's cloudy. And so I present:


That was it for today. Oh, I almost forgot a grain train on the loop at Argyle, but in no position for photography. I have a couple of shots from the previous day, when they were loading as I passed by, that I'll pick through to see if one is worth posting. Other than that, you now have my entire report on train action between Hallock and Wadena, the afternoon of June 2, 2011. That is all.

Sunday Z

Fate left me all alone this afternoon. There were a lot of things that needed doing, but the lovely weather was a temptation as well. A check of the ATCS revealed a solitary westbound the other side of Philbrook, so after puttering around the house for a bit I decided to head for the most west-facing segment of track in the Wadena area to see if there was any nose light to be had.

I waited less than 10 minutes before hearing the train blowing for the crossings to the east. The weather nice enough to leave a window down giving me plenty of notice. A cranked up zoom yielded the first shot, as the train approached the bridge over the Leaf River.


This Z train was moving fast, but there was time for a couple of more shots as the train approached. The train had a nice looking set of power, three Dash 9's all with decent looking orange paint. There are a lot of really ugly Dash 9's on the rails, and it's a pleasant surprise to see three that look like these do.


After the train passed, it was back home again, for a session playing with CV's and soldering feeders to the track.

Jim

A Train Photo for You

Life has been hectic in the L4T household. Mrs. L4T is busy preparing for her mom's 90th birthday bash this weekend, and I've had some work to do. Tomorrow I am off to help one of the victim's of Wadena's tornado move into a different home.

But tonight we had a few minutes to grab a sandwich at McDonald's and stop at the Depot for an evening meal. We weren't interrupted by any trains, but after a short ride we were heading home when I spotted an approaching headlight on Main 1. I decided to shoot a fast moving Z train entering town.


I've got some of the photos from Verndale processed, and am trying to find time to work on some more. Hopefully I'll have a few ready for the coming week, when I'll be in Northeast Minnesota, and some evening I can put together a post telling the tale of Verndale Rail 2010.

Until that time, take the photo posted above as evidence that I am still alive and kicking. All for now,

Jim

4 Way Meet

Got a bunch of photos this afternoon, but wanted to share one now. The rest will trickle out over time.

Mrs. L4T and I wound up in Hawley and in the midst of a 4 train meet. I can't think of another time I have had the chance to get 4 trains in one frame on the Staples Sub, other than in the Staples yard.


I know it's hard to see the fourth train-a westbound coal empty parked behind the stack train led by a pair of NS GE's. Really, all you can see in this shot is the headlight. Still, it was kind of cool. It also created some interesting operations that I will detail in another post later.

Jim

Happy New Year's Morning

It was COLD this morning. Heck, it's still -8 as I write this, just after lunch. But the weather didn't stop me from getting trackside this morning.

With a couple of eastbounds on the move between Dilworth and Detroit Lakes, I headed west from Wadena with the rising sun just beginning to illuminate the landscape. My plan, such as it was, involved continuing west until I encountered a train, and then deciding what to do next at that time. The radio issued occasional hints of action but little of concrete value. As I passed by Perham, my first hard bit of evidence came in the form of the MP 203 detector warning me of a train on Main 2. Knowing that this almost had to be the first eastbound, I made a reverse move (u-turn) and staked out a location just to the east of Perham. After a very short wait I got my first train on 2010, at about 10 minutes after 9 AM on January 1. This H1 Dash 9 was leading a Z train. Somehow, the road number seemed to fit the date:


A glance at ATCS showed me that a westbound was due shortly, and I headed to New York Mills to contemplate whether there was a shot of the next eastbound to be had there as well. I heard the westbound pass the detector at MP 174, and shot a GEVO leading a manifest at the west crossing in Mills.


This manifest had a DPU, which it seems is becoming more common in the area. I got a shot of the Dash 9 pusher for history.


Right after this, the dispatcher (someone who I hadn't heard before) called the Z train asking for a roll-up. I figured this must mean the second eastbound (which I knew was behind BNSF 5488, as I heard them get a warrant earlier) was close. Turns out they were still at MP 201 so back to Perham it was. I set up again for video and still photos of what turned out to be a short grain train meandering through middle Minnesota.


Since he wasn't making much speed, and I was thinking about heading home, I decided to jump ahead of him for a couple of shots as he approached the CR 75 crossing just west of Wadena. Here's a series of three shots as this train climbs up the grade from the Leaf River crossing.




I kind of like the middle one.

And with that, I decided to return home, to warm up a cold foot caused by an influx of snow over my boot top. Mrs. L4T has asked whether she should plan anything for supper and I told here we would have to play it by ear tonight and tomorrow, as the weather looks conducive to heading west. Tonight's forecast low in Wadena is -27 so I think it's more likely I will have breakfast at home tomorrow.

Jim

Post Christmas Snow in the Sun

Having suffered from a railfan drought for almost the entire month of December, Mrs. L4T and I decided to head out this afternoon to check on a train that was showing westbound from Staples. Since the sun angle in the Wadena area this time of year is not at all conducive to afternoon photography, I headed for the only spot where there was a chance for nose light-Bluffton.

After a short wait we we greeted by an empty Dairyland Power coal train, headed up by three EMD's. I shot him as he crossed the bridge over the the Leaf River.


One more shot as he approached the grade crossing, kicking up a cloud of the fresh snow we received over the Christmas holiday.


The defect detector at MP 174.1 told me this train had 442 axles, which meant only 106 empties, a bit shorter than the average coal train on the Staples Sub.

I suspected there was an eastbound out and about as well, and as we chased the coal empty west, sure enough, we met an eastbound Z train. After a U turn and short chase, I grabbed a photo near the same location as the first two, unsuccessfully trying to capture the setting sun as the train passed. A matched set of three Dash 9's in the H2 scheme is getting to be less common than it once was.


And then we headed home. Hopefully the chances we get to check out the rail action will increase over the next few months, along with the length of the days. All for now.

Fighting the Fog on the Staples Sub

Saturday morning dawned foggy, but the computer promised that upper levels were finally clear of clouds! Your correspondent was out the door before 8:00 AM, confident that the sun would soon have the fog burned away, even afraid that it would happen before there was a chance to shoot a train making its way through the gloom. Obviously, that was an unfounded fear. The image above gives an idea of what the atmosphere was like at the CR75 crossing on the west side of Wadena this morning.


This second image is evidence that the fog was in charge even on the far side of Verndale. I was chasing this manifest train, and at the time I shot this photo fully expected to find another spot to take a shot of him emerging from the fog.

As I passed through Aldrich, the fog began to lift. In fact, by the time the train reached the CR 9 crossing, it was lit by a strange glowing sensation. Oh that's right, it's the sun.


The second photo and third photo were taken 6 minutes, and about 5 miles, apart. What once was fog had become clarity.

Continuing on to Staples, I found a pair of loaded coal trains laying over in the yard. As the sun has now gone around to the south in the morning, I grabbed a shot of them from the far side of the yard. Too bad the ACes couldn't have been leading.


ATCS revealed another eastbound, which passed the Staples detector just as I got back in the Escape. The first shot was right down the yard lead from the 7th St crossing.


Next shot, as the train passes the Staples depot. The new roof is on, and work on the soffit and fascia is also progressing. It seems the depot has received a new lease on life.

One other thing I noticed while waiting for this shot-Staples apparently is now whistle-free, as none of the trains passing through this morning blew for the crossing, and there are signs in place warning motorists "No Train Horn".


Time to head back to Wadena. The highway was free of fog as far as Aldrich, where it was still socked in. The fog continued all the way to Wadena, where I stopped at the depot to grab this shot of an eastbound Z train:


Hard to believe it can be clear blue skies in Staples while Wadena is still socked in, but that's the way it was. Even now, at 1:00 PM, skies in Wadena still have not cleared. Oh, well, at least I got to see a little sun this morning.

See you along the tracks.

Jim

The Second Coming of 4449

On Tuesday, October 13, the SP 4449 "Daylight" steamer began its trip home from the Twin Cities area back to Portland, Oregon. Seeing as how it was using the Amtrak route, which includes the Staples Sub, to head west, it hardly seemed like a Staples Sub railfan could ignore the passage.

I had made extensive arrangements to fan the trip east in July. This time, having just returned from a week long vacation, taking the entire day off hardly seemed doable. I still wanted to get a glimpse of the engine passing through the area, though, and Mrs. L4T and I managed to sneak out on a late lunch break to wait for him in Bluffton. I figured this was the only spot nearby where I would have a chance at decent nose light, so Bluffton it was. Before we even made it out of Wadena, we came across the Wadena local posing for a photo on the siding north of the mains at the depot, so out came the camera.


After that shot we headed west. We made it to the crossing about half an hour before the crowd began to arrive. Soon after parking and setting up the video camera, a couple more vehicles pulled up. One was carrying two older gentlemen who were following the entire trip, from the Twin Cities to Portland. The rest were locals who just wanted to see the steam engine pass. I got a shot of the fans as we waited for the train.


Before the steamer showed, we were treated to the passage of a Z train the dispatcher had run around the former SP engine during the Daylight's service stop in Staples. The crew on this train probably never expected this kind of attention in the sleepy burg of Bluffton.


I had the ATCS fired up, and along with the GPS on the steam train it was obvious that we didn't have long to wait. The video camera was all ready to go, and shortly the wailing of the steam whistle could be heard approaching. I decided to try a long range tele shot down the throat as the train crossed the Leaf River bridge, and it didn't turn out too well:


I liked the results of the wedgie a lot more-this is the first sunny shot I got of the 4449, after a bunch of cloudy shots on the earlier trip.


Now that's more like it.

And then it was time to say so long to a new friend. Farewell 4449, and may you return again, soon.


I slowly packed up and watched the rest of the crowd race off to the west. Mrs. L4T, my trusty railfan companion, made the comment that chasing the engine all the way to its Portland home seemed a little excessive, and I couldn't help but agree.

We talked about the runby, and agreed that the second coming of the 4449 didn't stir the same excitement as the intial trip. It was still fun to see, and well worth taking the time out of the day, but it's hard to match a person's first encounter with a steam engine.

Jim

Western Adventure

On Sunday, August 24, having missed out on a run to Staples for the weekend, and inspired by a post to the OMR list, I got the bug to head over to the western end of the Staples Sub for some photo ops. The sun was out and it was a beautiful day, so Mrs. L4T who is always up for a drive, said "why not?".

So it came to pass that around 3 PM we loaded up and headed west with a destination of somewhere around Lake Park sometime today. The sun was still pretty high in the sky and quite a ways south so I decided I would stake out the Frazee area for a little while as the s-curve gives you decent afternoon light for eastbounds. We waited for a train with no luck, and after about 45 minutes I decided to head to Detroit Lakes to get gas, since I had heard it was the cheapest location in the state at the time.

While we were gassing up at Holiday, an eastbound coal train cruised through DL with a 1x1 DPU consist. I knew I could beat him back to Frazee so we headed back to the s-curve. As I turned off Highway 10 I spotted an empty headed my way as well, and really moving. I wasn't able to get ahead of him for a shot. I did set up for the loads and got BNSF 9999 leading the train. The engineer gave a friendly toot on the horn as he passed.



I knew the DPU was pointed to the rear and quickly ran down to where the track curves toward the east so I could shoot him going away. The sun angle wasn't the greatest, but this was the first time I have seen an ES44DC used in coal service, especially as a DPU. They aren't unknown on grain trains, leading or DPU, but the coal trains are pretty much all GE AC units or some type of EMD. Obviously there is no rule that can't be broken. After all, BNSF has ACe's leading manifest trains as well.


Having captured that train, hunger pangs were starting so Mrs. L4T and I stopped at the Burger Time in DL and grabbed supper, eating as we continued west. I heard the dispatcher give a warrant to an eastbound and tell him there were two Z's headed west so I knew there would be some traffic into the sun this evening.

I set up first at the old wooden bridge just west of the Highway 32 overpass near Hawley. I'm new to this area so was just experimenting. Shortly after I arrived I saw a headlight to the west. Turned out to be another coal load, and he was working hard dragging the coal up the hill. This train had two units up front and one at the rear.



Quite a change from the trains that fly through Wadena at track speed. Here you could really feel the power that is needed to lift heavy trains up the grade.

Mrs. L4T encouraged me to work the curve under the Hwy 32 bridge into a photo. Soon the first Z train of the evening showed up.


With that I was off to Mt Muller, my destination for the evening. I knew another Z was on the way, and I heard him hit the detector at MP221. I had no idea how close I was cutting this, though, until I parked and started climbing the hill with a pop in one hand and lawn chair in the other. I heard a curious roar and suspected a train. Dropping my cargo, I sprint-waddled up the hill as I unlimbered the camera, only to be greeted with this:


I felt like the Navy SEAL who has to take a shot after a 3 mile dead run. I literally had less than 5 seconds to zoom, compose, and release the shutter. I was pretty happy with how it came out.

After taking a minute to gather myself and find my cargo, I took a seat at the top of the world and waited. The scanner was in the car, with the antenna, and soon my cell phone rang. Mrs. L4T reported that "someone was talking on the radio about Wadena and Richards Spur and stuff". When I asked if they mentioned Main 1 or 2 she responded that if I wanted that much detail maybe I should come down and listen myself. She did offer that she had hear Glyndon mentioned as well so I surmised an eastbound was getting a warrant. Sure enough, about 20 minutes later I heard a horn drifting across the landscape from the west. I got a shot of the power as it rounded the curve heading toward Lake Park. You need to click on this one to see the power.


As I watched the train recede into the distance, another headlite popped up right beside it. Another westbound! This one was a merchandise train with two Dash 9's up front, the lead one in H1 paint.


It was getting time to head for home, so we packed up and pointed the Escape east. I spotted a CP northbound as we entered DL and got permission for one more chase. After an interminable wait at the Hwy 10/Hwy 59 light, I scooted north and caught up to the slow moving freight just a few miles north of town. I tried to catch him at the slough where MN Chris once took a great reflection shot (can't find a link to it now), but the light was poor, so I settled for this instead. The CP train had a single GE for power.


All in all, a fun and rewarding afternoon and evening with a cooperative partner. The weather and scenery could not have been better. Thanks for listening to this long-winded story, and be sure to keep looking for trains.

Jim, out.