Paducah and Louisville 2101 leads the daily local as they work on dropping off a string of 9 old locomotives at CSX’s Atkinson Yard in Madisonville, Kentucky on October 8th, 2023, on the Henderson Subdivision. All the units went south a few days later via CSX. Not sure where they were delivered to. Unfortunately, I never got a good shot where I could identify all the locomotives.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1250, ISO 150.
CSX I025 heads south at Madisonville, Kentucky on the CSX Henderson Subdivision on January 4th, 2024, as they pass the demolition of The Messenger Newspaper building in downtown Madisonville.
I spent a lot of good years from 1996-2013 working in this building as a photojournalist and their IT guy! Covered many, many interesting assignments over the years and to the right corner of the building there was a set of stairs with a landing where I would stand to watch and photograph passing trains. It got to where if I was working and someone in the newsroom heard a train coming, they’d call out to me “Train Jim!” LOL I thought it was fitting I get my last shot of the building with a train passing it.
The building is making way for a new Dunkin Donuts! The offices for the paper are now located in a strip mall about a mile away, and while it still serves our community, it’s a shell of what it was during the time I was there. A sad state of many papers not only across the USA, but the world.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1600, ISO 100.
Denver and Rio Grande Western 476 departs Silverton, Colorado, on October 17th, 2023, as they head back toward Durango with a freight train, as part of their annual photography charter.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/2000, ISO 120.
This is another shot from my New Year’s Day trip to Vincennes, Indiana of CSX L364-01 dropping off three flats loaded with steel at Wabash Steel Company along the Wabash River, along the CSX River Branch on January 1st, 2024.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/240, ISO 100.
An early morning view of Steam Railroading Institute’s Pere Marquette 1225 as it sits on the turntable at Owosso, Michigan. It was being serviced by crews before it backed up to the ash pit in preparation for another day of pulling the North Pole Express between Owosso and Ashley, Michigan, along the Great Lakes Railroad on December 17th, 2023.
According to their website, Pere Marquette 1225, the largest and most impressive piece in the Steam Railroading Institute’s collection, is one of the largest operating steam locomotives in Michigan. The 1225 was built in October of 1941 by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio for the Pere Marquette Railway. It’s part of the National Register of Historic Structures and is renowned for its role in the 2004 Warner Brothers Christmas Classic, THE POLAR EXPRESS™. 1225’s blueprints were used as the prototype for the locomotive image as well as its sounds to bring the train in the animated film to life!
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/10, ISO 610.
Denver and Rio Grande Western double header steam locomotives 473 and 493 pass the depot at Silverton, CO, on October 18th, 2023, as they head into downtown to drop off their passengers.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1250, ISO 100.
Denver and Rio Grande Western steam locomotive 476 leads a daily passenger train as they pull around Granite Point, just outside of Rockwood, Colorado, as they head to Silverton, CO, on October 15th, 2023.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1000, ISO 100.
CSXT 790 and 335 lead CSX M513 as it meets the CSX 1973 Chessie Heritage Unit in the siding at the north end of Kelly, Kentucky, as it leads CSX B211, a loaded potash train, on December 22, 2023, on the Henderson Subdivision.
The Chessie Heritage unit was leading an interesting lash up of one other CSX unit and 3 Norfolk Southern Units. If you check out my Saturday Edited video from this morning (episode 52) you’ll find a couple video clips of this train making its way north.
According to Wikipedia: The three railroads that would make up the Chessie System had been closely related since the 1960s. C&O had acquired controlling interest in B&O in 1962, and the two had jointly controlled WM since 1967.
Chessie System, Inc. was a holding company that owned the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O), the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), the Western Maryland Railway (WM), and Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad (B&OCT). Trains operated under the Chessie name from 1973 to 1987.
On November 1, 1980, Chessie System merged with Seaboard Coastline Industries to form CSX Corporation. Initially, the three Chessie System railroads continued to operate separately, even after Seaboard’s six Family Lines System railroads were merged into the Seaboard System Railroad on December 29, 1982. That began to change in 1983, when the WM was merged into the B&O. The Chessie image continued to be applied to new and re-painted equipment until July 1, 1986, when CSXT introduced its own paint scheme. In April 1987, the B&O was merged into the C&O. In August 1987, C&O merged into CSX Transportation, a 1986 renaming of the Seaboard System Railroad, and the Chessie System name was retired.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/2000, ISO 110.
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge steam locomotive D&RGW 473 and 476 sit at Silverton, Colorado in the early morning of October 17th, 2023. They were running on the line as a K-28 100th Anniversary Special between Silverton and Durango, Colorado and here the crews are getting their trains ready for another day of running the photo charter special.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/3200, ISO 160.
An early morning top-down view of Steam Railroading Institute’s Pere Marquette 1225 as it sits on the turntable at Owosso, Michigan. It was being serviced by crews before it backed up to the ash pit in preparation for another day of pulling the North Pole Express between Owosso and Ashley, Michigan, along the Great Lakes Railroad.
According to their website, Pere Marquette 1225, the largest and most impressive piece in the Steam Railroading Institute’s collection, is one of the largest operating steam locomotives in Michigan. The 1225 was built in October of 1941 by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio for the Pere Marquette Railway. It’s part of the National Register of Historic Structures and is renowned for its role in the 2004 Warner Brothers Christmas Classic, THE POLAR EXPRESS™. 1225’s blueprints were used as the prototype for the locomotive image as well as its sounds to bring the train in the animated film to life!
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/10, ISO 620.
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge steam locomotive D&RGW 473 leads a K-28 100th Anniversary Special with D&RGW 476 as a mid-train helper as they pass the wye at Elk Park, on their way to Silverton, Colorado on October 16th, 2023.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/800, ISO 100.
The glow of the morning sun illuminates the behind Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad steam locomotive D&RGW 463 as makes its way through the Lava Curve with a freight train on the way to Osier, Colorado, during a photo charter by Dak Dillon Photography on October 19th, 2023.
According to their website: the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad is a National Historic Landmark. At 64-miles in length, it is the longest, the highest and most authentic steam railroad in North America, traveling through some of the most spectacular scenery in the Rocky Mountain West.
Owned by the states of Colorado and New Mexico, the train crosses state borders 11 times, zigzagging along canyon walls, burrowing through two tunnels, and steaming over 137-foot Cascade Trestle. All trains steam along through deep forests of aspens and evergreens, across high plains filled with wildflowers, and through a rocky gorge of remarkable geologic formations. Deer, antelope, elk, fox, eagles and even bear are frequently spotted on this family friendly, off-the grid adventure.
According to History Colorado Website: Built in 1903 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia, Engine No. 463 is one of only two remaining locomotives of the K-27 series originally built for and operated by the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad.
The K-27 series was a departure from the design most prevalent on Colorado’s narrow-gauge lines, resulting in a locomotive with one and one-half times more power. The arrival of this series marked a significant turning point in the operation of the D&RGW’s narrow gauge lines that was to remain in effect until the end of Class I narrow gauge steam locomotion in 1968. The Friends of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad restored the engine to operating condition.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/100, ISO 320.
Digital Photo Art – CSX Conrail Heritage Unit, CSXT 1976 leads M512 as it pulls north at Kelly, Kentucky on November 9th, 2023, on the CSX Henderson Subdivision on an overcast fall evening.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/500, ISO 210.
Some days everything just comes together with light, skies, clouds, shadows, leading lines, and dramatic warm light! This day was on December 18th, 2023, as I was on the last leg of my trip to chase Pere Marquette 1225, where I captured this shot of CSX I028’s mid-train DPU as they headed down the viaduct into Howell Yard at Evansville, Indiana on the CSX Henderson Subdivision. The only thing that would have made it better is if it was a train coming out of Evansville, but I’ll take it!!
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/240, ISO 130.
CSXT 5274 leads M501 (Barr Yard – Chicago, IL to Radnor Yard – Nashville, TN) heads south on the Earlington Cutoff, that runs around downtown Earlington and Madisonville, KY on a cold winters evening, as it heads for Nashville, TN on the Henderson Subdivision, December 27th, 2022.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Air 2S Drone, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/640, ISO 120.
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge steam locomotive D&RGW 473 leads a K-28 100th Anniversary Special with D&RGW 476 as a mid-train helper as they head south through Deadwood Gulch, approaching Silverton, Colorado on October 16th, 2023.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/2000, ISO 170.
This week’s video is from my recent weekend trip to chase Steam Railroading Institute’s (SRI) Pere Marquette 1225 between Owosso and Ashley, Michigan as they ran the North Pole Express excursion train which runs to the Village of Ashley for their Country Christmas. Enjoy and please like, share, and subscribe, and thanks for watching!
Pere Marquette 1225 heads out of Owosso, Michigan as it passes the Robbins Furniture Company Warehouse Number 3, with the morning North Pole Express excursion train that runs between Owosso and to the Village of Ashley Country Christmas, on December 16th, 2023.
According to their website, Pere Marquette 1225, the largest and most impressive piece in the Steam Railroading Institute’s collection, is one of the largest operating steam locomotives in Michigan. The 1225 was built in October of 1941 by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio for the Pere Marquette Railway. It’s part of the National Register of Historic Structures and is renowned for its role in the 2004 Warner Brothers Christmas Classic, THE POLAR EXPRESS™. 1225’s blueprints were used as the prototype for the locomotive image as well as its sounds to bring the train in the animated film to life!
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1250, ISO 400.
Denver and Rio Grande Western steam charter with locomotives 476 performing a blowdown and 473 as a mid-train helper pull a freight and passenger train through Horseshoe Curve during our two-day charter between Durango and Silverton, Colorado on October 17th, 2023.
A blowdown is a way to get minerals and other contaminants out of the system. Engines want to be on a bridge or trestle because the blow down itself can reach 30+ feet at an angle away from the firebox with live steam.
According to Wikipedia: The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, often abbreviated as the D&SNG, is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on 45.2 mi (72.7 km) of track between Durango and Silverton, in the U.S. state of Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and was also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1000, ISO 100.
CSX I026 rolls down the viaduct at Rahm, Indiana on the CSX Henderson Subdivision at sunset, December 18th, 2023, on its way north to Evansville, Indiana for a crew change, before heading north to Bedford Park, IL.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/3200, ISO 170.
Denver and Rio Grande Western 493 leads one of the daily passenger trains as it heads through the cut at Rockwood as they head to Silverton, Colorado, on October 18th, 2023.
Interesting note is in the ’69 classic, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid many of the train robbery shots were done between Durango and Silverton, Colorado, where the real-life Cassidy robbed his first bank. Remember the intense train explosion scene? That was shot on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad line. Also, I’m told the scene where they jumped from a cliff onto a moving train was shot at this location. Two of the D&RGW’s K-28 2-8-2 locomotives were used. in “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” #473 and. #478.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic 3 Classic Drone, RAW, 22mm, f/2.8, 1/1000, ISO 100.