After completing it’s interchange work with the Paducah and Louisville Railway, CN 5854 (GTW) leads the Fulton to Paducah, Ky local L513 long nose forward as it crosses over Maxon road on it’s return trip to their yard in Fulton, Kentucky, as the light of the day fades from the sky.
Tech Info: Nikon D800, RAW, Nikon 50mm, f/1.4, 1/100, ISO 6400.
Canadian National 3023, the new Elgin Joliet & Eastern Heritage unit, (EJ&E) leads loaded pet coke train U700 as it heads south on CN’s Bluford subdivision at Chiles Junction in West Paducah, Ky, on November 21st, 2020.
According to a press release from CN: This is one of five locomotives representing the railways that have joined their team since their privatization, 25 years ago. Each one features the colors of the railway at the time it merged with CN as well as the logo specially created to commemorate the quarter century of our IPO. These acquisitions propelled our service farther than any other North American railway, similar to our IPO propelled CN to new heights. The engines release so far are BC Rail; Grand Trunk West; CN; Illinois Central; Wisconsin Central; and Elgin, Joliet &Eastern.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/240, ISO 200.
Terminal Railroad Association (TRRA) crews work on dropping cars from a BNSF train at the St. Louis Madison yard at Venice, Illinois with BNSF 7477 and 4051 as power.
According to the TRRA website: “Since 1889, the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis has played a vital role in the railroad operations and growth of the St. Louis metropolitan area on November 7th, 2020.
The Association was originally created to satisfy the need for an efficient, safe, and economical method of interchanging rail traffic at the railroad hub of St. Louis, Missouri: the “Gateway to the West.”
Over 120 years later, the employees of the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis make the same commitment to efficiency, safety, and value to our customers, owners, and the public with each new day.”
Tech Info: Nikon D800, RAW, Sigma 150-600 @220mm, f/6.3, 1/1600, ISO 560.
Paducah and Louisville Railway’s University of Kentucky Locomotive 4522 leads LG1, a northbound Louisville Gas and Electric load of coal past Scotty’s Rock Yard rail operations at Leitchfield, Kentucky on October 30, 2020, where a southbound PAL local waits in their yard for it to clear.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/1000, ISO 100.
With a fresh crew on board, Canadian National 3023, the new Elgin Joliet & Eastern Heritage unit, (EJ&E) waits for an incoming empty coal train to get into the siding at CP South Oaks in Fulton, Kentucky before heading on south with U700, a loaded Pet Coke Train, on CNs Bluford subdivision at Fulton, Kentucky on November 21st, 2020.
According to a press release from CN: This is one of six locomotives representing the railways that have joined their team since their privatization, 25 years ago. Each one features the colors of the railway at the time it merged with CN as well as the logo specially created to commemorate the quarter century of our IPO. These acquisitions propelled our service farther than any other North American railway, similar to our IPO propelled CN to new heights. The engines release so far are 3115 BC Rail; 8952 Grand Trunk Western; 8898 CN; 3008 Illinois Central; 3069 Wisconsin Central; and 3023 Elgin, Joliet & Eastern.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/120, ISO 400.
Canadian National locomotives 5768 and 2864 head south across the Ohio River from Metropolis, Illinois with a mixed freight as they head south on the CN Bluford Subdivision, on November 21st, 2020.
According to the web: The Metropolis Bridge is a railroad bridge which spans the Ohio River at Metropolis, Illinois. Originally built for the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, construction began in 1914 under the direction of engineer Ralph Modjeski. It has a single track jointly owned by Canadian National Railway, BNSF Railway and Paducah & Louisville Railway.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/200, ISO 200.
CN U700 Crew Change
A topside view of Canadian National 3023, the new Elgin Joliet & Eastern Heritage unit, (EJ&E) leading loaded coke train U700 during a crew change (cropped photo and drone wasn’t over engine or crew during flight) before heading on south on CN’s Bluford subdivision at CP South Oaks at Fulton, Kentucky on November 21st, 2020.
According to a press release from CN: This is one of six locomotives representing the railways that have joined their team since their privatization, 25 years ago. Each one features the colors of the railway at the time it merged with CN as well as the logo specially created to commemorate the quarter century of our IPO. These acquisitions propelled our service farther than any other North American railway, similar to our IPO propelled CN to new heights. The engines release so far are 3115 BC Rail; 8952 Grand Trunk Western; 8898 CN; 3008 Illinois Central; 3069 Wisconsin Central; and 3023 Elgin, Joliet & Eastern.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/100, ISO 100.
CN Elgin Joliet & Eastern Heritage Unit Canadian National 3023, the new Elgin Joliet & Eastern Heritage unit, (EJ&E) leads loaded coke train U700 under the old Illinois Central coaling tower, left over from the steam era, as it heads south on CN’s Bluford subdivision on a misty overcast day at Reevesville, Illinois on November 21st, 2020.
According to a press release from CN: This is one of six locomotives representing the railways that have joined their team since their privatization, 25 years ago. Each one features the colors of the railway at the time it merged with CN as well as the logo specially created to commemorate the quarter century of our IPO. These acquisitions propelled our service farther than any other North American railway, similar to our IPO propelled CN to new heights. The engines release so far are BC Rail; Grand Trunk West; CN; Illinois Central; Wisconsin Central; and Elgin, Joliet & Eastern.
According to Wikipedia: A coaling tower, coal stage or coaling station was a facility used to load coal as fuel into railway steam locomotives. Coaling towers were often sited at motive power depots or locomotive maintenance shops.
Coaling towers were constructed of wood, steel-reinforced concrete, or steel. In almost all cases coaling stations used a gravity fed method, with one or more large storage bunkers for the coal elevated on columns above the railway tracks, from which the coal could be released to slide down a chute into the waiting locomotives coal storage area. The method of lifting the bulk coal into the storage bin varied. The coal usually was dropped from a hopper car into a pit below tracks adjacent to the tower. From the pit a conveyor-type system used a chain of motor-driven buckets to raise the coal to the top of the tower where it would be dumped into the storage bin; a skip-hoist system lifted a single large bin for the same purpose. Some facilities lifted entire railway coal trucks or wagons. Sanding pipes were often mounted on coaling towers to allow simultaneous replenishment of a locomotives sand box.
As railroads transitioned from the use of steam locomotives to the use of diesel locomotives in the 1950s the need for coaling towers ended. Many reinforced concrete towers remain in place if they do not interfere with operations due to the high cost of demolition incurred with these massive structures.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/160, ISO 200.
Terminal Railroad Association (TRRA) engine 3006 leads a cut of mixed freight as it works on building a train at the St. Louis Madison yard at Venice, Illinois.
According to the TRRA website: “Since 1889, the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis has played a vital role in the railroad operations and growth of the St. Louis metropolitan area.
The Association was originally created to satisfy the need for an efficient, safe, and economical method of interchanging rail traffic at the railroad hub of St. Louis, Missouri: the “Gateway to the West.”
Over 120 years later, the employees of the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis make the same commitment to efficiency, safety, and value to our customers, owners, and the public with each new day.”
Tech Info: Nikon D800, RAW, Sigma 150-600 @150mm, f/6.3, 1/1000, ISO 280.
Cheekwood leaf IR shot of a backlit leaf at the Cheekwood Estate in Nashville, TN!
Tech Info: iPhone 11 Pro, 720nm filter, Moment Filter Adapter, 1.5mm wide lens (13mm equivalent), f/2.4, 1/15sec, ISO 500, Edited in Snapseed and Adobe RAW. #cheekwood
BNSF 9196 leads SPC1 as it comes off the P&I Railroad Branch onto Chiles Junction with a empty coal drag in West Paducah, Kentucky as it heads north onto the Bluford Subdivision as the setting sun bathes the train in its warm glow.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/240, ISO 100.DCIM\100MEDIA\DJI_0751.JPG
CN 2977 leads a mixed freight as it passes through Chiles Junction as it heads south on the CN Bluford Subdivision at West Paducah, Kentucky.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/800, ISO 100.
A few days ago I visited the Cheekwood Estate in Nashville, Tennessee to photograph the Chihuly glass exhibit and spent the morning capturing these IR photos of these beautiful pieces!
Tech Info: iPhone 11 Pro, 720nm filter, Moment Filter Adapter, 1.5mm wide lens (13mm equivalent), f/2.4, 1/15sec, ISO 500, Edited in Snapseed and Adobe RAW.
BNSF SPC1 arriving at Paducah, Ky A infrared view from November 17th, 2020 of BNSF 6092, 6370 and 9196 heads up empty coal drag SPC1 as a Paducah and Louisville Railway crew pulls it into the north end of the yard at Paducah, Kentucky from Calvert City Terminal. Here a fresh BNSF crew will pickup the train and take it on north for another load of coal.
#infraredtrainphotography Tech Info: Fuji XT-1 with a Fuji 18-55 @ 26mm, f/5.6, 1/110, ISO 3200 and a 720nm IR filter.
Waiting on a fresh crew at Calvert City, Ky
On November 17th, 2020 BNSF 6092, 6370 and 9196 head up empty coal drag SPC1 as it sits in the loop at Calvert City Terminal (CCT)waiting for a fresh crew from the Paducah and Louisville Railway to ferry the train back to their yard at Paducah, Kentucky. There a fresh BNSF crew will pickup the train and take it on north for another load of coal.
CCT offers its customers unprecedented flexibility through its rail & barge loading, rail & barge unloading, short- & long-term storage, and material blending services.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/800, ISO 100.
Port Harbor RR at the A&K Railroad Materials Yard
Port Harbor (PHRR) switcher 8166, PHRR America’s Central Port 2758, “Illini Terminal” No. 2301 and 2064 sit tied down on Saturday, November 7th, 2020 at the A&K Rail Yard in Granite City, Illinois, waiting for their next assignment.
According to Wikipedia: The Port Harbor Railroad (reporting mark PHRR) is a short-line railroad in Granite City, Illinois, serving an industrial port district known as America’s Central Port. PHRR began operations in 2004 as a subsidiary of the Respondek Railroad and connects with the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis at “WR Tower,” a major railroad junction in Granite City.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/2000, ISO 100.
CSX Q025-14 Atlanta, GA – Chicago, IL
Hot intermodal Q028-14 passes the signals at Mortons Junction as it heads downgrade at Mortons Gap, Kentucky as it heads north on the Henderson Subdivision on November 10th, 2020 as the last light of the day rakes across the trees.
Tech Info: Nikon D800, RAW, Sigma 150-600 @460mm, f/6, 1/250, ISO 360.
Bedford Park, IL – Jacksonville, FL
CSX hot intermodal Q025-28 passes under the Paducah and Louisville Railway at Arklow on October 28th, 2020 as it heads south on the Henderson Subdivision.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/160, ISO 100.
N015 Evansville, IN (EVWR) – Palatka, FL
CSX loaded coal train N015 weaves its way through the countryside as the late evening like rakes across the tops of trees as it heads south through Nortonville, Kentucky on November 12th, 2020 on the Henderson Subdivision.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/200, ISO 100.
LORAM Maintenance at Madisonville, Ky
Crews work on the grinding wheels of LORAM Grinder 4 as it sits just south of the Paducah and Louisville Railway yard at Madisonville, Kentucky on a crisp cool fall morning on November 10th, 2020.
Tech Info: Nikon D800, RAW, Sigma 150-600 @450mm, f/6, 1/640, ISO 320.
CSX Q028-10 Atlanta, GA – Chicago, IL
CSXT 5412 leads hot intermodal north Q028-10 across the Gum Lick Trestle between Kelly and Crofton, Kentucky as the last rays of the fall sunset rakes through the valley on the Henderson Subdivision on November 10th, 2020.
Tech Info: DJI Mavic Mini Drone, JPG, 4.5mm (24mm equivalent lens) f/2.8, 1/400, ISO 100.