RailRoadFan.com

4/15/2005 I decided to get out of the dorm and away from the books and out into today's wonderful sunshine by heading to downtown Kalamazoo for a few hours to see some trains and get some fresh air. Unfortunately, I missed the bus I wanted to take, so I arrived there later then I wanted to; close to...

4/14/2005 NS 36E was going northbound at Gibson shortly before 7am this morning. 39J was switching cars at W. Bostford at that time. Amtrak 365, the Blue Water , was only about 25 minutes behind the clock today. Certainly a huge imporvement over the 4 hours and 20 minutes behind schedule yesterday! ...

I wasn't even alive for any of those events, but thanks so much for sharing! Excellent to see some good big steam in-Michigan shots. One quick note for anyone else who was as confused as I - the photo of the GTW train on the bring near Muskegon is actually a mirror image of the correct way - the tra...

Nice photos Scott. Gotta love those old NYC signals to get in shots along the Water Level Route - especially that huge bridge there at Vickers. Is it easily accessable to get photos like yours? I try to get them in my photos farther west in Elkhart, I just posted a couple new ones in the "Users Subm...

Hi Patrick. I'm not all that familiar with the lines up that way except the LSRC at bay city and northward, and the CSX main south of the yard there in Saginaw. You said the HESR is operating to Vassar on the old CSX line. Is this the one purchased in late Chessie/Early CSX days by the old HESR? Doe...

Hi Zach, nice night shots. I see that 1139 was with 9119 the MOW RC drone. Are any of the other old GP40 drones back in Grand Rapids? Last I heard they were down in florida or else paradeing back and forth between stanley in toledo and GR and no one knew what to do with them. Thanks for any updates.

Patrick, that is exactly what I was looking for. It would be great if they got a standardized paint scheme going and all units "assigned" by RA to the HESR could get those colors, as much as the red and gray CM colors are nice, if you were to have the BNSF C30-7, a BN painted unit, and the RA GP9, y...

Whatever they are called now, can someone give or compile a current active roster for all locomotives showing HESR/CM or RA or whoever they are these days? Anyone have any idea if they plan to get a paint scheme going for their units so they might actually match? Is the GP9 high hood still in use? a...

The C&O in 1951 decided they needed two new carferrys to capture and retain their cross-lake market share and move the cars faster across the lake. They built the Spartan, named after the MSU team in the capitol of Michigan, and the Badger, named after the Wiscnsin state capitol team in Wisconsin. N...

Good photos and a nice report there Scott. keep up the good work. Liked that you got many former NYC signals in your photos. That NW yellow caboose at Monroe has been here for at least a year, and replaced a PRR N5-C Conrail caboose, which was moved elsewhere.
-Nathan

Had the pleasure today of taking a trip with Mike (Mackinac Mac) on Amtrak trains 350 and 355 from Dearborn to Pontiac and then return to Dearborn. Decided that one can take the Amtrak to Chicago to see the endless rails and interlockings and bridges and such, but why not take the train to our own b...

I have the opportunity to go out to southern California in early March of this coming year (at least one way via Amtrak, of course!), and I'm looking at interesting railroading things to do. My homebase will be Fullerton, on the BNSF mainline and Pacific Surfliner route. I've already been to Cajon P...

Finals week is upon us here at Western Michigan and I'm taking advantage of the additional time I'm not in class by doing none other then my favorite past time - checking up on the local Amtrak happenings from my window. FIRST OF ALL, I need help in identifying a mysterious and unscheduled Amtrak mo...

Scooter B and other local railfans have been doing a good job over the past half month report on all the different unusual moves along Norfolk Southern's Michigan Line. Grain Trains, Ballast train, Track Geometry Train, plus the usual locals and manifests 38J/39J. So, I've compiled the following lis...

Went into town to see if I could catch either this Ballast Train, a random GT Botsford Movement, Amtrak 353, or B1G. I saw 353 but not up close - this guy has the 6 car consist right now with an F40 cab on the west end and an Acela unit on the other. They were right on time into Kalamazoo, and left ...

Here's a few 2667 photos from its other escapades around the state over the past years and a half: http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0SAAjA1gVo*kGVHQMfH8qIl9ekVfLydSZ3o3GaJlaRYYeVtztkRPHSuRoAtteR*kugkjM9yaovqwIrQJeo!YSeHHlXkx0h37UvVmiYn52Led2AAAAynKXAg/CC2667g.jpg Rougemere Yard, January 2004 http://gro...

Eric- 3112 was a member of a class of 45ish B23-7 locomotives on the CSXT, which came via the SBD System and purchased during the "Family Lines" Years. CSX began to retire them about 1993 or 1994, with the last few gone by the summer of 2001. Many units retained Seaboard and Family Lines paint, inde...

SBD painted 2667 is at Saginaw, MI right now.

According to Amtrak press releases, a few changes will be underway for Michigan services and St Louis-Chicago services as follows: Michigan: CHICAGO - Faster morning travel from Michigan to Chicago is a highlight of Amtrak's new timetable, effective Nov. 1, 2004. Available in stations and by mail no...

Click the LINK for the Official Announcement and changes on Amtrak.com

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentSe ... 6&ssid=170