Catching the Train

As I was leaving the airport, I saw a train passing by so I decided to head over to Allen Park to see if I could catch it.

 Fortunately, there was another train in front of it, so I was able to catch it.

 It was pretty neat because I was able to get some other angles.

 Looking down the engine.

 A close-up of the cab.

 An engine with the tire behind it.

 The trailing engine.  They call the symbol the golden beaver.

 Another angle of the front engine.

A shot of the pair.

Chasing the Dream Again...

I'm returning to work on March 12 which means that I have two more weeks to enjoy my time off.  This gives me the chance to catch the 787 a couple more times before I have to go back to work.  It was a nice enough day, so I headed over to the airport.

 First up was an MD-88 that was arriving from Boston.

 Next up was the plane that I was interested in catching.  I was able to watch as she made her final turns towards the runway.  Unfortunately, it was too far out to get a decent picture.  At least decent enough to post here.  But that's okay, I guess.

 Royal Jordanian 267 originates in Amman, Jordan.  During the winter months, it makes a stop in Montreal before it continues here.

 It's a nice looking plane and a nice looking livery.  I heard that Air France will start flying 787's to Detroit Metro.  I can't wait.

 Next up was a CJR-700 that was flying in from Elmira, NY.

 There is usually a grouping of 757's that arrives around the same time as the 787.  I'm happy about that because the 757 is my favorite plane.  This particular one was arriving from Fort Myers.

 It was followed by a 757 from Fort Lauderdale.

 I decided to get a couple of angles.

 A 737 arriving from Tampa.

 Last up was the 757-300 from Orlando.

I think the longer 757 is my favorite.

And The Algonova

The next ship was following fairly closely behind.

 The Algonova was also heading up from somewhere in Canada.  Again, I want to say she was also heading up from Nanticoke.  Like the Algosea, she is a tanker.

 Also, like the Algosea, she was headed up to Sarnia.  I'm not sure what she was carrying though.

 At least it was a pretty nice day yesterday but a little cold.

 A shot of her pilothouse.

And she continues to make her way to Lake St. Clair.

The Algosea Passes Belle Isle

After game, I decided to check Marine Traffic and I saw that there would be a couple of ships passing.  I decided to head down to Belle Isle to catch them.

 Both of these ships were being led by the Samuel Risley but she had already passed Belle Isle by the time I arrived.  I barely caught the Algosea at the fishing pier but I think I got an okay shot.

 A shot of her pilothouse as she passes by.  As you can see, there is quite a bit of ice around Belle Isle but it didn't appear to be particularly thick.

She continues on her way up.  I think she was coming from Nanticoke and was heading to Sarnia.

Northern Illinois at Eastern Michigan Basketball - In Pictures

I was almost going to pass on the Eastern Michigan game yesterday.  I'm getting much better from my surgery but I am still not quite 100%.  Yesterday was one of those days where I wasn't feeling well.  But I decided that it was the last home game of the season and I might not get another chance to see EMU basketball this season.  Anyway, I had fun and I'm glad I went.

As always, I'll post my favorite picture of the game here and the rest of the game shots are at Hustle Belt.

 It was fan appreciation day and they had some area mascots there.  This is Muddy the Toledo Mudhen mascot.

 Little Ceasar.

 This mascot was just creepy.

 My favorite shot of the game was of Tim Bond scoring his 1,000 points.  He is another player that I got to see grow from a freshman to senior.  It is sad to see him go and I wish him the best of luck in the future.

 The EMU dance team.

 The cheerleaders during a thing called "Eastern lights" where they do a light show.

Tim Bond was also able to claim the title of EMU steals leader.  While I think he is a good basketball player, I'm not sure if his future is in basketball.  At any rate, I wish him the best of luck.

Catching the Algosteel

One of the things I missed out on while I was in the hospital was taking ship pictures.  By the time I was released, the shipping season was over but there are normally a couple of ships that sail between the closing and re-opening of the locks.  The subject of this post is one of them.

 After going up to Port Huron on Friday, I found out that there was a boatnerd gathering on Friday.  I headed up there for that.  On Sunday, I found out that the Algowood would be making her way up north, so I caught her.  I also saw that the Algosteel was heading back from Chicago.  I thought that I would catch her on Monday.

 Well, it turns out that there was an issue with the Hollyhock, so she had to wait for the Bristol Bay to come up from Detroit.  After being freed yesterday, the Algosteel made her way down Lake Huron with a destination of Sarnia.

 Having followed the boats for a while now, I know that it is roughly 19 hours from the Mackinac Bridge to the Blue Water Bridge, so I figured I needed to be in Port Huron around 2 P.M.

 My estimate was close and I didn't miss any of her journey to the port in Sarnia.

 I heard that she may be heading down to Windsor, I guess I'll keep my eyes open for that since I don't return to work until March 12.

 I hope that I can catch her again, because I heard she's only got a couple more loads in her.

 And then she faces the scrapyard.

 It will be sad day when that happens, because she is a beautiful boat.

So until next time....

Chasing the Dream(liner)

I decided that today would be a good day for me.  On Mondays and Thursdays, the 787 visits Detroit.  I also found out that a ship I wanted to catch would be passing Port Huron in the afternoon.  First I headed over to the airport to catch the 787.

 The planes were coming in from the south, so I headed to the parking deck.  I kind of like taking pictures up there because it gives me a chance to catch them landing.  First up was a Delta CRJ-900 arriving from Philly.

 I didn't catch this jet from Columbus lad, but I managed to get it taxiing.

 This CRJ-200 was arriving from Rochester.

 It was followed by an A320 arriving from Reagan Airport in DC.

 I liked the fact that I got a beacon shot.

 Next up was an MD-90 flying in from Baltimore.

 And this CJR-700 was also coming in from Reagan.

 An A319 from Boston.

 And this CRJ-900 flew in from Charlotte.

 And a 737 coming in from LaGuardia.

 The 787 was coming in a little late.  I think it normally arrives around 10:30 but it left Montreal late.

 Right now, it flies from Amman, Jordan to Montreal.  I think it will fly directly to Detroit come summer.

 I was getting lucky with beacon shots.

 And a little smoke as it touches down.

And it taxis to the gate.