A Norfolk Southern Engine Over the Southfield Freeway

 As I was heading back from the park, I saw that there was an engine stopped over the road.  I've always wanted a shot like this, so I stopped my car to get a picture of it.

I was hearing a few train horns as I was taking pictures of the Alpena, so I was hoping to catch a train.  Well, this gave me the opportunity.

A Lake State Railway Train

 I'm going to put this post in between two posts even though it puts this one slightly out of place.  As I was waiting for the Cuyahoga to pass the Blue Water Bridge, I caught his guy.

It was an engine belonging to the Lake State Railway.

I think they took over the contract from Canadian National and they serve the paper plant.

The train leaving.

Catching a Pair of Trains

 So I was heading down I-94 to my next destination and I saw a train near the tire.  I decided to stop and get some pictures.

I thought I was going to get a picture of Canadian Pacific engine, but that was the outer train.

I was happy to see a BNSF engine though as I haven't seen one of these around here in a while.

The trains next to each other.

The front of the CP engine.

One more shot of the BNSF engine before moving on.

A Train Near the Michigan Central Train Station

After catching the ships, my mom wanted to see the graffiti in the area of the Michigan Central Train Station.  I figured it would be cool to go there because I wanted to see the progress of it and based on what I saw, it looks like they are progressing really well with it.

But what really caught my eye was the train engine parked in front of it.  I've always wanted this picture.  First, I tried a picture with my camera but I was too close, so I pulled back and got it.

Then I tried it from another angle, it was a little better but still not good enough.  I was hoping I could get a drone shot but there was a Tigers game going on and I was within a no flight area.  Oh well, maybe next time.

 

Fostoria from the Air

 After Ottawa and Magee, I decided to head down to Fostoria.  I wanted to get more drone shots there.

There weren't too many trains, so I decided to get some pictures of their caboose.

It was a pretty hot day, so I was glad I brought the drone and didn't try to chase the trains.

Another angle.

The F Tower at Fostoria.  This used to control  the local rail traffic but it was closed down a few years ago.  The train traffic is controlled from a central location now.

I think CSX still uses it as a place to store parts.

While I was waiting for the next train, I decided to get some pictures of the track.  I was also checking the signals....red.

The other direction.

Then I took the drone higher to get a shot of Fostoria.

The CSX diamond.

From another direction.  It kind of helps to know the directions of the whistles because that helps me get the drone in position.

A train coming down from Toledo.

It was heading east.

I took the drone up.

I'm still not sure about my high shots of trains.  They kind of get lost in the terrain.

And another train.  

This was it for the day.  Someone was saying that they are running longer trains which means less trains.  I'm not sure that is a good idea.  I think I might have read about a derailment near Fostoria which might explain the lack of trains.  Oh well, maybe next time.

A Train Engine in Dearborn

 So on Saturday, I saw the Herbert C. Jackson heading down.  I thought that she would be going up the Rouge River, so I headed over there to catch her.  When I got there, I checked AIS and I didn't see her going up the Rouge River.  In fact, I saw her on the Detroit River past the Rouge River.  I loo

I figured while I was in the area, I might as well get a picture of a train.

I was able to get another angle of that.

Catching a Train

 As I head towards the Dix Avenue Bridge, there is a nice little train yard nearby.  I never stop but I should because there is usually some train activity.

I figured that since it was early enough and there wasn't anyone around, I decided to stop to get a picture of this engine.  It was still kind of nasty out but I couldn't pass it up.

And a Stop in Fostoria

 I've been to Fostoria more recently because I've used my drone there.  This time I was hoping to get some more use out of it.  The only problem is that we got there fairly late in the day, so I didn't have to long to dally around.

Sadly, the signals were all red which meant there wasn't much around.  One of the other people had mentioned that they were running longer trains which meant few of them.  Somehow that doesn't surprise me as that seems to be the way things are going these days.

I think they've  finally built the ramp for this.  I think it is something you can go in.

I kind of like this platform.  It would be cool if they could build a raised one but that costs money.

Since I wasn't seeing to many trains, I just took my drone for a ride around the park.

As I was just about ready to give up, I heard a train horn, so I flew my drone over to where I could catch it.

It was a CSX engine pulling a fairly long string of coal cars.

I really should work on the timing and altitude for this shots.

I took my drone up so that I could get a shot of the town.  It was a little on the windy side though so I couldn't stay long here.

And a shot of the F tower.

A Train Near the Rouge Plant

 After I was finished with the Barker, I saw this guy moving.

I just wish I could have gotten a picture without the power pole in it.  Oh well.

The Train and the Tire

 I still had a little time before I had to be down at Belle Isle.  I saw that there was a train stopped at a place where I can get a pretty good picture of it.  So I turned around and headed over there.

As you can see, we had a fair amount of snow.

It was a pair of engines in front of a long string of autoracks.

It was waiting to go into the Allen Park yard.

I kind of like this shot.

I like the chance that I get to get a closeup shot of the engines.  Although there was a fair amount of snow.

I like this shot a little better.

One of the things that I like about this is that you can get a sense of place.

The tire is a fairly unique landmark to the Detroit area.

And a shot with the engine pair.

A Few Shots of a Train

 I decided to stop at a spot where I could get a couple pictures of the train.

It's kind of a nice spot and you can catch trains as they enter or leave the Allen Park Yard.

It's a pretty nice view too.

Sometimes they are stopped here, so you can get multiple angles.  One of these days, I'd like to play with my drone here.

Another shot.

Just one of the engines.

I had to get the tire in a shot.