There's bugs in them there woods...

I wanted to focus more on my photography and began hunting for steam engines across the United States.  There are many beautiful engines across the country, but being a starving artist has it's limits.  I was lucky to find a railfest in Texas, where they were going to be doing a night shoot.  I can't tell you how excited I was when I bought the ticket for this event.  I had never been to a night shoot before and it was something I had longed to do for quite some time.  I hijacked Carrie and made her drive down to Texas with me.  Since it was a 14hr+ drive, I didn't want to fall asleep at the wheel.  May couldn't get here fast enough for me and the day I left, reality finally sunk in.  I was going to partake in a night shoot with steam engines! How cool is this? 

I had been to the Texas State Railroad once before and had a little background information on where the tracks were and how accessible they were from the road.  We were staying about an hour away, so the day was going to be a long one.  Little did I know how long it actually would be.  We drove down to Rusk and picked out some areas that I felt were suitable for shots.  Of course the day we decide to chase the train, it was close to 90 degrees and about 90% humidity.  It was hot!  You got out of your car and within five seconds you were already soaked.  We got to the station and I positioned myself to get pictures before it left.  I was really excited because they were running a different engine than the one I had seen before.  The train was ready to leave and Carrie and I raced to the next stop (which I almost missed because there are so many trees and it's just a dirt road).

I was surprised to see as many people as I did chasing this train.  When we rode the train last year I don't recall anybody at the crossings except for maybe one area.  That day however, was a different story.  Although, there weren't hundreds of people like when I chased the 844, there were close to 30 people.  It was pretty insane.  We're trying to beat each other to the next crossing on a windy two lane highway.  I think I left some skid marks on the road because we'd be going along and I'd see a road I wanted to turn and we'd somehow make it.  Carrie held on for dear life, but we survived without any problems.

They make a stop in between Rusk and Palestine (the two depots) where they pick up a band of robbers.  It's great fun for the kids and it allows people like me to get another shot of it as she pulls into a station.  While I was running to get to the platform, I didn't pay attention to how far I was leaning over and how close the engine gets.  Luckily I pulled back fast enough or the engine was going to have part of my face on it.  

There wasn't a lot of down time waiting for the train, which made the day go faster, but when she pulled into Palestine Station we had plenty of down time.  I didn't feel like sitting with the rest of the passengers as they ate their lunch at the station.  So instead, we went back to Rusk to get the tickets for the night shoot and to scout places to eat in Rusk.  Let me tell you, there wasn't much.  You blinked your eye and you missed the whole town.  Carrie didn't have a ticket to the night shoot and I planned to just have her relax at a coffee shop or some place until the shoot was over.  I didn't want her sitting in the car for a few hours in that kind of heat, but there wasn't very many options.  Then I found out that the shoot was from 8pm-midnight.  I had to figure something out and fast.  Thankfully we managed to convince the railroad to let us purchase a "day pass" that allowed her to stay with me during the shoot.  

By the time we got that all sorted out it was time to head back to Palestine and chase the engine back to Rusk.  It's harder to find the engine when you don't know where it is than just chasing it.  Somehow we managed to find it, even though we had to wait in the car for what seemed like an hour.  Even though we were under a tree and there was shade it was still very hot and it only seemed to be getting hotter.  We caught up with when it dropped off the "robbers."  Very thoughtful of them don't you think?

We chased her back into Rusk and waited for her to go to the shed.  We had special tickets (along with half the train) to visit the shed where engine 201 was housed.  This particular engine was running when we last visited.  She is the oldest engine that they own.  We had to wait to get into the shed and the cars lined up on the side of the highway.  Many people passed wondering what was going on.  What can I say? We're crazy people ;)  The tour of the shed was fun, but it was boiling in there.  I didn't think it could get any hotter until I was under the shed.  We finished the tour a little before five and had three hours to kill before the night shoot.  We knew what there was to eat in Rusk (nothing) so we decided to go back to Palestine and try our luck in that town.  Although it was bigger than Rusk, there weren't a lot of options and we decided on a BBQ joint on the side of the road.  It was cool and the food was hot (and probably some of the best BBQ I've had in a long time).  We managed to kill more time, but I was antsy and Carrie told me we should just go.  We were about a half hour early, but everyone had the same idea.  When we parked, I noticed the license plate next to me said Colorado.  Well what a coincidence; come to find out the guy was from Colorado Springs.  Small world?  My only complaint for the night shoot was that they didn't limit the amount of people who could participate.  Let me tell you, cramming a bunch of people with camera bags, tripods, cameras and other gear, it gets pretty tight.  As the night wore on more people left making it more manageable, but there were still a lot of people.

The way they positioned the train at the station required us to stand along the tracks in the long Texas grass.  Since it was so hot, Carrie and I were in shorts, but there were a lot of people in pants.  This didn't really concern me because a lot of the photographers here were older and didn't seem the shorts type.  I felt bad for some because their shirts were soaked and you could see the sweat line.  Despite it being in the evening it was still hot, and the humidity just didn't want to let go.  This didn't stop us and we continued to jockey for position.  I was trying to keep up, but I was still learning my settings on the camera and the two guys running the show didn't seem to want to help.  I must say that I was a little upset about the two guys.  I was paying them to provide the lighting and special effects for the shot, but I was not pleased that they got first pick of where they wanted to set up.  This was the second time that they had done a night shoot with the railroad and I didn't think I should have to compete with the people I was paying.  They didn't care if they stood in front of you as you prepared for the shot, or messing with the lighting while the shutter was open.  Despite these set backs, I felt that I had success at the station.

After the station they took us back to the shed to take photos of the 201.  They wanted it completely dark in the shed so they shut all the doors and blocked the light from the emergency exit signs.  It was hot and stuffy and the sweat just poured off of you.  I think I lost close to five pounds that night just from sweating.  By now it was pushing 10pm and it still felt like a sauna.  It is here that I feel I got one of the best shots of the night.  You'll have to let me know what you think.

After the shed, they took us back outside for more photos of the 300.  It was cloudy that night and in some of the photos it looked like it was morning because of the full moon.  We took more photos but we still had an hour drive and I was getting tired.  We finally called it quits around midnight and headed back.  When we got back to our condo we had to wait 15 mins for the person at the security gate to stop talking to a cop.  Upon getting ready for bed, we discovered that our legs were covered in bug bites.  Mine seemed to disappear the next day, but Carrie's only got worse.  She looked like she had gigantic welts all over her legs.  When we came back from Texas mine came back with a vengeance.  Come to find out we had been eaten by chiggers.  Moral of the story: wear pants in Texas and don't wander through the grass in shorts.

Other than the chiggers and the really high humidity, Texas was a success.  It helped prepare me for night shots and I even got a few photos of lightning which I will leave you with.  The next train chase story is a doozy and probably the best one yet.  Until then...

Dreams Not Yet Achieved

The start of 2012 was going to be a new me, a new outlook on life and all around better life.  Now I know what you're thinking, how long did that last?  You also may be thinking that's what everyone says at the start of a new year.  Then they fall back into their old habits and life continues on the same path.  Well that wasn't the case this year.  I started out focusing on me.  What I wanted to achieve, how to get there and what mattered to me the most.  Like many people, I looked at my health and realized I needed to do something about it.  (Just for you neigh sayers out there, I managed to lose 30lbs and I'm still losing.)  The next step was to write out my goals that I felt were achievable in the span of 12 months.  I really wanted to take my photography serious and finally start pushing it instead of letting it slide.  I wanted to focus on my writing, another area I had let slip.  Both of these things are very important to me and I would like to establish myself in the world.  I put these goals on post-it notes on my closet door.  Every morning, I wake up and see them, reminding me what is important to me.  I bet you're wondering what this has to do with train chasing.  Well I'm getting there.

In pursuing my photography, I wanted to visit new trains.  I felt I was in a rut chasing the same trains over and over.  It became a goal of mine to visit one of the most renowned trains in Colorado: The Durango and Silverton.  I decided I wanted to visit this train in the winter and get shots of an old steamer in the snow.  Pretty awesome idea right?  There's a few problems, 1) I drive a Honda Civic, not the most compatible vehicle for driving in Colorado winters and 2) Durango is five hours away from where I live, which means I would have to stay for a few days (did I mention I'm a starving artist?).  Since my parents are supportive of my goals and aspirations, they managed to secure me a hotel for the weekend.  My dreams were going to come true and I was pumped.

The day arrived to leave and I managed to convince Carrie to go with me.  I wasn't keen on going alone.  Like most days in February and March there are chances for snow storms, but this is Pueblo, the donut of Colorado.  Everywhere else gets the snow, but we normally don't.  We planned on leaving a little later in the morning, because we would be catching the train the next day.  Surprisingly, it had started to snow when we were eating breakfast and by the time I got out of the shower, the deck was covered in snow.  We needed to get out of Pueblo and fast.  Remember that little tid bit of information about driving a Civic?  Well try driving one in a blizzard with old tires; it was a nightmare.  As we got into town the roads and visibility were getting worse.  Still we pressed on (yeah, I was insane).  We reached the outskirts of Pueblo and things got even worse.  I could barely see the front of my car as I gingerly made my way up the interstate.  Semi-trucks blared by me, forcing me closer to the edge of the road because they wouldn't get over all the way.  My windshield wipers froze up and were struggling to keep up with the snow and ice.  I had no idea where I was, all that I knew was that I was somewhere between Pueblo and Colorado City.  I hit this patch of ice and my car just start gliding off the road.  Hitting the breaks only made it worse and I was pretty sure we was going to end up in the ditch.  We had seen close to 10 cars in the median or side of the road.  It looked like a parking lot because people were going way too fast.  I don't know how I managed it, but I got the car back on the road and going straight.  Carrie suggested going back, but I just couldn't give up my dream even if it killed us.  My knuckles were white and I felt like Ed did back in November.

I pulled off at Colorado City.  I needed to unfreeze the windshield wipers and clear my windows from all the gunk it had accumulated.  I also needed a quick break from being behind the wheel and the wind on my face was just the ticket.  Something weird happened at the top of the hill, the snow quieted down and roads were starting to melt.  The closer we got to Walsenburg, the easier the road became.  Soon the snow had stopped and the road was clear.  The worst is over....or so I thought.  It was clear until we got closer to La Veta.  Then we were hit with the same road conditions back in Pueblo, except this was a little worse because I was approaching La Veta Pass.  It was slow going, but we made it up the mountain without any accidents and were finally getting out of the storm.  It just had a few more surprises for me.  While coming off the pass the wind began to howl, creating a whiteout effect I've never experienced before.  Sometimes the wind would whip so fast I couldn't see anything but within a few seconds my vision would clear.  I figured it couldn't be as a bad as the drive but then the wind whipped up and wouldn't stop.  I couldn't see behind me nor in front of me.  I had no idea where the edge of the road was and was hoping with all my might that there was no one behind me.  I came to a complete stop near the side of the road (I doubt I was on the shoulder).  All we could do was wait and wait.  The wind died down and I was able to move on, but my nerves were shot.  I had been in the car way too long, but I knew we are almost done.  We reached Fort Garland and headed to Alamosa, there wasn't any snow on the ground but the wind was still howling.  Instead of a white-out, we hit a sand storm so thick and black, it was blowing my car to the side and causing horrible visibility.  I have no idea how we survived all that, but we did.  We stopped in Alamosa for a much needed break and this is what my car looked like after all that:

It was smooth sailing all the way from Alamosa to Durango and I couldn't wait to soak my bones in the hot tub.  Upon arriving at our hotel, we were shocked to find out that the pool and the hot tub were out of service.  Give me a break will you!  We wandered downtown Durango and went to bed early.  I was dead dog tired, but the realization that I was this close to achieving my dreams made it impossible to sleep.  I tossed and turned and got zero sleep, but the next morning I was ready to roll.  I planned on getting to the station early so that I could take photos without other people in my way.  I was loaded down with gear, but not enough clothing.  I had underarmor on, a long sleeve shirt, a fleece jacket, a pair of jeans, tennis shoes, regular socks, a hat and gloves.  (I road on the platform car from Durango to Cascade Canyon.  I never budged and I should probably get a medal because it was one of the coldest rides of my life.)

When we got to the station, they had the doors to the platform outside locked.  This is one of those things you just don't do to me.  They said that they would unlock the doors about half an hour before we were to depart.  I wasn't happy but figured I would still have half an hour to take photos of the train while the others boarded.  The time came and went and the crowds began to fill up the depot.  I felt like a caged animal and began to pace, this certainly wasn't the way my day was supposed to start out.  Finally they unlocked the door, but ushered everyone into the cars.  I was having none of that and went to the front of the train.  They had caged me enough.

I managed to take many photos before I had to get on the train; Carrie had boarded earlier.  It felt like eternity before the train pulled out of the station, but when we finally got underway, it was awesome.  The tracks go right through the middle of downtown and we got to see the sights via train.  I had never been on a coal burning train before and laughed when they said we should wear glasses while riding the train because the embers from the engine fly back into the open air cars.  I wasn't laughing ten minutes into the ride.  The embers burned and I ended up breaking down and buying some sunglasses they were selling on the train.  These have become my official train chasing goggles.

This train is probably one of the coolest you can ride in Colorado, if not the United States.  One of the reasons why I feel this way is when you go around this curve you can look straight down and see the water.  There is only a few inches between the track and the edge of the mountain.  For those of you who are afraid of heights this is probably not the ride for you.  The history of this railroad is pretty amazing too.  They started building this railroad (without dynamite) in the fall of 1881 and completed the railroad in July of 1882.  For those of you who know what Colorado winters are like in the mountains, you can appreciate what kind of feat this was.  Upon arriving in Cascade Canyon (the threat of an avalanche keeps the train from going all the way to Silverton), the passengers disembark and eat their lunches.  They back the train in when you first get there, much to my sadness because I wanted to take photos as it backed up.  I guess you can't have everything, so I decided to lay down in front of the train in the snow to get a shot (don't worry, it wasn't moving).

During the ride back, I was pretty cold and decided to stay in the car more than I did on the ride up.  On the ride back we were able to see bighorn sheep which made the ride even more amazing.  Back at the station, we were able to go visit the museum and get another sense of history.  The next day, we chased the train out of town before heading back to Pueblo.  Although the tracks follow the road for quite some time, it is challenging to get a clear shot of the train without a house or cars in your shot.  However, just as we were about to go home, I saw a pull off on the side of the highway.  It enabled me to see the curve of the track as it came underneath a bridge.  Probably the coolest place to take a shot between Durango and Cascade Canyon.

Going home was a lot easier than it was coming, there was no snow or icy conditions on the way back. The only problem that we encountered was that Carrie had to pee as we came back across Wolf Creek Pass and pointed out all the "pottys" she saw.  I should clarify here, the "pottys" that she saw had five feet of snow in front of them and were currently out of order.  We finally managed to find a potty and continued on our way.  The only other issue that we encountered was a dust storm but nothing like the drive to Durango had been.  

This was probably one of the best experiences I've had.  It allowed me to start on my journey to better myself and achieve goals that I had set.  Despite the rough start, this trip gave me the confidence I needed to continue. 

Happy Birthday to Me!

Back by popular demand another scintillating story just for you!

In March of 2012, I found out that the Union Pacific 844 was going on another trip, this time however, it would not be coming through Colorado.  Instead, it would be heading across Wyoming, into Nebraska, and so on.  It just so happened that it was to leave Cheyenne on my 24th birthday and it was my wish that we go and chase it.  My mother had to work and was unable to go but Reesa, Josh, Ed, Milissa, Carrie, Dad and I all clambered into the "D" and headed North.  We spent the night in Cheyenne because the train was leaving at 7 am the next morning.  I didn't really sleep the night before and couldn't wait to get going.  Because this train is so powerful and fast, we usually need a head start and we found a perfect spot on a bridge just outside of Cheyenne.  Since it was March, we didn't account for it to be so chilly in the morning and nearly froze waiting for the train.  She didn't leave on time and we patiently waited for close to forty five minutes.  Josh had gone below the bridge by the tracks, Ed was on the other side of the bridge, Reesa and I stood on the side of the hill by the bridge while Carrie, Dad, and Milissa stood on the bridge.  Mind you there are other people near us and we all have our gear with us, camera's etc.  Milissa was sitting on the guard rail waiting for the train, fiddling with her camera, when a cop car pulled up.  Apparently someone thought there were jumpers on the bridge and police were called out to inspect.  Another one of those moments.  She explained we were waiting on the train and he left to visit another bridge where more photographers were waiting.  Why on Earth would we go to a bridge with cameras and jump?  The bridge wasn't that high and would only cause bodily injury, nothing more.  The chase was starting out crazy already.  We finally heard her coming down the tracks, but were disappointed to see just how slow she was going.  Was she going to be like this all day?

She started to pick up, but not like we had seen her in November.  There were many people on the road and our favorite train chaser was there.  Thankfully though, there weren't as many people and it made our stops easier.  I was really thankful that the tracks ran parallel to the road and we were able to get more shots.  The weather was cooperating too and things looked good.  You know, however, that not everything goes according to plan.  

At one of the stops in Wyoming, we found ourself in a heavily train traffic area.  Earlier, a diesel had come through and the rails banked a little bit.  We were just a tad bit close and figured we should probably back up when the 844 came through.  It just so happened that a group of high school students had come out to watch the train go by.  This was all fine and dandy except that they decided to congregate pretty close to the tracks.  They also thought it would be fun to stand on the tracks or zigzag across them.  I'm all for getting a shot, but I'm not that dumb to play on train tracks, especially those that are busy.  As the 844 approached, several students decided to stand closer to the tracks and it wasn't until she was upon them did they realize just how close they were.  I think she taught them a valuable lesson.  I hope that is.

She made a whistle stop in one of the towns and as we were waiting, a few diesel trains went by.  It is always interesting to listen to the communications going on between the main line and side lines.  You have to learn the lingo if you really want to figure out what is going on.  It just so happened that when the 844 was getting ready to leave, a Union Pacific diesel came through at the same time.  They passed each other a little ways down the line but we got to see the front of the 844 next to the rear of the diesel.  It was probably one of the coolest things I've ever seen.

This was  one of the last shots with sunshine we were able to get.  We were headed into a storm and all we could think about was the last time we chased her.  The clouds gathered and it started to storm.  I had a plastic pouch I put over my camera, so I stood outside getting drenched waiting for the train.  I've got to remember to bring an extra pair of socks.  My feet can't handle this wet thing.  While riding next to the train, the window halfway down, my phone starts to ring.  Now since it's my birthday I figure it's just somebody else calling me to wish me happy birthday.  Upon answering it, I got a pleasant surprise.  A few weeks before, I had entered into a juried photography show featured at our library.  Since I'm a train snob, I entered in three photos of trains, one just happened to be the 844.  Those that had been accepted were to be called the week before.  I had received no such call.  The lady addressed herself from the library and announced that not one but all three had been accepted.  I couldn't believe it.  As if the 844 was reading my thoughts, she let out a huge whistle in approval (well in my mind it was an approval); the lady on the phone stopped talking because the whistle was that loud.  I couldn't help but laugh.  There was no denying that I was a train chaser.  I was pretty much on "Cloud 9" after that and could hardly contain my excitement.  I was wet and cold, but couldn't have been happier.  It was a pretty brilliant birthday gift.    

This last photo was our last stop.  The rain had somewhat subsided, but the rails were still wet.  While she was heading out, her drivers slipped on the wheels and Josh was able to get some footage of that.  It was pretty crazy listening to her slip along the tracks.

This adventure turned out to be pretty successful and although nothing hectic or crazy went down, it was still a blast.  Some of our other trips are not so successful, but you're just going to have to wait for that one.