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.

844 Comes to Pueblo

For those of you who are not familiar with the legendary 844 or how big of an event it is when she runs, let me enlighten you.  The 844 is one of two steam engines owned by Union Pacific that are currently operational.  This steam engine is massive, unlike most of the steam trains running around the United States.  She is a 4-8-4 which means that she has four drivers (wheels for those non train buffs) in the front, eight in the middle and four at the back of the steam locomotive.  Like this:

The other steam engine that Union Pacific runs is called the Challenger or 3985.  She is a 4-6-6-4 engine and I would give anything to see her run.  She however, has had some mechanical issues and hasn't really run since 2008.  Every year we hope to see her once again, but so far she sits silently in the shed.

Both of these engines are housed in Cheyenne, Wyoming in the Union Pacific yard.  The 844 usually does a few trips a year and massive amounts of people show up.  There is one event however, that occurs every year and that is Frontier Days sponsored by the Denver Post.  She picks up passengers in Denver and takes them to Cheyenne where they see a rodeo and other events.  Then later that day she takes them back down to Denver.  That is another story though...

In November of 2011, the 844 took a 30 day journey across Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California etc etc.  You get the picture, they did it for New Mexico and Arizona's Centennial Anniversary.  This was really exciting because she was coming down to Pueblo, CO.  Can you imagine? That big of an engine and she's actually coming through my hometown.  Well the Misfits weren't about to let this event go to waste and we chased her over the course of three days.  Are you ready? It's going to be wild.

It left Castle Rock on a Sunday and four of the crew members decided to go up: Ed, Milissa, Josh and I. We met her just outside of Palmer Lake on an embankment that caught the train on a bridge and a curve.  Couldn't ask for anything better. However, we weren't the only ones there and we had to stake our turf pretty quickly.  So here we go up this embankment (mountain to me) where we find other people.  That's the thing about train chasers, if you don't have the courtesy to avoid getting in other peoples' way, then you will be ejected or have a riot on your hands.  The train was running later than normal and we ended up standing there for at least an hour.  Finally we heard the familiar whistle as she drew closer.  It was here that some ninny decided to walk up and stand in about 10-15 peoples shots.  Some of the other chasers warned him (mind you he showed up with a  camera phone, while we have the big guns.) He got pretty upset and I thought we were gonna start throwing rocks at him because we had waited too long for this guy to get in our way.  The pictures came out pretty good and it was now time to chase the train.  There was one problem for me...I don't do well coming down mountains.  I tend to get too much momentum and have the tendency to fall ass over tin cup.  So I was trying to go down the mountain as quickly as I could without tipping over.  I was doing pretty good when I started to pick up steam.  I felt like I was the 844 coming down the mountain and I panicked. Instead of throwing myself down on the ground or my camera for that matter, I threw the water bottle I was carrying and some how didn't fall.  (Really unsure of how that happened, but I'm thankful none the less.)

We headed back to Palmer Lake, where we hit bumper to bumper traffic.  I have never seen so many people congregated in one place.  Later when we were talking to one of the engineers they said they had to walk the train out, they've never had to do that before.  We weren't going to get any shots of the train and decided to go find another place further down the road.  When we got there, there were many people already congregated but enough room that they wouldn't be in the shot.  Josh went up on a hill behind me (I didn't go, big surprise there right?) Milissa and Ed went further down the tracks.  When she came storming by we only had a few minutes to get back in front of her.  Josh and I race off to the car, but we don't have the keys.  Milissa comes up pretty quickly but there is no Ed.  Most people have gotten back in the car and have left but we're still sitting there.  Finally he comes around the corner and seems to be limping a bit.  When we get back on the road we find out Ed got tangled and fell a short ways off the mountain.  He cut up his hand and broke the point and shoot camera he had.  Although it was actually his camera, Milissa had been using it.  He felt terrible and kept apologizing.  It was pretty funny.  She wasn't mad and he was able to fix the screen later, but we couldn't stop teasing him about falling down.  (I was thankful it wasn't me).

We didn't beat it back to Colorado Springs, but stopped to take pictures at it from the depot.  It wouldn't run until Tuesday where it would go to Pueblo and sit for another day.  

On Tuesday, the whole crew decided to chase the train from Colorado Springs to Pueblo.  We found a spot and waited patiently.  We were in two different cars: Ken, Mary, Carrie and I; Josh, Ed and Milissa.  It worked out better this way because the train wasn't even to our spot when my dad was called into work.  He left us in the middle of nowhere next to Interstate 25.  We were lucky that Ed and Milissa had the "D" or we would have missed the train too.  

There is nothing like chasing this beautiful engine down I-25 at 75mph.  All the cars seemed to slow down and watch as this giant thundered down to Pueblo.  There was also the mob of cars that had been following it down from Colorado Springs.  We tried to get a picture of it as it came into Pueblo, but we just weren't fast enough and we were sprinting up a hill to set up.  It didn't turn out as well as I had hoped.  She backed into the Pueblo Depot and hundreds of people came out to meet her.  These past two days we had clear skies and it was pretty warm for November.  However, Colorado is known for it's weird weather and the next few days a cold front came in.  This included the possibility of a blizzard or blizzard like conditions.

The day for the 844 departure arrived and we woke to snow covered ground.  Somehow my father managed to get the day off and my mom, dad, Ed, Milissa, Josh and I climbed in the "D" and prepared for battle.  We had coats, gloves, hats, long sleeve shirts, sweaters and thick pants; we were ready.  Making our way to Avondale we parked our car on a crossing just outside of town.  The wind was whipping making it bitterly cold.  We sat in the car waiting, no sense in freezing if we didn't have to.  Josh has a scanner that we listen to for communication of the trains: she was leaving Pueblo.  We scrambled out of Pueblo and waited...and waited.  I left my hat in the car and felt I would be ok, but after a few minutes, I realized if I didn't cover my ears soon, they would break off like an icicle.  I can't tell you how cold it was.

We scrambled back into the "D" and discovered our feet were covered in mud.  The ground wasn't frozen enough turning the dirt into mud.  It was going to be a long day.  We followed it past Fowler, Rocky Ford, and La Junta.  Our favorite train chaser came with us (yacka$$) and we had fun screaming out the window at his camera's.  (We couldn't stop him from chasing, but we sure could screw up his audio and sometimes we would put our car right in front of his cameras.  Yeah we play dirty too!)  The further east we got, the worse the weather became.  This didn't stop us.  We hit La Junta and had potty breaks and refueled our tummies.  We continued on to Las Animas where we planned to stop chasing it.  Since it had to stop in La Junta for 15 mins we left before it trying to avoid the caravan that was following it.  At Las Animas the snow was just starting to fall.  The wind was whipping, knocking us back.  We tried to hunker down in our coats but it didn't really help.  Out of the white that was forming around us came the front end of the engine.  She was beautiful and I don't care who you are, seeing her in the snow was by far the best.  (In my opinion that is)

We watched her turn and head towards Springfield.  We had a decision, follow her to Springfield or call it a day?  The snow was getting worse and the wind was whipping, but we couldn't give her up.  By now the inside of the "D" was covered in mud.  We've made so many stops on the side of the road that there is more mud on the inside than on the outside.  Our pants, shoes, floor and seats have mud all over them.  Milissa, who is shorter than the rest of us, has grown six inches from the mud.  She was pretty happy about it.  There was a road that the tracks followed called 101 which would take us into Springfield.  We begin to follow it down and find a good spot in front of her.  Josh heads down the track aways because we feel we have a lot of time.  We were wrong.  Josh starts screaming she's around the corner and we all fly into position.  She decides to open it up and she's hauling.  I didn't get very many shots off because I've never seen her move this fast.  Josh sprints back to the car so we don't have to wait for him, but the mud is so thick and he's moving so fast he runs right out of his shoes.  Yup, that's right folks, we have a sprinter on our hands.  He had to back track and find his shoe before we could go.  

Back on the road we're making pretty good time, but we have to get around the people that are pacing the train (yacka$$).  What we didn't know was that 101 turned into a dirt road but it wasn't dirt anymore.  It's mud and it's slick as hell.  There's one other problem we're facing, no cell service and we weren't smart enough to bring a map.  We have no idea where we are.  The storm has settled around us and in every direction you see white, that is until the windows get covered in mud and we can't see anything.  We sat in silence and we watch out the front window.  Ed can't go very fast because he risks running off the road, we don't know where we are and we can't see the train.  All we can do is wait and hope that we find our way to Springfield.  Ed's knuckles were white on the wheel and we kept telling him what a good job he's doing.  He was worried and so were we.  The only good thing was that we were able to defrost from standing out in the mud.  By now we're sure that the train has beat us to Springfield and there's no way we'll beat it.  We only focus on surviving this road, constantly scanning the area in front of us hoping we'll find paved road.  What seems like an eternity (an hour+) the wheels on the "D" find paved road and we're off again.  Another surprise waits for us: she hasn't beat us to Springfield and we get one more shot for the day.  We fly across the tracks pull off and hustle out of the car.  The bitter cold from the wind stings our face and it's blowing so hard it knocked over Milissa and my mom.  I've never experience anything like that before.

      

When we got into the city limits of Springfield, we practically had to peel Ed from behind the wheel.  The drive did a number on him, but he was our hero even to this day.  On our way back to Pueblo, the storm had cleared and there were blue skies.  Gotta love Colorado! 

A little tid bit of information, when Ed cleaned the "D", he had 3 huge trash bags of mud from the days' trip.  Now that's a lot of mud!

Up until recently, this was the wildest train chasing adventure we have had!!  But you will have to wait a little while longer to hear about that one...

Cumbres & Toltec

It's that time again for another fun filled story! I know you have all been waiting so patiently.

There are times when the whole crew doesn't always go.  For instance, half the crew was on vacation when the other half decided to go chase down in Antonito, Colorado.  This train is known as the Cumbres & Toltec.  It has two trains that run on a daily basis.  The first one leaves from Chama, New Mexico while at the same time another one leaves from Antonito, Colorado.  They meet up in the middle and eat lunch together.  Then they continue on to either Chama or Antonito.  Then there is a bus that will take the passengers back to the station they started at.  This trip is an all day trip and therefore passengers can not return by train.  They would be getting in at midnight.  We decided that on this day we would chase it from Antonito to Chama.

One quick side note.  Two days earlier I was working in the basement, I came out of one of the rooms and was moving pretty fast when I collided with a serving tray that had been left on the floor.  (Yes, it had been sitting there for months I just didn't see it.)  I hit my pinky toe and howled like an injured animal; it was broken.  It turned all kinds of pretty colors, but since it was a toe there's really nothing you can do but limp on.

We headed towards Antonito, but stopped in Alamosa to get pictures of the No. 18 train.  There of course were several crazy people trying to get shots of the engine, but there was this one guy who I'll never forget.  Now I'm one who likes to get dirty and crawl on the ground while taking pictures.  This guy took it to a whole new level.  At the rail yard this man lays down on the ground and then puts his head on the tracks as he's taking pictures.  The train blew it's whistle and prepared to move, but the man just stayed there clicking away with his camera.  I stood there gaping at this idiot and all I could think was how this was going to wreck my day if the train ran over his head.  Finally he gets up and clambers on the other side of the road as if everything was normal.  I love steam trains, and of course I wanna get the shot, but I don't think you'll ever see me lay my head on the track a few feet from the engine.

We pack up and head towards Antonito, it's only thirty mins away from Alamosa.  The sky isn't as blue as I had hoped for and there is a film of clouds over the sun.  It's not cloudy per say, but the clouds are just thick enough to mess with the light in the shot.  I'm frustrated but I can't control the weather.  We're early enough to the station that there are very few people around.  This gives me the best time to take photos of the engine without anyone standing in my way.  Mary (mom) decides to go to the bathroom; she should never ever under any circumstances leave me alone with a steam train.  (Oh and leaving me with my dad is even worse!)  I decide I want a shot from the ground, but this engine is not an oil converted engine.  For those of you who don't know what this means I'll explain.  Most steam engines today have been converted to run on oil not coal like back in the day.  It's a cheaper and more effective way to run the engine, and you don't have to shovel while you're going up the hills.

This engine actually runs on coal, there are men who shovel the coal as they go along the tracks.  The gentle hum she made in the station was nothing compared to the beautiful sound that resonated out of her as she climbs into the mountain.  So back to this shot I want to take and no supervision.  The ground is covered in oil, grime and coal dust. I'm determined to get the shot and look for a semi clean place.  I lay down and take a few photos (of course there are a few people who have shown up now and almost step on me.  Not entirely sure how they missed me.)  I'm pretty pleased with myself and hop back up hoping my mom won't know what I did.  What I failed to notice when I stood up was that my white pasty legs were covered in soot and dust as were my hands.  My shirt, that I tried to dust off, had black spots all over it.  Unfortunately, she's a mom and it takes her but two seconds to figure out what I've done.  She didn't leave me alone after that.  The shot was worth it as you can see.

        
What we failed to realize was that chasing the train from Antonito to Chama is nearly impossible.  The tracks are not near the road, and once it climbs into the mountains you are finished.  However, when chasing it from Chama to Antonitio, the tracks run parallel to the highway until a certain point, but there are many more opportunities.  So after driving a little ways, we realize our best bet is to chase it as it comes out of the mountains.  We have plenty of time and my parents and I go off to kill some of it.  They had a few jobs to do, so while they worked, I tried to elevate my foot because it was swelling up as the day wore on.  Unfortunately, their jobs took longer then expected and we spent most of the day driving from place to place.  We were running out of time to get back.  For those of you who don't know, my dad doesn't drive fast.  In fact, he's the guy that goes under the speed limit.  You can imagine the frustration that was playing through my mind as we head back towards Chama.  It is here where my dad decides to surprise us all and goes 90 on an intersecting road.  My mom's holding on for dear life and I'm trying to figure out where my dad is, because this isn't like him.  Thankfully there is no one on the road, including cops, as we fly past the fields.  There's a sharp curve up ahead and my dad doesn't think he needs to hit the breaks.  Now I'm the one holding on.  He does actually hit the breaks, we didn't crash and we continue on.  We managed to meet the train coming down the hill and sun came out as well.

We chased it back, jumping out of the car, hobbling to the crossings and jumping back in.  Since the highway follows the tracks there were a lot of looky loos.  But we managed to avoid most of them.
It's our last crossing of the day; my foot hurts, but I don't stop because this is too important.  It's coming down the tracks and I get into position.  I decide I want to be on my knees for this one (you know who won't let me on the ground.)  I get ready and my dad's pretty close to me as it cruises down the tracks.  This is the one time I am thankful that the train is not moving too fast because it quickly dawns on me as it approaches that the train hangs over the tracks more than I anticipated and I'm too close.  My mom starts screaming to get up and my dad and I scramble backwards as it slides by us.  I was maybe a foot away from the wheels.  Probably one of the closet calls I've ever had.  But in the end it was worth it. My mom, however, was ready to shoot both of us.  We thought it was hilarious.

 
Since the train runs through the mountains we decided to come back when the colors were changing.  That is our next story...but you're just going to have to wait a little longer to hear that story.

Winter Wonderland Express

And now ladies and gentleman the moment you've all been waiting for....(Too cliche?)

I know you've been patiently waiting for an actual story.  Well we're gonna start small, but here it is.  (I know you're secretly waiting on the edge of your seat!)

My first train chasing experience was in the month of January 2011.  Although some of the crew had chased before, this was one of the first times the majority of us went together.  We went to visit the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad located in Alamosa, Colorado.  They were running a steam special that weekend called the Winter Wonderland Express.  If you know anything about Colorado, then you realize that the weather is all wonky and we can have a heat wave and blizzard all in the same day.  The Rio Grande usually ran steam in the summer and diesel in the winter (because of this wonky weather), making this a pretty big deal for train lovers. 

I can tell you I was nervous, I had never done this before and I had a new camera to boot.  Ed, Milissa, Josh, Ken and I all got in the "D" and headed to Alamosa.  Josh had chased this train before and had some pretty good ideas on where we needed to stop to get great shots.  We got there early enough that we were able to drive around and locate places to go.  When we actually got to the depot I was shocked at how many people were there.  Clearly we weren't the only crazy people and when the train took off it was a big eye opener.  (According to the rest of the crew the amount of cars we saw that day were nothing compared to chasing the UP 844 during Frontier Days.  I will finally get to chase her during this event this weekend.  I can assure you there will be stories to tell.) 

We found a good location just outside of the station by a bridge.  We weren't the only ones there and had to volley for positions.  That's the downside to train chasing.  If you have a good shot then most likely there is someone else that knows about it too.  Once the engine cleared the bridge we were off to the races.  Each one of us running to the car and getting it back on the road.   The chase had begun.

If you recall from an earlier blog that sometimes we pace the train.  Well this was my first "pacing" and it was wild.  Imagine the "D" flying down a dirt road in the middle of nowhere.  Now imagine seven to eight other cars doing the same thing.  I honestly don't know how many cars there were for that one, but it sure was something to see.  So here I am head hanging out the window, we're doing probably fifty miles an hour and the temperature is probably only 40 degrees.  It's cold but I don't stop.  Josh is in the passenger seat his head out the window with a tripod and camera filming the whole thing.  We pull ahead because were closing in on a railroad crossing.   We rush across the tracks scramble out take photos and hop right back in.  We continue this process throughout the day.

Now here comes the best part.  We get to a place called Forbes Park, this is where the train starts to curve and heads up into the mountains.  This is usually one of the last stops for us before we go to La Veta.  It is here that Josh wants to climb one of the hills to get a better shot.  Since we have time we all scramble up the mountain.  Did I mention that there is snow on this hill and that I am a short person?  We manage to make it up the hill (although I really don't know how I made it because I was trying not to drop my new camera in the snow and avoid face planting all the way up.)  It's cold, I only have a jacket and a long sleeve shirt (clearly I didn't think this through) and I'm standing in a foot of snow (give or take a couple of inches).  My feet are frozen as are my hands and here's Josh standing a few feet away doing the pee-pee dance.  Don't be embarrassed or turn away we all do it in one form or the other.  (Don't panic Josh, I'll tell embarrassing stories about myself as well.)  He dips behind the tree and we start to hear the whistle of the train.  Good thing we're in place for photos huh?  Don't worry he doesn't miss the train and we take pictures and video.  Now the fun part, how am I going to get down?  My dad is in front of me and he making the path down the hill for me and Milissa, who I should mention is shorter then me.  I'm not sure this is a good idea because my dad isn't so light on his feet either.   Since there is snow everywhere it's hard to see depth and as my dad slides down the hill, he calls out "Whoa, that was deep."  I laugh, hey how deep could it be?  Surprise!! It's deeper then expected and the snow goes up to my hips.  I have no idea how I managed to get down after that, but my jeans are soaked, as are my shoes and socks.  (I'll never learn will I? You'll understand that at another time.)  We're cold but we climb back in the car, crank the heat and head down the road where we find a gate blocking us up the mountain and we don't have a code.  This is very frustrating and I believe that at some point we will find a way to get up there.

We head towards La Veta and grab some grub.  If you ever get a chance stop in and eat at La Veta Inn.  They've got great food and service.  It's one of our favorite places to eat when we're down there.  But enough about food lets get back to the action.  We scramble out of town before the rest of the train chasers can.  It's here that we spend our time at a railroad crossing.  Since I was new at the time, I had been pushed out of several shots during the day because I was being too nice.  Well I wasn't going to let that happen again and I staked my claim on the side of the road.  The rest of the crew was relaxing in the car but I stood, defiantly, outside.  It is here that  a police officer patrolling the area stops.  He rolls down his window and asks if I'm alright.  I say yes and that I'm waiting for a train.  He looks up and down the tracks then at me (there's no train).  He probably thinks I either escaped from the looney bin or I'm on a day pass and I need to go back.  He doesn't question me and goes on his way.  My crew in the car get a great laugh at that one and now I'm more cautious about standing on the side of the road when a car is coming.

We finished our day in peace and decide to head back home.  Although it wasn't as eventful as some of our other trips it was one I will never forget.  Once we finished, I couldn't wait to go on another trip and it's a feeling that hasn't left me since.

One more thing you should know, during this trip I was introduced to another train chaser who, well lets just say we don't like him very much.  This guy has four cameras mounted on his car, they aren't steadied and just bounce along all the time.  He drives like an idiot and tends to be at the front of the train all the time.  He bugs us non stop because he does his homework and knows the backroads just as well and sometimes better then us.  We've dubbed him yacka$$.  At first I didn't think he could be that bad, but when you're trying to take a picture and his car shows up next to the train or in the background it gets pretty aggravating.  We've made it our mission to get in his way as much as we can because he does the same to us.  (And who says there isn't any competition among train chasers?)  He will appear many times during our chases.

If you want to see more work from the crew check the links in the blog below.  

The Misfit's Ride

I know what you're thinking, when are you going to start telling us the stories about your adventure?  Patience my friends, you'll get hear them in time.  But in order for you to grasp the bigger picture you need one more tid bit of information about us.  It may seem silly to some of you that I have a blog focused on the cars we use to get from place to place, but for some of these stories you need to know what we're driving so you can get an even bigger laugh out of it.

Let's start off with the main car that we use when we chase these trains: The "D" or a blue Dodge Durango.  In time I will have a picture of it, but for now you'll just have to use your imagination.  The "D" is owned by Ed and like I said before he is usually the driver.  Since there are normally 7 people going on these trips and we want to ride together we need a car that can fit us all.  Granted it does get a little tight this SUV has gotten us to our destination safely (mostly).  You'll just have to wait for that story (I guarantee it's a whopper.)  In this car we have had many things happen, sliced fingers from lifting the seats, cut knees from hopping in and I can't forget about how dirty we tend to make it.  On one trip every window was covered in mud and the only reason why we could see anything out of it was because of the windshield wipers.  You should have seen how much we had inside the vehicle.  (Another story you'll get a kick out of.)

On occasions we have to find a substitute because The "D" may have an issue.  Sometimes we just go in separate cars and nothing exciting happens.  However, recently we had to use a different car.  It was Josh's grandmother's turquoise mini van.  I bet we were quite a site driving down the road with stuffed frogs on the dashboard and a bright yellow smiley face air freshener.  Josh had the honors driving this vehicle while the rest of us crammed in the back.  I can only imagine what people were thinking when they drove by us.  Now this car was only used once, but I guarantee it is one we will never forget.  (I've got you curious now don't I?  That story I'm saving for last.)


Hang on to your hats, the next blog will be the best one yet!

For those of you who are interested in what we achieve on these trips I have included a few links to sites where our work is located.  This will give you a better sense of what we do on a regular basis.


Notch Eight Productions  Josh
Green Kandi Productions Reesa
Look Beyond Photography Me