I remember those times very well. The sound of multiple 567's in full song was thrilling and I miss that every time I am trackside.
I know what you mean! A couple of years ago I went down to Beaconsfield station, in Montreal's West Island, to photograph the station, and CN stacker went by moments after I wished for a train... it was blasting down the track in Run 8 and if the din of the two engines revved up my heart, the deep booming drumming sound of the double-stack containers made my whole body vibrate... it was exhilarating! Why people need drugs to get high, I can't understand. They should stand near one of those trains going by and get the best darn high ever! And without the crash afterward.
This was at Colorado Springs, on the shared DRGW/ATSF 'Joint Line'. Through Colorado Springs, southbound trains used the DRGW tracks, while northbound trains used the ATSF tracks. Any passenger (or freight) cars that came into Colorado Springs from the north (Denver) on the DRGW would have to be transferred over to the ATSF for the return trip. This transfer is probably what is shown in the photo.
Pushers ("Snappers" in PRR parlance) moving west on the mountain at Horseshoe Curve, May 1981. I remember staying up on the curve until after sunset. With Kodachrome's 64 ASA film speed, the camera was soon put away and I sat, taking in the ambiance of heavy mountain railroading at night in the cool air. There was no National Park Service there back then and you could stay as long as you might like. I got home to my apartment in NJ at 1 AM feeling very much awake. Ah, those days of being young and single!
Without the Park Service around back then, you could also cautiously cross the tracks to get on the outside of the Curve without raising the ire of anyone. Eastbound Pennsylvanian.
Wow! Some very nice photos from some interesting (and no longer permissible) angles! Horseshoe Curve is one of those places where there is the rock face, trees and trains all in one spectacular spot. The times where we can still do stuff like that and our bodies let us get away with it. A time to take advantage of!
I doubt that I will ever be able to climb up this mountain side to get these shots again. This was almost 50 years ago.
Where's the fun in that? Traipsing through the woods and climbing up mountainsides is way more fun. Makes those shots just that much more appreciated. And they are absolutely beautiful.
Yep, that seems to be the route to extraordinary rail photos these days. I was talking to a drone-equipped fan a few months ago, asking how he could fly in such close proximity to a nearby airport. He showed me a cell phone app that has flight zones and maximum altitudes all mapped out. Too much brainpower required for me. He prefers to park in inconspicuous locations and fly in to rail spots to avoid attention. Interestingly, the former Clinchfield bridge over the Broad River at Brice, NC is known to be a "drone deathtrap", with a number having lost theirs there. Something about rapid loss of contact. One fan said he was able to turn his back just in time, while another lost his at over $500.
Some camera drones are also GPS equipped. Don't know if they're so programmed, but the GPS unit should be able to create an electronic "breadcrumb" trail, which the drone could then retrace if it ever flies out-of-range and loses communication with the controller.
