Phew. What a busy weekend, that did in fact include some railroad photography. First up is what happened last Thursday on my walk. I ended up taking Friday off to take care of some stuff around the house because I knew I had a busy weekend ahead of me. But Thursday was a normal day at work – with some beautiful weather to boot.
I headed out for my usual walk in the morning, but this time I figured on hitting Red Top for a bit of change of pace. Also, I wanted a spot that was sort of close to the tracks so I could use the Speed Graphic for a shot or two. So Red Top fit the bill.
I got there as NR-2 was informing the Worcester dispatcher that they were south of MP12 and about 15 minutes out. So I grabbed my gear, including a tripod this time for the Speed Graphic, and headed down the tracks to one of the spots just south of Red Top. I got everything set up in time for NR-2 to call that they were south of MP5, and less than a mile north of me.
Moments later, a trio of headlights appeared in the distance, rising up the grade to the north. Then came the horns, and NR-2 pulled out of the shadows into the bright morning sunlight.
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Next up was a couple shots with the Speed Graphic (still have to develop the film), and a final shot with the digital
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I noted that they had a cut of Tilcon cars on the headpin, so I figured they’d be heading for Midway in Groton right away – something that wasn’t in the cards for me. Next up for me would be a couple quick shots of the Thames River drawbridge project’s progress, then back to the office. So I headed south, and ended up catching up with NR-2 as they were waiting for the Amtrak Shore Line dispatcher to give them permission to head east to Track 4 in Groton.
I’m glad I had the scanner running though. Amtrak was still having a problem with a switch on the east leg of the Groton wye, so NR-2 would have to head west over the Thames, then head back east towards Track 4. Quick change of plans – with the added reverse move, I’d get a chance to shoot NR-2 crossing the bridge from two vantage points. I picked the boat launch between the drawbridge and the Gold Star bridge as my first shot.
I got there just as NR-2 got the signal to proceed west, only giving me a half minute or so to set up. I got the Speed Graphic set up again, and snapped a shot with that, along with a few digitals. Here’s a pair of the digitals with the fisheye
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Then a quick pack up, and I headed to the south of the bridge for a few more shots. First up, a shot of just the east tower’s progress thus far.
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Then NR-2 came rolling back across the bridge, heading for track 4 back over on the Groton side of the river
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I figured I’d continue the series of shots and take a couple more of the bridge work from a bit further south.
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Then it was time to pack up and head back to the office for the remainder of the day. Too bad I had to stay inside all day – it was a gorgeous day. But I guess I do need to pay the bills somehow… 🙂
Thanks for looking!
Tom
