Busy day today – getting ready to head to Sea World for three days, then head home. So today was spent packing the bags, and packing the car. And of course my parents taking us out to breakfast & dinner. At one point, I had to run out when Jill & the girls were resting. On my way out I took a peek at ATCS, and saw that there was a southbound train south of Villa Rica in Boca Raton, and had clear track all the way through Pompano. The question is were they south of Deerfield Beach or not? Well, I had to head to the Post Office, which is right next to the tracks. So I figured I’d take the scenic route to check out the signals and see if this train was north or south of me. And if this would be my last shot of the FEC before returning to New England.
I headed south on Old Dixie Highway towards Pompano with the scanner on – nothing on the marker channel. That could be encouraging or extremely discouraging. So I pressed on – if I remember correctly, there’s a north facing signal in a half mile or so.
As I approached the interseciton of Old Dixie Highway and SW 10th St, I saw the signal mast – and it was showing a high green. He was still north of me, and probably heading my way! So I pulled into 10th St and picked a spot near the crossing. A moment later a chirp came across the scanner, and I could hear horns to the north. Here they come!
A moment later a trio of headlights appeared to the north coming towards me. A single GP40 and a short train told me this guy was most likely train 960 – the “Boca Local” – a local train based in Ft. Lauderdale to the south. With the higher than normal (by New England standards) train speed, I only had time for one lens. I opted for the wide angle to get a couple shots. The first was a standard 3/4 “wedgie” shot of the train coming at me.
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And a second later, a wider shot, getting a church across the street into the frame, along with a couple peeks of blue sky
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I just enjoyed the local rushing past me after that, and once the train cleared the crossing, I headed back to the car, and made my way to the Post Office. Not a bad 5 minute diversion…
Thanks for looking!
Tom
