P&W in the snow

Well, all that rain we’ve been getting lately finally turned into some snow overnight and this morning.  Granted it wasn’t sticking to the pavement all that much – but that was a good thing.  It meant the ground would be somewhat white, and I could safely get there with my front wheel drive Hyundai.

I headed out at the usual time, listening to the scanner as I was heading north.  After checking out Mill Cove, I decided that with the silent scanner, and snow covered tracks, I could safely head north, possibly getting up to MP7 in Ledyard.

As I was passing by Dow Chemical, NR-2 informed the Worcester dispatcher that they were south of MP12 – perfect!  I should have plenty of time to get to MP7, park and pick a spot to shoot from well before NR-2 came into view.

That was exactly what happened – I scouted around, and because of the high tide, I opted for an angle down by the MP7 sign, about halfway up the embankment.  While waiting, I got a couple shots of the snow-covered tracks (the first one was somewhat inspired by a shot Nate Lafond recently posted to Facebook).

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11243] [cpg_imagefixthumb:11242]

Just after that, I heard NR-2 sounding for the crossing at the old Norwich Hospital to the north in Preston.  Not long after that, they came into view along the Thames.

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11241]

Then a looong shot of them crossing the inlet to Poquetanuck Cove

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11240]

And a shot that just struck me, with the headlight reflection in the water

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11239]

After a little bit, they came into view just to the north of me, blowing snow off of the tracks

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11238] [cpg_imagefixthumb:11237]

And a wider shot, getting the milepost marker in the frame

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11236]

After they passed by, I headed down to the water’s edge, and got a couple shots as they continued south

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11235] [cpg_imagefixthumb:11234]

Not too bad.  As they headed out of sight, I made my way back up to the car and pondered my next move.

I figured my best bet would be the USS Nautilus or Fairview.  Well, as I passed by the Nautilus Overlook park, I saw the gates were already down at the pedestrian crossing.  So instead of rushing to get into position there, I headed straight down to the south end of Fairview.

I got there just as NR-2 was entering the yard limits

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11233]

And got a series of shots as they headed south through the snowy landscape

[cpg_imagefixthumb:11232] [cpg_imagefixthumb:11231] [cpg_imagefixthumb:11230] [cpg_imagefixthumb:11229]

With that in the cameras, I headed to the car.  On the scanner it sounded like they were doing some work at Spicer, so I decided to call it a morning and head back to the office.  Not a bad little jaunt into the snow…

Thanks for looking!
Tom