Search

As a thick layer of fog lingers over the Potomac River, the day is just getting started for CSX’s Brunswick Yard. The 3 BNSF engines off a grain train stick out against the landscape and will be used as the yard switchers for the day.

The full body paint “Spirit of our First Responders” unit paired with the New York Central heritage unit, one of CSX’s new heritage locomotives…this is what CSX railfans dream of!

This rebuilt MARC GP39PH-3C has frequented the Brunswick area in the last few months, and I was lucky enough to catch it leading this evening service with a nice P5 horn!

M422 rolls through the busy town of Gaithersburg, MD with 5 head end locomotives, with the leading 3 being EMD SD70AC’s. The parking garage adjacent to the tracks provided a great vantage point on this sunny Sunday evening.

As the day of rare CSX trains continued to deliver, M415 rounded the curve along the Potomac River with an all EMD lashup, including a rare SD23T4 trailing 3rd.

This lone tree has been a part of so many pictures from this railfanning location in Lorton, VA as it was for my picture of this southbound VRE.

On its way to the Hialeah Terminal in Miami, FL, recently rebuilt Amtrak GP38-3 #747 trails 3rd on M409 and attracts plenty of railfans as it travels down the RF&P Subdivision.

SD70AC #4733 is put to work as it leads M421 up a decent incline in Franconia, VA.

This train, though it was agonizingly slow, made for an awesome catch from the Franconia Road overpass as the W053 crew used their special weed spray to keep the encroaching plants under control.

I wouldn’t swim in Powell’s Creek, but the body of water does make for some interesting pictures from Leesylvania State Park. M410 reflects off the dirty top of the water with the Family Lines heritage unit trailing second.

With one CSX after another coming over the Powell’s Creek Trestle in Woodbridge, VA, I figured I’d switch the shot up a bit and use some trees in Leesylvania State Park for my frame.

One key characteristic of Roanoke is that it’s surrounded on all sides by mountain ranges which, if the contents of the yard weren’t good enough, only add to the quality of pictures taken from the drone.

Words can’t describe how it felt to feel cold for the first time in months after a summer of record heat in Virginia, but this cool August morning in the heart of Appalachia allowed us to briefly escape the 80 and 90 degree temperatures.

Empty Limestone train 69Q winds through the New River Valley in Willowton, WV as it approaches the junction to the Princeton-Deepwater District.

Virginia Division Local V34 with Admiral Cab SD40-2 #3264 leading waits for Intermodal 277 to pass before following the train up the Christiansburg District.

Norfolk Southern’s new Railroader Appreciation unit, AC44C6M #4822, leads the Reading Lines heritage unit and 12 OCS cars on a deadhead move to Altoona, PA.

Although it wasn’t the easiest thing to do, I was able to photograph this foreign power duo from the ground and the air (with a drone) as it cruised south leading S631 on the RF&P.

CSX SD70AC #4736 leads M422 through Arkendale, VA on a limited clear indication with an incredibly quick bell.

A freezing January afternoon following a decent snowfall saw me make the trip to the Brent Point Road crossing to catch what I’d been after for months - a well-lit shot of 911 in charge of a train. Safe to say I succeeded.

Despite the sun finally peeking through the clouds, light rain continued to fall as this short 13R came flying through White Post, VA.