With high school finally over I decided it was time for some relaxing time watching trains. So I packed up my gear and headed out on Monday morning. I decided this time to spend two days around Providence Hill. My first train of the trip was the eastbound X-KALMNS9-04A which I ran into at Fishtrap (ATSF 614(patched), BNSF 4392, 1108). I was barely able to get a picture as it rolled through on the main. I heard on the radio that it was going to meet a westbound or two at Babb but since Providence was my destination I figured I could just as well get the westbounds down there. The next train I found was the G-TMPVAW9-05A loading at the loop elevator track at Templin (BNSF 4750, 4743, 4539). I watched this train for a little while and found it interesting that the engines were pushing the train backwards around the loop instead of pulling it. Next I headed south stopping at Paha and Lind before reaching the summit of Providence Hill.

As I drove up I noticed another car near the top so I pulled up next to it. It turned out to be Drew Mitchem waiting for some trains. We talked for a little while and then at 11:30am we heard rumbling in the distance. It turned out to be the Z-CHCPTL1-03A with 106 cars (BNSF 4982, 1020, NREX 6454). I decided to chase this train west and so I headed out. I beat the train down to Mesa where I found a spot to shoot it. I wanted to try to find a way up the tracks to Cactus siding and after a little looking I found a road that did the trick. After exploring for a little while I found the M-LAUPAS1-03A rolling down through the valley (BN 3126, 8059(both patched), MRL 265, BNSF 768). After shooting this train I up to Connell. I found the H-KCKPAS1-31A sitting in the siding waiting until Pasco wanted the train and grabbed a couple shots (BNSF 665, SP 8852(patched)). Next I headed back east to the summit of Providence Hill.

After waiting around for a little while I heard an eastbound which turned out to be the B-TACSTA5-04A with a MRL leading (MRL 311, BN 7015(patched)). Drew and Ted arrived just in time to get some pictures too. Next we all sat around talking and waiting for some more trains. About 30 minutes later we heard another eastbound approaching. It soon rounded the corner with two dash 9s leading the long heavy S-TCECHI1-04L (BNSF 4831, 776). After it passed, it was time to wait again. At 3:45 we heard an eastbound approaching and soon after we heard a westbound coming too. I decided to set up for a good westbound shot and not worry too much about the eastbound. Soon the H-NTWPAS1-02A rounded the corner with quite a surprise right behind the lead units (BNSF 4766, 1075, ATSF 895(patched)). It was an old E9 lettered for Indiana. I believe this is the ex-Milwaukee 33C that was being restored at the Indiana Railway Museum but I am not positive. Just as this train reached the summit the eastbound arrived too which was the X-TACEME9-04B (ATSF 937(patched), BNSF 4347, 4330). It was buried behind the westbound though so pictures were pointless.

I decided that the westbound was definitely worth chasing so I headed out west to beat it to another good location. I found a good spot just west of Hatton and waited a few minutes before it arrived. Next I drove around for a little while trying to find a good spot for an eastbound. Unfortunately I didn’t find really much of anything in time. The H-PASCWY1-05A arrived a couple minutes later (BNSF 4175, 916, 8632, ATSF 6360(patched)). Next I decided to drive down into the coulees and see if I could find a good spot. After exploring for a bit I found a good hill that overlooked the tracks and set up watch. Unfortunately by the time the next train came the sun had sunk into a bank of clouds. It was the M-SPOPAS1-05A with quite a long train (FURX 8126, BNSF 8046, 7814). Then following just a few minutes behind him was the G-SMNTAC9-01B with 1 DPU on the rear (BNSF 5514, 1078, 4517). By this time the sun had really gone behind the clouds and it didn’t look like they would be out again. I stuck around the area though but no more trains came. In fact not another train came until after 10pm.

After making a run back to Sprague to meet my dad and pick up a power cable I stopped at the top of Providence for the night. Just as I was getting to the top I ran into the X-KALEDU9-04A (BNSF 5260, 5142, Ferromex 4518). The next morning I woke up at 6:15am to wait for trains. Just before 7am the G-ABATAC9-01B pulled its 103 car train over the summit (BNSF 7685, 922, 4856). I followed this train down to Hatton and then set up for a hoped eastbound. A little while later I heard the whine of a locomotive and so got into position. It turned out to be another baretable, the B-PTLSTA (BNSF 8081, 7132). The clouds were nice enough to not block the sun while the train passed. Next I headed deeper into the Coulees. I found a great location for morning westbounds and quickly set up. In a couple minutes the G-CLFKAL rounded the curve and slowly descended into Connell, WA.

Then a few minutes later I heard a whistle in the distance for the Columbia Basin Railway. So I quickly drove down a little bit and climbed the hill on the opposite side of the valley. In a couple minutes CBRW 2282 (an ex-ATSF) rounded the corner followed by CBRW 171 and 41 cars. After getting a bunch of pictures I decided to head west. I explored around Connell for a little while and then drove down to Mesa. I heard that there wasn’t going to be anything moving until at least 11am so I drove down to Eltopia and then back. At 11:05am the Connell local with a long string of cars rounded the curve heading west (BN 2891(patched), BNSF 2276). Just a couple minutes later the H-CSXPAS8-04 rounded the corner following the local (BNSF 5241, BN 3009, 8034(both patched)). I heard more westbounds were on the way so I headed up to Cactus to find something.

As I arrived at the siding the westbound G-CSNKAL was just entering the east end of the siding. It was a big train with 2 DPUs on the back (BNSF 4197, 4633, 9733, ATSF 696(patched)). It was nice to see the SD70MAC since that isn’t common power in the northwest. It was around noon by then so I headed up towards Connell. I found a great spot for another westbound and sat down to wait. Pretty soon the Z-CHCPTL rolled by with a brand new NS locomotive (BNSF 5168, 4119, NS 2662). After that I drove up to Connell. I was trying to get back up to the Hatton Coulees for the afternoon trains but I met another one at Connell. This time it was the H-LAUPAS and it rolled into the siding (BNSF 4305, 4770). I knew there would be an eastbound coming so I took that opportunity to head to 395 and drive north to Hatton.

I arrived at Cunningham and found a westbound hopper train waiting at the end of the 2 main tracks for an eastbound. On the radio I heard there was another westbound piled up right behind him so things were looking good. At 1:30pm the eastbound Z-PTLCHC train rumbled uphill and passed the waiting westbounds (BNSF 728, 965, 809). I hurried down to the Hatton coulees to find a good location for westbounds. I found one just in time as the first westbound hopper train rolled downhill (BNSF 4881, 4552, 4706). Next I moved down around a couple more curves and waited for the next one. It too was a grain train, the G-SMNTAC9-03A and the four engines were in a 2×2 setup (BNSF 7720, 7687, 7675, 4594). After this train passed I followed it west for a little bit before settling down to wait again. The next train was the M-SPOPAS with MRL 393 in the consist (BNSF 8048, MRL 393, FURX 7240).

I heard on the scanner that he was going into the hole at Connell so I quickly looked for a good eastbound shot. I found about the only one there is in the afternoon and set up. The wait wasn’t long until I could hear the locomotive pulling upgrade. The train was a heavy S-TCPCHC1-01 and as it went by it was still trying to pick up speed (BNSF 861, 8050, CN 5321). Then following close on his tail was the X-TACBIL9. It had BNSF 1050 leading which has yellow “BNSF” lettering instead of the common black color for Heritage I units (BNSF 1050, 5234, 1022). After his 103 cars disappeared, I headed towards Connell a little ways to find a better spot for westbounds. While waiting for the next train I took a few pictures of a crop duster as it flew overhead. Around 4:25pm I could hear a train in full dynamic braking. Soon the G-HMMTAC9-02 rolled around the corner. It was yet another big grain train with a 2×2 setup (BNSF 5321, 5039, ATSF 942, 611(both patched)). It slowly entered the siding at Connell and came to a stop.I figured there would be an eastbound next but as soon the train cleared the east switch the light came on for another westbound. As I was trying to figure out why there would be another westbound running around the first I heard it coming. It was the H-KCKPAS with a new BNSF unit on the point (BNSF 7691, BN 6792(patched)). After this train passed I decided it was time to head back up to the top of the hill.

I didn’t meet anything else and had to wait for 30 minutes or so before an eastbound showed up at the summit. It was another empty grain train, the X-TACEDU9, but with a Powerbar unit on the point this time (BNSF 7790, 7756, 5397). I decided to follow this train east and try to get a broadside of it somewhere. But it stopped at Sand to wait for a westbound so I headed towards Lind to find a good spot. At 5:45pm the G-SHMWCL rumbled through Lind and up the hill (BNSF 866, 1000, 5074). Next I continued east to try and find a westbound. I didn’t run into anything more so I decided to set up and wait for something near Babb. After waiting for almost an hour the eastbound grain train rumbled by and then rolled into Babb siding. I hurried to the west end of the siding but by the time the westbound came the sun was gone behind the clouds. It was the G-SPITAC9-29 with 2 units on the point and one on the rear (BNSF 4363, ????. ????). I decided to head back toward home since it was 8:30pm already. But on the way I met the last train of the day. It was the Lind turn heading west at a good clip (BN 2921, 2976(both patched)). And that was the end of my first trip for the summer.

I had heard that the one of the St. Maries River Railroad bridges had collapsed on April 24, 2006. According to the news report they were going to use barge cranes to rescue the equiptment out of the water. So on April 26 I drove over to investigate. Unfortunately they didn’t have the barges or cranes there but I was able to get photos of the wreck. Apparently it collapsed under some MOW equiptment and nobody was seriously hurt. The following are several more pictures.

The weather looked good and with a little extra time I decided to spend April 22, 2006 chasing some trains on the Lakeside Sub. A good friend came along with me, and we had a lot of fun. First up we found an eastbound Z-PTLCHC train sitting at Babb siding. We drove down to the west end to wait for the westbound. It arrived around 4pm with a long string of manifest cars (BNSF 855(patched), NS ????, DMIR 407). I liked the looks of the consist and since we had lots of good sun I decided to chase it west. We got another picture at Tokio, WA where we finally caught up to it. Next we waited around for a little while and the Lind Turn showed up with a lease unit on the point (EMDX 791, BN 2741(patched)). It slowed way down and then stopped at CFI to do some work. It dropped off 2 tank cars and picked up 4. After getting pictures off all the action we headed a couple miles west to the siding of Tokio.

The Lind Turn pulled into the siding and dropped off all its cars at the east end. Then the power pulled down to the west end to run around the train. But before the power could come back out on the main an eastbound hopper train rumbled through (BNSF 4095, 807, 7843). Next we decided to head back east following the hopper train so we wouldn’t miss anything. We got all the way to Sprague where the eastbound went into the hole. So we set up for the westbound a little bit out of town. It came rolling down the hill around 6:30pm with a long string of hopper cars (BNSF 4040, 4884, 4315). Next we continued east until we ran into another westbound leaving Fishtrap. After a quick turn around and chase we caught it at Missile Base where we got several pictures of it (BN 7035, ????(both patched), BNSF 8605, NREX 5413). It was the Z-CHCPTL. Finally we arrived at Babb where we got our last westbound for the day. It was a loaded grain train with one DPU (BNSF 5104, ????, ????). After that the sun was gone so we headed back home. Not too bad a day for only 4 hours of train watching.

With school out for spring break my dad and I headed out for some time in the Columbia River Gorge. The first train we saw was an eastbound hopper train at Babb WA about 3pm on Friday (BNSF 4683, 7651, 1009). In the siding the M-SPOPAS was waiting to pull its 122 cars out of the siding (BNSF 8626, BN 7876(patched), NS 8768). We followed this train west taking a picture at Fishtrap. I t met an eastbound manifest train in Sprague (FURX 7265, BN 9238(patched)). We continued to follow the SPOPAS all the way to Cunningham where the crew tied down the train and ran the light power to Pasco. We stopped Pasco for awhile to watch the engines hump cars. They had two different sets of two SD40-2s for the yard work. At 8pm a westbound pulled into the yard (BNSF 7330, FURX 7212). At the west end a M-CEWPAS was stopped (BNSF 726, 4447, 522, 4567, ATSF 512, 699(patched)). Amtrak arrived at 9:30pm in the station at Pasco (Amtrak 55). After getting a couple night shots we headed west. We stopped near Plymouth, WA for the night.

The next morning Amtrak flew by a little after 7am (Amtrak 181). Following close behind was a westbound 110 car hopper train (BNSF 7711, 7645, 4884, 4679). After that an eastbound stack train rolled by just before 8am (BN 7055(patched), CSX 8030, NS 3383). This eastbound met a westbound manifest in Plymouth (BNSF 1044, KCS 748, MRL 345, CSX 8731). We followed this train all the way to Whitcomb where the crew tied the train down in the siding. Continuing west we found a spot to wait for the westbounds. A little later the first one arrived with 5 engines and 51 cars (BNSF 1027, ATSF 543(patched), NREX 5079, 6074, 6406). After getting a couple shots we headed west only to meet another one on his heels. If was another manifest train with 78 cars (FURX 7283, BN 9299(patched), NREX 5477). We moved down to McCredie to wait for another eastbound. At 10am the Z-PTLCHC curved into view (ATSF 688, 842(patched), NS 8736).

At Roosevelt we met an eastbound manifest (BNSF 4024, 4550, 5091). At the yard there were two trains sitting at the west end (BNSF 2721, ATSF 2842, BN 2936 (both patched)) and (BNSF 3016, NREX 5481, BN 3128 (patched), QSEL 282). A little bit later a westbound stack and auto train rolled passed (BNSF 4551, 574). It met an eastbound hopper train at Bates, which arrived shortly (BNSF 4874, 806, FURX 7277). The next rain we found was a westbound manifest in Maryhill, WA (FURX 7211, NREX 5825, 5480). While on the way we saw a westbound UP train with an unpatched SP unit in the consist. So, moving over to the Oregon side, we shot the train several times as it came into Biggs (UP 3875, SP 8673). The crew tied down the train in Biggs siding, then ran light power to Portland.

Next we headed back to the BNSF side and the westbound pulled out of Maryhill. We drove down a little road towards Wishram where we stopped to eat lunch and catch some more trains. A little bit later an eastbound manifest rumbled by (BNSF 7831, FURX 7258). It went into the siding at Towal for a westbound which arrived a little while later. It was one of the westbound garbage trains that we had seen in the Roosevelt yard. After that, we drove down to Wishram, WA. Another westbound garbage train was sitting in the yard (BNSF 8022, NREX 5453, 5062) Driving down towards the Dalles, we followed one of the previous westbound garbage trains. After shooting it at Lyle we stopped the chase. It went into the hole at Bingen and a few minutes later an eastbound hopper train arrived (BNSF 7636, 1016).

Next we were hoping for a westbound so we climbed the hill overlooking the causeway at Lyle. A little later a westbound manifest rolled across the causeway (BNSF 4865, CN 2409). Next we drove down to Bingen where an eastbound stack train was leaving the siding (BNSF 4784, BN 7902 (patched), FURX 8109). The next stop was Hood River, Oregon. There we found three Mount Hood Railroad engines (89, 88, 02) and a great northern caboose. While looking around the yard, a UP train passed through town (UP 3145, 6161). After getting gas we headed east to Rowena, Oregon where we spent the night.

The next morning we spent some time searching for a good shot of an eastbound with Mount Hood in the background. During the process we missed the morning Z-PTLCHC train. At Avery we found a westbound hopper train which was impatiently waiting to leave the siding. As time would tell, this crew died there and the train didn’t make to Vancouver Washington until about 8pm (BNSF 4972, 5231, 1011). We missed the westbound Amtrak and the clouds started to push us west. We headed for the Lyle Causeway to wait for an eastbound and on the way we started to learn about the trains on the line. We learned that there was a dead westbound train in North Dalles, Bingen, Stevenson, and Skamania. This made meets nearly impossible so trains were slow. On the UP side, however, things were moving right along. At 8am an eastbound manifest train headed through the Dalles (UP 5708, 5750, DRGW 8612 (patched)). Then as we were waiting for eastbounds at Lyle, a westbound UP hopper train rolled into Mosier (CEFX 110, 105, 135). The eastbound it met quickly headed out of the siding with 59 cars in tow (UP 4399, 3888). Finally, at 10:30am, the first eastbound on the BNSF line rolled across the causeway (BNSF 7658, 7325, NREX 5081). Following 20 minutes behind him was an eastbound hopper train (BNSF 5379, 710).

We hadn’t heard of anything else on the BNSF side so we drove back to the Dalles and crossed the river. An eastbound UP train was approaching and we chased it down to OT Junction for a picture (UP 2474, 5365, 4588). It was quite a ways down to the tracks so I didn’t have enough time to set up. It was unfortunate since there was a rolling met a 50+mph. Heading back to the car we saw a northbound H-BARPAS coming up the OT (BNSF 4469, 1083, 9298). A westbound manifest train rolled by on the other side of the river (BNSF 4721, CSX 7738). We heard on the radio that a lot of the westbounds were starting to move after getting new crews, so we headed west to catch them. About Lyle we caught an eastbound garbage train (CN 5345, BN 3143, 2887 (both patched)). Next we continued west to Bingen. In the siding we found the westbound we had seen earlier and after talking to the crew we found out that they weren’t going to move any time soon.

The scenery between Bingen and Cooks is very different than the eastern parts of the Gorge. We found five tunnels and many other great locations for photos. Unfortunately we missed an eastbound auto train near Cooks (7635, CSX 335). Continuing to Cooks we found a big westbound hopper train in 2×2 configuration (BNSF 7769, 1020, 4353, ATSF 873 (patched)). The end DPU had a brand new ES44DC with a new logo on the nose. While taking pictures, the eastbound U-EVEROO1-18 rolled passed (BNSF 2328, BN 2902, 2883, ???? (all patched)). After this we chased the westbound hopper train down to Stevenson for another picture. Next it was back to one of the tunnels to wait for another westbound. A while later the westbound from Bingen rolled passed. Finally, about 4pm, another westbound came. It was the same westbound hopper train that was at Avery in the morning.

On the scanner we heard about a bunch of traffic stopped in Bingen. In the siding the G-HWMTAC was tied down (BNSF 4743, 4840, 4438). The Wishram local was on the main and a westbound coal train was pulled up to the back of the local. Everybody was working on the west signal at Bingen. Finally, things were in working order and the local pulled into the old siding (BN 2905 (patched)). Then the coal train got the light and started to pick up speed (EMD 9039, BNSF 8214, BN 9279 (patched), HLCX 7200). We followed the train down to Cooks, taking a couple of pictures. At Cooks, the train went into the siding for three eastbounds. The first one was already stopped on the main (BN 8068, BNSF 347, ATSF 516 (patched)). Driving down to the west end we found that the next train, which was a hopper train, was already pulling up (ATSF 8738, BN 7061 (all patched)). Everything would have gone fine except the dispatcher let the local out of the siding to follow the coal train west. This took an extra 20+ minutes before it got into the siding behind the coal train. By this time the third eastbound was at the west end of the siding (BNSF 7890, MRL 301, BN 8020 (patched)).

Next we headed towards Vancouver. At Skamania we found a late Amtrak (Amtrak 183). In Vancouver a northbound manifest train passed the depot (BNSF 4929, 1115) while two southbounds were stopped short of the signals, north of the depot. Two hopper trains came of the Fallbridge sub and headed north. About 8pm we headed back to the Dalles for the night. The next morning the first train we saw was a westbound manifest (BNSF 7617, EMD 9034). Then at 7:45am Amtrak rolled by the North Dalles (Amtrak 13). After that BNSF shut down the line from Bates to Bingen until about 3pm for a maintenance blitz. Because of this we spent the day on the UP side of the river. An eastbound manifest train was getting ready to leave the Dalles so we drove down to Biggs area to wait for it (UP ????). A couple minutes later a UP baretable followed on his tail (UP 5199, 5200). About 10am an eastbound manifest flew by OT Junction (UP 9754, 9674). Next we headed back to the Dalles where we found an eastbound stack and auto entering the west side of town. (UP 4535, 4502, CN 2436).

Our next stop was at Rowena, OR, where we set up and hoped for an eastbound. A little later a BNSF detour train rounded the curve (EMD 9060, NREX 5082, ATSF 6871 (patched)). We found a great overlook to eat our lunch at; while there, a westbound UP train rolled past (UP 9380, 4749, 5181, FURX 3051). Then we headed back to the Dalles where a westbound was heading into town (UP 3140, 2457). At OT Junction a northbound manifest train was crossing the bridge (BNSF 4011, 511, FURX 7256). We decided that we should start heading for the BNSF side so we could catch all the westbounds on the way to Bates. Unfortunately we missed the first westbound and then caught the M-PASLYD at Towal (BNSF 522, ATSF 542 (patched)).

Next we stopped at the west switch of Bates to wait for a train. While waiting, a westbound manifest train passed by Blailock (UP 5838, 5708, 5750, DRGW 8612 (patched)). Finally, almost two hours later the Z-CHCPTL came up the main line (BNSF 5142, 8637, 5263). Unfortunately, by this time it was almost 5pm and the sun was hidden off and on by the clouds. A light engine set rolled into the siding eastbound to wait for westbounds (FURX 7256, BNSF 6804, 6734, 6339, BN 6137 (patched)). Following right on the Z’s tail was a westbound garbage train (BN 2887, 3010, 2892 (all patched)). A while later a westbound coal train got stopped at the east switch of Bates because the signals didn’t reset (BNSF 9464, 7708, EMD 9020, BN 9289 (patched)). The light was gone by the time this train left so we headed east. Between Bates and Roosevelt we met two more westbounds. The first one was a manifest train (BNSF 4391, 4831, 1080) and the second one was a hopper train (BNSF 5472, 1079, ATSF 931 (patched)). Then at McCredie we met another westbound hopper train (BNSF 1003, 5471, 4979). There were two more westbounds in this fleet but things were dark and it was a long road home. It was a great trip in a place I have wanted to explore for a long time.

I flew down to Chattanooga, TN to visit some friends and check out a college for next year. While there, I was able to borrow a friend’s car and spend a couple days watching trains in the area. On Sunday February 12, 2006, I headed into Chattanooga around noon. After driving around for a while I found the NS Debutts yard. There were quite a few locomotives in the service area and around other parts of the yard. Some of the units were: NS 8601, 2884, 2410, 5116, 7150, 2506, MRL 317, BNSF 4515, and six slugs (NS 946, 947, 958, 960, 961, 964). As I was driving around the yard I found an eastbound coal train slowly crawling along the mainline next to the yard (BNSF 5872, 5873, 5602). After shooting several pictures of it near the south end of the yard I headed up to the other end to get a few more. I decided to try my new teleconverter out with a head on of the DPU. Unfortunately anytime I use the 1.4x teleconverter I have to manually focus the camera but it came out crisp and clean at 560mm manual focus.

Next up was a westbound manifest train that pulled into the yard (NS 2587, 6595). A few minutes later a run through CSX stack train headed east on the mainline next to the yard (CSX 8700, UP 9348). It got stopped near the north end of the yard next to another eastbound on the middle main track. Then in the distance a headlight appeared for a westbound. It turned out to be another empty coal train headed back to the Powder River Basin (BNSF 5763, 5608, 5680). I headed towards the west side of town to find the CSX yard but ran into another eastbound. It was a stack and TOFC train with UP 5514 and BNSF 4065 for power so I don’t know if it was a NS or CSX train. I finally found the CSX yard near Lookout, TN on the southwest side of town (CSX 4772, 715, 595, 2609, 4437). I also found another eastbound train stopped on the main at Lookout. It was a manifest train with some interesting power (HLCX 7199, 6236, IC 6128). After that it was getting close to sundown so I headed back to my lodging for the night.

The next morning dawned cold, cloudy and snowing but I was up and out by 8am. I decided to follow the NS tracks down into Georgia and see if I could find some sun. The first train I ran into was at Cohutta, GA at 8:40am. It was a westbound hopper train and it was kicking up a little bit of snow on the way by (NS 8718, 8714, 8720). I continued to follow the tracks and finally arrived at Dalton, GA. It is here were the CSX and NS lines come together for a few miles. This scenario creates quite a bottleneck at sometimes. Around 10am a westbound CSX hopper train rolled through town (CSX 715, 4772). A couple miles north of town I found an eastbound auto train waiting to head through town (NS 9871, UP 4311, 9285). After getting several photos of the train I followed it down into Dalton. By this time the sun was beginning to break through the clouds and I found a couple CSX and NS locomotives in the yard in town (NS 4621, 3194, CSX 2344, 6914). After that I decided to head up to Tunnel Hill, GA on the CSX line and see if I could fine some trains.

I found there was a historical society in town and after checking it out I drove over to the short tunnel. About an hour later I could hear a westbound approaching upgrade. It came charging out of the tunnel and turned into the siding in town (CSX 765, 404, 8597). On the scanner I heard this empty coal train talking to an approaching eastbound. A couple minutes later the eastbound rolled through town (CSX 8162, 8824, UP 3289). There was supposed to be another eastbound riding this manifest train’s tail but it was almost 30 minutes before it arrived. It was an eastbound auto train and it got stopped on the main for MOW crews to clear ahead (CSX 8709, HLCX 8170). After getting a couple pictures I figured things were going to be pretty slow here so I headed back to the NS line. After running into a traffic jam I finally arrived back to the railroad tracks. I drove up to Waring, GA were the eastbound trains hold until they get a clear signal through town. Stopped just short of the crossing was an eastbound BNSF coal train (BNSF 5051, 5811, 5603). After taking several pictures I drove a little ways towards town to set up for a westbound.

After a 10 minute wait I heard a horn in the distance and set up for the shot. It was into the sun a little but I figured I could at least turn the shot into a B&W later. As the engines came into the view my jaw started to drop. After the first units appeared I stopped counting engines and starting shooting pictures. As the train rolled by I realized there were 13 engines and only 7 cars with machinery (NS 8935, 3290, 8672, 9455, 2658, 6699, 2693, 9044, 2661, 2422, TFM 1435, LTEX 8971, NREX 8690). I decided this train was worth chasing even though the light wasn’t good. I followed it up to Varnell, GA where it got stopped. The crew was just about to die so they decided to stop there. I drove into the little town of Varnell where I found an eastbound coal train waiting for a light (NS 9504, UP 4070 SP 6372(patched)). After shooting a couple of pictures I followed this train back down to Dalton. This time I found a couple of engines on a work train (NS 3240, GMTX 2623). Next I found the two engines that I had seen in the yard earlier heading north with a fresh crew to take up to the over-powered train.

After waiting around for awhile nothing else showed up so I decided that since it was almost 5pm I would start heading back to Chattanooga. At Varnell I found another eastbound train stopped for a light again. This time it was a long string of roalrailers in tow though (NS 9514, EMD 2825). The over-powered train started back west with a new crew so I chased it up to Cohutta, GA. But it got stopped there for a train. A few minutes later the eastbound arrived with 2 engines and a long line of autoracks (NS 7539, 8984). I couldn’t see where the over-powered train was stopped and I couldn’t find it anywhere so I decided to head west and see if I could catch up to it. But a few miles later I ran into another eastbound. This time it was a stack train with 2 UP units for power (UP 4429, 9840). After getting a picture in the fading light I headed back to my friend’s place. It was a fun day with quite a bit of sun in the afternoon.