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Two plumes up Cumbres Pass: Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the last Rio Grande narrow gauge freights

Posted 2 months ago by Jim Wrinn

Where were you in 1968? For me, I was a kid growing up in North Carolina. In my mind, it is hard to believe that 50 years have passed. But they have, perhaps, with the exception of that timeless railroad location, Chama, N.M. This is where the Rio Grande prepared its forces to battle against gravity for the summit of Cumbres Pass, and where for the last 46 years the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic has sent its tourist trains across 64 miles of Rio Grande’s San Juan extension in a quest to tu...

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Understanding the 'Southwest Chief' with a ride

Posted 2 months ago by Jim Wrinn

ON BOARD THE 'SOUTHWEST CHIEF' – “When I hear them talk about doing away with this train, it just breaks my heart.” The source of that statement was a middle-aged woman slowly pecking at a burger and chips in the dining car of Amtrak’s Southwest Chief. She had just returned from Ireland and was on her way to southern California for family business. The train, she said, has always been a part of her life. She’d rather ride than drive. On Tuesday and Wednesday, my wi...

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I'm all for LA Metro's body scanners

Posted 2 months ago by Steve Sweeney

If LA Metro's new body scanners work out, I want them rolled out nationwide at commuter and passenger train stations — airports too. If you're cursing me out as a nanny state worshipper, please hear me out. My support is mostly to boost the psychological well-being of passengers, myself included. In major transportation hubs we already have plenty of armed, combat-ready police; metal detectors; bomb sniffing dogs; drug dogs; and other safety-security contrivances. (At Philadelphia...

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Why Scouts on a train is a good thing

Posted 3 months ago by Steve Sweeney

Boy Scouts on the Capitol Limited. Bob Johnston Bob Johnston's story this week about the Southwest Chief and Scouting reminds me of the time I could have traveled by Amtrak to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico, but: I was too busy. I didn't have enough money. That's a lot of time to be gone. I have a girlfriend. Et cetera. Et cetera. I'm not old, but I'm old enough now to understand those arguments from long ago kept me from a unique experienc...

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Railroad photography: Keeping 'it' together

Posted 3 months ago by Brian Schmidt

Do you have little yellow or green boxes with 38 slides strewn across your desk? Do you look for a better way to organize and catalog them? I ditched the developer boxes years ago, but still struggle to organize my slide collection in a meaningful way. I'm hoping that with this post other film dinosaurs such as myself will share their methods. First, let's start with an example. I've always been a Milwaukee Road fan, even before my relocation to America's Dairyland. That includes modern railf...

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Thoughts on a day at Illinois Railway Museum

Posted 3 months ago by Jim Wrinn

UNION, Ill. -- I went to Illinois Railway Museum with some friends Saturday. It’s the height of summer vacation season, and it’s always fun to see who shows up at preservation centers like this one. You’ll find families, retirees, and, of course, rail enthusiasts. Each constituency comes with their own set of expectations. Those are fun in their own ways: Curious families whose kids want to go beyond Thomas the Tank Engine. Retirees reliving fond memories. Fans with their fav...

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The Frontier Days train tragedy: Let's prevent the next fatality

Posted 3 months ago by Jim Wrinn

We still don’t know why a 56-year-old Colorado woman stood in the path of Union Pacific 4-8-4 No. 844 earlier this month as the mainline steam legend hauled the annual Frontier Days train back to Denver. Hopefully, new information will come to light soon to tell us why she made the choice to be where she was and paid with her life. Right now, we just don’t know. And that’s frustrating. But what we do have is a full understanding of how to prevent a similar tragedy from happeni...

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The return of 'Railroad Maps'

Posted 3 months ago by David Lassen

Fans of Trains Magazine maps, we have some good news. Our 2013 special issue, Railroad Maps, which collected 45 maps — most from the pages of Trains, but also including four created just for the issue — is back in print. It is scheduled to be available at newsstands and hobby shops beginning Tuesday, July 31. The original printing sold out so quickly that even the Trains staff was caught a bit off guard — not even everyone on the staff has one, and those of us who do have had...

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Frontier Days Train with Union Pacific No. 844

Posted 3 months ago by Jim Wrinn

We followed the annual Union Pacific Frontier Days Train Saturday on its annual run from Denver to Cheyenne, Wyo., for the famous rodeo. The train is difficult to chase on the single-track route that busy U.S. 85 parallels. The highway runs through several small towns and suburbia. But there are a few good views such as this one between Platteville and Gilcrist, Colo. Fortunately the train pauses in Greeley in each direction. At Cheyenne, the train backs to the junction at Speer, where it pas...

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Every story is a railroad story. Just ask Karl Marx

Posted 4 months ago by Jim Wrinn

When I was growing up in the 1970s, one of my favorite syndicated newspaper columnists was a Chicago writer named Sydney Harris. His work appeared on the op-ed page in our region’s daily paper, the Asheville (N.C.) Citizen-Times. Among his regular opinion pieces were collections of snippets of wisdom and random and interesting facts and thoughts, which he would entitle “Things I learned while on the way to looking up other things.” This blog post is presented in the spirit of H...

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Indiana Transportation Museum and 10 rules for railway preservation

Posted 4 months ago by Jim Wrinn

While we try to make sense of out of the eviction of the Indiana Transportation Museum from its home of 50 years and the resulting scramble to save locomotives and rolling stock from scrap that is underway as you read this (the deadline is July 12), let’s review basic realities of railway preservation. They should be universal knowledge, but maybe not. 1. Control your house. If you don’t own your own site, station, tracks, etc., you’re in danger. 2. Keep your relations with C...

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Amtrak: What direction will you take?

Posted 4 months ago by Jim Wrinn

Half of 2018 has passed. In a normal year, Trains waits until late December to name our top railroad stories of the 12 months just passed. The top stories are the subject of staff discussion and debate. This time, I’m willing to say that at the end of the year Richard Anderson and the dramatic changes he’s making at Amtrak, barring any drastic change in his employment status, a major merger among Class I railroads, or something totally unexpected, will be the top story. It has t...

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Railroad photography: That is my bag, baby

Posted 4 months ago by Brian Schmidt

On this National Camera Day 2018, it's a good time to think about keeping your cameras safe. Many photographers will spend hours talking about their favorite camera and how it improves their work. (I often wonder how much could be accomplished if they spent the same time talking about technique, but that's another blog post.) Yet, in spite of having $1,000 (or more!) hanging from their neck, they do little to think about protecting it. In my estimation, the camera bag and strap are as importan...

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Aim beyond 2018. The year of the articulated is ahead

Posted 4 months ago by Jim Wrinn

A few months ago, 2018 was looking good for mainline steam. The famous and iconic American locomotives that were going to fill the spring, summer, and fall with smoke and steam -- 261, 611, 765, 844, 4449 -- promised to make this a year to remember. I was expecting to have to choose among trips this fall. Then, Amtrak in March decided to end charter trains, and in a day the year in steam went from grand to grim. There is a flicker of hope. Milwaukee Road No. 261 announced over the weekend plans...

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The spirit of Promontory is alive and well

Posted 5 months ago by Jim Wrinn

For the last few days, I’ve been chasing the spirit of Promontory. On the busy Union Pacific main line east of Ogden, at the very ground where the Golden Spike was driven at that desolate spot called Promontory Summit in 1869, on the lonely trek across what is left of the Central Pacific right of way around the north side of the Great Salt Lake, I have come as a pilgrim in search of a holy grail. I’ve found that spirit everywhere I’ve looked and even some places I wasn&rs...

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In search of the meaning of Promontory

Posted 5 months ago by Jim Wrinn

It is time to take a trip. Yes, I can hear the groaning now. You’re on the road more than most of us, Wrinn. Why is this one any different than the others that you have to tell us about it in advance? Can’t you just take your trip, keep your mouth shut, and then revel in it later? Let me explain. Indeed, I am taking another trip on behalf of Trains magazine and its website. In 14 years, the trips and the miles, the photos, the friends, the memories have piled up into what was once...

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Railroads at the Henry Ford Museum: Prepare to be overwhelmed

Posted 5 months ago by Jim Wrinn

Michigan’s Henry Ford museum and its sister attraction, Greenfield Village, rarely hit in the top 10 of must see places for those of us who appreciate railroad history. But they should be. The Henry Ford and Greenfield Village, are among the great institutions of American history. A recent visit to Dearborn in suburban Detroit, my first in 10 years, reinforced this notion. Far from a car museum and a collection of old buildings, they’re a lively look at how America moves, innovate...

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Railroad photography: Learn from a master

Posted 5 months ago by Brian Schmidt

There's an element of dedication required to master any craft. Trains Magazine columnist Brian Solomon's dedication shows with his daily railroad photography blog, Tracking the Light. Yes, that means every day. For those inclined to learn, Brian takes the time to talk about the choices that he made to record these images. For those looking for lots of great railroad photos, and maybe a lunchtime diversion each day, the site offers that, too. Solomon launched the blog in 2012, and made it dail...

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Was I ever wrong about GE Transportation

Posted 5 months ago by Steve Sweeney

Boy, was I wrong about GE Transportation. GE and Wabtec officials announced today that they'll combine their companies but keep divisional headquarters in Chicago and Wilmerding, Pa. And it all makes sense. For years, I harangued GE Transportation media people about driverless trains, automation, and artificial intelligence. Early on, they politely responded with additional information on their latest products. Deep down, I knew services to railroads or locomotive owners would be a bigger...

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I went to Carolina: Here's what was on my mind

Posted 5 months ago by Jim Wrinn

I just returned from a few days back home in North Carolina. Even though I have lived in Wisconsin, where Trains is published, for almost 14 years, the Tar Heel State will always be home. It’s the land of great barbecue, pine forests, and a place where, to my southern ear, people don’t have an accent. Let me tell you about my visit. The main purpose of my trip was to attend a joint meeting of the Norfolk & Western Historical Society, the Southern Railway Historical Association, ...

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