Railfanning?

[Anonymous]

Hello everybody! I'm new to railfanning and would like any pointers anybody might have about going about viewing trains. I live near a major railroad corridor so viewing trains won't be a problem. I just need to know some ettiquette. Do any railfanners own scanners? How do I find schedules of trains that will be passing through my area? Any tips or information or heck, any stories from railfanners would be appreciated. Spring is coming, so I wanna be ready to get out there ;-). Hope to hear from people soon.

[dwil89]

Welcome to the Hobby. I personally like to railfan out in Pennsylvania along the old PRR Main between Harrisburg and Johnstown. This area has good spots to get trackside to view the action. There are parking lots, pulloffs, trackside parks, grade crossings, and hiking trails that parallel the Main where I fan. I own a Scanner. There are magazines and books with Railroad radio frequencies..plus you can ask a fellow railfan from your area what frequencies to dial in to your scanner. Dial in the road frequency for the Railroad you are at and you can hear the crews calling signal indications, direction of travel, and you can hear computer voice defect detectors as trains go over and are checked for hot boxes and dragging wheels off the rail. Etiquette would involve staying off the rails, staying out of posted Railroad property and a friendly wave to the crew as they go by. Freight Scedules are a fanciful approximation, but there are sites that have train symbols with their origins and destinations. I will look up one of those sites and post it separately Dave Williams http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nsaltoonajohnstown

[dwil89]

Here is link to site with Train Symbol deciphering. Click on the Railroad at bottom of site's page and you will get info on origins and destinations. It won't give you time schedules but it will help when you hear a symbol on the scanner, you'll be able to tell what its origin and destination is. http://www.railfanswelcome.com/TrainSymbols.htm Hopefully that will help out. Dave Williams http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nsaltoonajohnstown

[chad thomas]

Welcome to the hobby.
I don't know where you live, but if it's out west one very valuble thing to have is a railfan timetable. Altamont press offers these for sale by region or state. They contain valuble information like speed limits, siding lengths&locations, traffic controll & signal system info., scanner frequencys, train symbols, locomotive rosters, passenger timetables,ect.
They also have maps color coded by railroad.

Altamont Press:
http://railroadnews.net/

Happy railfanning

[JoeKoh]

welcome to the club
take pictures leave footprints and keep safety in mind as a train can come at any time.
stay safe
Joe

[CSXrules4eva]

Hay imbatman6 welcome to the forums!!!!!! You sure did chose the right hobby to get into. I have to warn you becides being expencive this hobby is very much addicitive amd sooner or later you will always have trains on the brain. lol.

Well I guess I should answer some of your questions huh :) I personally don't own a scanner but I do have railfan friends that do own one. It can be very usefull and entertaining to listen to. I'm really not sure were your location is but, if you live near a passanger corridor like the NEC, then I'm sure you would have no problems trying to find schedules for that route. Now if you live next to a freight corridor it might be a little difficult to time trains coming in and departing. Unfortunitly, many class one freight railroads don't publicize their schedules plus, because of the nature of rail freight transportation trains won't run by a set schedule.

Well, good luck to ya and as Joe said stay safe.

[cnw4001]

As has been mentioned, don't trespass and remember a train can come at anytime.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the tips and advice folks, especially the websites. Just so you know, I'm up here in the great white north, Canada eh!. I happen to be blessed by the very near proximity of the tracks of both major national rail services in this country, CN and CP as well as having the national passenger service through the area as well. Once again, thanks for the welcome.

[coborn35]

Some tips: Dont wave anything at the train (especially something red:)), NEVER go on the tracks, trains are always running!!!, do not go on railroad property because that is trespassing, always stand a good ways back and have a good place to run in case of something falling off (not as uncommon as you might think), HAVE FUN, say goodbye to your family because you will never be the same (right guys:), you dont need a scanner but they are pretty handy and lastly: ENJOY YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!

[spbed]

I was told that the 1st 80' feet from the end of the rail belongs to the RR. If what I was told is correct & you do not want to trespass better bring that telephoto lens to get those up close shots. [:o)]

QUOTE: Originally posted by imbatman6

Hello everybody! I'm new to railfanning and would like any pointers anybody might have about going about viewing trains. I live near a major railroad corridor so viewing trains won't be a problem. I just need to know some ettiquette. Do any railfanners own scanners? How do I find schedules of trains that will be passing through my area? Any tips or information or heck, any stories from railfanners would be appreciated. Spring is coming, so I wanna be ready to get out there ;-). Hope to hear from people soon.

[tree68]

I'll second JoeKoh's sentiment (with some additional comment) - take pictures (lots), leave footprints (but not on private property without permission).

Additionally, as tempting as it may be to strike up a conversation with a RR employee who seems to be available, do so with caution. Not because RR employees are dangerous (I think most are pretty harmless), but because they have a job to do in a business where a mistake can cost life and limb. And some just don't like foamers. On the other hand, many will gladly chat with you if conditions permit, and you might get an inside look at a part of the business. Impromptu cab rides are pretty much a thing of the past, but you could pull off a cab visit or a tour of a facility. No promises, mind you, but...

A caveat on scanners - know your local/state scanner laws. Nothing will ruin an otherwise great fantrip faster than a visit by local law enforcement that actually finds something improper being done - like a scanner in your vehicle when that's a no-no.

Scanner freqs for RRs are on the web, and often on local scanner sites. In the case of a big RR with lots of channels in use, a local scanner site might help narrow down exactly which frequencies are in use there. Some places are still using frequencies originally assigned to a fallen flag that has been folded into the current railroad.

If you do get a visit from the law when fanning (a possibility in this super-security concious day and age), be courteous. If you're in a publically accessible space (like a parking lot), they can't do much of anything to you, but arguing your freedoms in that type of situation rarely garners much goodwill. Run back through the forum pages for a couple of threads on that general topic.

Most of all, have fun!

[TheS.P.caboose]

Altamont Press can be helpful. They sell regional railfan timetables loaded with tons of information.

Only Amtrak runs on a "true" schedule. True being they list the times their trains arrive/depart. The freight traffic can come anytime. From what I've noticed is with the freight traffic is that it normally runs at about the same time per symbol. I live near the UP coastline and the MWCPD (manifest West Colton to Portland, OR) train usually gets to the Chatsworth station between 10:00am and 12:00noon. It can arrive both sooner and later than the time I mentioned.

Getting a scanner can be very helpful. You can here the dispatcher giving train orders out to the different crews who need to be on the mainline. You'll be able to get a good understanding of when frieght traffic will be running, local or thru frieght.

[morseman]

coborn35 mentions standing back from the tracks.
Many years ago I was coming home from work and standing
at the highway crossing while a freight was passing by.
one of the flat cars had a load of lumber and one of the
strapping wire had come loose & was flailing around.
I was a fair distance away, but the wire only missed my
head by about a foot. As the train was going about
40 mph it was real scary I can tell you.

Welcome to the club.