OT:Railfan tool and help

[ranchero]

i know this is off topic. Ever since getting my camcorder a few weeks ago i've found myself shooting trains around. The process is fun and exciting but its mostly hit and miss. ill wait for hours, not knowing if a train is even going to show up, then, when it does show up, its hard to figure where its headed. Is there a way railfan can get better idea of the type of traffic to expect to good place to watch trains? Right now im concentrating on NECR. i got some cool shots of the interchange consists from CN and Amtrak passenger, as well as some unit trains. Is there any website that cover employee time table or hot spots?  any help appreciated

[Mikeygaw]

There is Yahoo as well as MSN groups.  They might have a specific group for the area in which you are railfanning.  These groups often contain members which knowledge of specific train symbols, when they usually come through the area I.e. early morning or mid-afternoon, scanner frequencies, time tables, as well as decent spots for photos, heads up on the power lashups, and other information as well as photos from the area.

There are also scanners, which are good for active railfanning as the reports on the groups can be sketchy. Radioshack has been recomended for some decent one, but someone else will have to jump in on the quality of various models.  The various MSN and Yahoo groups as well as several sites on the web have the railroad frequencies and where and what railroad uses them.