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[Anonymous]

When Milwaukee Road 261 runs its excursions from June 21-25, I'll be chasing. Does anyone out there have some tips for photographing this line? Scenic highlights? Places to avoid?

Thanks for your help and maybe I'll see you out there.

- Mike R

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

Chasing will be difficult because the CP main is some distance from I-90/94 and most paralleling roads go through the small towns.

If you plan ahead, the bridge over the Wisconsin River at the Dells can be a pretty good spot from several angles.

[Noah Hofrichter]

Being that Portage-New Lisbon is like my "Home Turf," I can probably help you out.

Actually there is a road that parallels the CP tracks between Portage and New Lisbon for the most part, highway 12. As Paul said though chasing the 261 will be hard to do, as he'll have the ability to do 79 MPH most of the way if he wants because he is an extra Amtrack train. He is running the trip as two sperate runs, Milwaukee-Wisconsin Dells, and a Seperate trip from Wisconsin Dells to New Lisbon, and then he will make the return let of the Wisconsin Dells-Milwaukee trip. He will be loading for about 30 minutes if all goes well in the Dells, from 1200 noon to 1230 if all goes as scheduled. My suggestions for foaming the line near the Portage area anyway are these:

-Plan around the drop off/pick up at the Dells. There is a really nice early afternoon shot at a back road called Bowman Road in the Dells. If you go to the Amtrak station and head east making every right turn you can that's not down a dead end you'll hit it before long. Then you can get around the 261 to the North side of the Dells, and there are many good photo locations at almost any of the grade Crossing between the Dells and New Lisbon.

-In New Lisbon it's not a matter of where there is a good shot in town, as really there is only one crossing in town, right in the middle of the wye where the 261 will flip. There is a station sign there that can make for a nice addition to the photo if you can work it in. Here's two shots of that, one morning, one afternoon:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=139975
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=140543

The Dells River Bridge is also definately a good shot for early afternoon, or early morning too, although the 261 won't be around then. As the train leaves the Dells there are a number of good shots at a place called Lewiston Siding. There are roads that access both the north (west) and south (east) ends of the siding. Really here again you can't go wrong, just about every grade crossing between the Dells and Portage is a pretty good shot, and they are all about the same.

Hopefully that helps you some. Also, if you chase one of the trips from Milwaukee to St. Paul, there are a number of good shots, including a Tunnel at Tunnel City, Wisconsin, near Tomah, and all along the entire line. If you plan to go all the way, La Crosse has a bridge over the Mississippi River that can make for a pretty good shot there too.

Hopefully someone else will post too that's knowledgeable about the area from Portage - Milwaukee, I just never railfan that section of the line enough to know.

Noah Hofrichter
Reedsburg, Wisconsin