I am wondering if anyone from either area give some suggestions. I am looking to take a long weekend trip with my elderly father who is also a railfan. Our last trip was the day before Thanksgiving to New Brunswick and Princeton New Jersey for all the Amtrak and NJT action. Amtrak put on quite a show including a late night pair or racing eastbound regionals through New Brunswick with sparks flying. I was thinking either Quantico VA or somewhere west of Chicago on the BNSF triple track main line where we could see; freights; Metra and Amtrak.
Quantico- Can anyone approximate how many freight trains one might see on a friday or saturday in Quantico Virginia location and what the track speed is at or near the railroad station?
Any suggestions on a spot where one could see all the aforementioned Chicago area action at speed or in otherwords where at least the freights and Amtrak will be rolling pretty good?
I can only comment on Chicago but you didn’t indicate a direction you would be entering the area. Best place to view Amtrak is near Union Station as it all winds up there BUT south of the station is a dangerous area and I would not want to take an elderly person there. The BNSF racetrack through LaGrange, Hinsdale and out to Aurora is a pretty good place to watch trains including Metra, Amtrak and freights. Joilet station is another good area that has outdoor park benchs so you can watch BNSF and AMtrak on the old ATSF line and Metra and Iowa Interstate on the old Rock Island which cross right at the station. Traffic is usually heavy with freights headed to and from Corwith on regular intervals of ten to twenty minutes. For freight only Rochelle Ill. has a park between the BNSF and UP crossing on the west side of town with a covered pavillion that is elevated for good train viewing. On the east side of Chicago the area around Portage Indiana gets a lot of freight on the old NYC line to Elkhart and is the main route of all Amtrak heading east and up to Michigan. Dolton Junction in Dolton sees a large number of freights but no Amtrak. Homewood Ill now has a railfan park south of the station on the east side of the tracks but any kind of traffic is spotty on the IC.
What kind of speeds are you looking for? 40+ or 50+, or 60+? Essentially, the farther away you get from Chicago, the higher the speeds will be. For example, you won’t see full speed BNSF transcon trains (70) until outside of Joliet, only then for a short section until Coal City where there is a 45mph curve. West of there it is 70 until Streator. The BNSF triple track has freight speeds of 40, or 45mph I believe through most of the suburbs. it may not be until after the tracks split in Aurora do the frieght speeds hit 60 (correct me if I’m wrong). Passenger speeds are 70 throughout. The UP triple track main is also 40, 45 through most suburbs until Geneva (?).
In the east, you can catch NS and CSX rolling pretty good at Pine. CSX not so much, but NS I’m pretty sure. I’ve never actually been there before. If youre feeling risky (and I mean RISKY), get off the Skyway at Broadway St. Pull up along side the tracks and enjoy a constant flow of CSX, NS and Amtrak trains at full speed. Incredible spot if not for the industrial Gary atmosphere. I usually venture a little farthur east to places like Ogden Dunes for the NS, and Miller for the CSX to watch them at high speed. At Ogden Dunes you have a VERY busy NS freight line (70ish freight) that hosts 10+ Amtrak running parallel to the South Shore commuter line to South Bend. And anywhere east of Pine is 60 most of the way for both lines, except for very occasional 40mph over diamonds. NO Metra on either of these lines though.
Don’t go to Rochelle, Dolton, Homewood or Joliet if your looking for speed. BNSF rolls pretty good through Rochelle, but everthing else at these locations moves at a crawl.
Regarding the post from Tyler; thanks much though I could use a bit more information on city,state when you speak of “Pine” or getting off the skyway at Broadway Street etc., so I could do more research. Thx Again.
If anyone is familiar with the CSX line through Quantico,VA and freight tonnages/frequency through there, please let me know.
If you go to Joliet there is a public parking lot right next to the station and a snack bar type restaurant inside as well as restrooms. Actually slower is better since there is more time to get better pictures and observe details for a longer time period.
NDPRR’s correct about that other spot in Indiana, except that it’s Porter, not Portage. Amtrak’s Lakeshore and Capitol will be moving pretty well through there, but other trains slow down to move onto diverging routes. Nearby Chesterton has a nice park from which the action can be observed. I’m not a photographer, so I can’t vouch for the photographic possibilities from there. The junction at Porter itself is still off-limits to trespassers, as far as I know.
I’m thinking, with an elderly person along, you’ll want a location with places to relax, and amenities nearby. I’d suggest spending the afternoon on the BNSF, anywhere from LaGrange through Downers Grove (I’d include Naperville, but Amtrak trains stop here, hence won’t be moving fast). Slow-moving freights seem to be the exception along this line, and the dinkies get some good speed on them during the rush hour when some station stops are skipped. Frequency is slightly short of amazing.
The skyway is I-90 through northern IN and IL. I gave you the wrong street to begin with. It’s actually Buchanan St. It’s exit #12 and is right by the old Gary passenger station. But I wouldn’t recommend going there to relax and spend the day. No near restrooms, or restaraunts and no real sense of safety. (yeah, kinda scary!)
If you want to spend the day along the eastern RR’s, I would recommend Chesterton/Porter IN. There are multiple crossings you can park at in town along the NS main and the Chesterton Chamber of Commerce offers parking directly adjacent to the tracks. Problem is the junction with the Amtrak and CSX line is a mile away from the CCoC, though you can still easily hear and see them. The lady who works there is very friendly and she even awarded me one free Coke for staying there longer than anyone before. You’ll have to stay 24+ hours to break my record though. [swg] hehe. It is a nice area to wait and watch, with plenty of trackside amenities.
When I get tired of that spot, I check out Ogden Dunes. Like I said earlier, you have constant, high speed freight and Amtrak and a parallel South Shore line. I sit at the east end of the South Shore station, and no one bugs me. It is only a short 5ish mile drive from Chesterton.
If western RR’s is what you want, then do La Grange - Downers Grove, like Carl said, OR the UP between Elmhurst and all the way out to Elburn, where Metra traffic ceases. No Amtrak on the UP line, but many Metra’s and maybe some more freight. Very peaceful, railfan friendly areas along each right-of-way. They will not disappoint, unless you are looking for full speed RR action. And also, both lines are whistle free. Personally, whistle free zones aren’t as exciting, but that’s just me.
Actually I did mean Portage just east of Ogden Dunes. there is a big curve there and you can see trains coming from both directions. The only thing going slow is the CSS&SB for the Ogden Dunes station stop. The spot I am thinking of is about 1/2 mile west of the intersection of US 12 and State route 249. Another spot is the Inland Steel parking lot at the main office building in East chicago. IHB freights to the mill cross on the east side. Mill switchers are visible through the fence to the north and EJ&E and what was the CR/NYC main runs between the mill and the parking lot.
Really? Don’t the UP frieghts do just as fast as the BNSF ones? I was thinking they were pretty equal, but I can’t argue with a local. [:)] I wondered why you weren’t mentioning your hometown line.
Hinsdale,Wheaton, and Joliet are the three best train watching spots in Chicagoland if you are not driving.If you go on a weekend, you will pay five bucks to ride all the Metra trains you want.The ride from LaSalle street to Joliet is very interesting and Joliet is usually a great place to watch trains.Hinsdale in my opinion is Chicagoland’s number one train watching spot. Lots of trains; both passenger and freight. Plan to spend an afternoon. The town is a very fun and interesting town. It can be easily reached from Union Station on the BNSF. Wheaton is also worth the trip out. You can reach it on the UP line West. Wheaton is a lot like Hinsdale and there is a pretty good Irish pub which has good food a reasonable prices plus has some vintage photos of the Aurora Elgin Interurban.The place is close to the tracks about two blocks from the Metra stop. You might also want to check out the South Shore out of Randolph Street and ride to Michigan City Indiana. I have not made that trip since 1989 so someone else might give you more information. Have Fun and Good Trainwatching
While I am personally fond of Eola (guess why my handle is Eolafan) I agree that Naperville is a very good spot for the kind of trip you are taking and the fact your Dad is elderly…the station platform affords good spots to sit in a chair and watch the action and even has a fair amount of shade for those sunny days. Naperville has fast food within less than a mile and there is a small restaurant/tavern right next to the station for sit down food if you are so inclined. During the weekdays the station rest room facilities are available to you as well and the neighborhood is not at all a problem and very safe.
Tyler, UP’s line has a higher timetable speed limit for freight trains than does BNSF’s line. But they rarely make it up to a decent speed. There are a lot of factors involved, including (possibly) more stringent rules about not passing or meeting Metra trains stopped at stations, the curves on the lines (BNSF is amazingly straight for long stretches), and the fact that UP isn’t set up to handle the traffic densities it’s currently receiving (a couple more control points might help here–BNSF has many more of these than UP). It could be train makeup, too–UP’s freights usually sound like they’re working harder, particularly westbound.
But, as I said before, I prefer 'em slow–that’s why I’ll go several miles to Elmhurst instead of watching them move more quickly just a few blocks from home. I prefer to have my freight cars moving at a speed that enables me to scan old ACI labels for former numbers, read a build date and/or builder’s lot number, and spot other minutiae that only we freight-car freaks are interested in.
At Elmhurst you’ll get 'em at all speeds… And if you’re lucky you’ll get more than one at a time. Proviso Yard is just east of Elmhurst and this leads to some diversity with freights entering and departing the yard. Other freights going to / coming from the IHB or the “city” cruise right on by. Metra scoots, heavy freight volume, a lack of a contol point or two and yard congestion can really gum-up the works on some busy days. The general rule is that the freight follows the scoots.
If you’re driving then Rochelle has to be on the list of suggestions. It’s easy to get to. What about a side trip to the Illinois Railway Museum in Union? It’s not that far from Rochelle.
Having spent time with my elderly father (not railfanning, but other things), it is important to handle the comfort issue. Gary, Indiana is thus out of the question, as are many of the other locations listed.
It sounds like the Joliet Union Station would be good, as would several of the other suburban Metra stops.
Porter/Chesterton would be ok, remember there are no stations, but you would have a number of restaurants nearby. There is a great little downtown park in Chesterton at the corner of Broadway and Calumet that has shade trees and benches, right adjacent to the tracks. Lots of trains…probably 3-4 per hour on average.
Ok, I was station back in Quantico from 2004 to 2006 and I watched may freight run thur the Quantico, VA station, along with a few Amtrak. It was pretty cool to watch the Auto Trains run and frieght ran heavy there too. Another place tha I would go and watch is “14th street bridge” near Hains point in DC. I would sit on the bridge sometimes to get pics of freight, amtrak and some DC metro trains also watch planes land at National Airport. So if ya going near or in VA, pick those 2 places
You won’t lack for freight trains at Quantico, track speed was about 30 mph unless they have finished the new bridge over Quantico Creek. Virginia Railway Express trains stop at Quantico Station, and it is a flag stop for most Amtrak trains. The Prince William County Model Railroaders have built a very nice layout at the station which you might be able to visit. You will need to drive through the Marine Corp Base to reach the town, so remember to bring photo ID’s. The best thing about that is the very low crime rate.