About 40 years ago when I got back inton model railroading one of the first books I got was a primer by Linn Westcott. It showed a similar motorcar with an Aero-train front end and a passenger compartment in the rear. Imagination is a wonderful thing.
Bring along a box car with you. Take a photo of it during the black-out. Include a few other shots of the eclipse as well… problem solved [8D]
I’ll look forward to seeing the photos [Y]
Have Fun! Ed
Neato! Looking forward to more logging. I need to get a few things done there myself after a start in it, plus it’s an area of modeling that remains quite popular if perhaps a little less built than in the past.
Ed’s eclipse idea works for me. Or – safely and without trespassing – set up a time lapse series on something interesting along the right of way, grade crossing or track signal, a bridge, or a cut of cars. What could be really interesting would be pics of a passing train, which would start in light, go on into darkness and come back out into the light. With a ~3 minute eclipse, it could be done at a single spot with the same train passing by.
But good luck getting a good spot except by luck now. I-57, has been packed since Friday. Amtrak’s train are long sold out, although you can board here (Champaign, IL) if you already have a magic ticket. The local air traffic control has ben handling light aircraft flying in and Carbondale’s 200 parking spaces are all gone, although still space at Harrisburg and Marion, plus in Missouri across the river. The trains are likely to be one of the few transportation modes running relatively normally on Monday, so should make a great topic.
Well, I was too busy getting ready for the road trip to pick up on the suggestions so there was no mixing railroading with the eclipse. I kept a close eye on the forecasts the last two days trying to find the place with the best chance of sunny skies. I changed my plans 3 times in the last two days including twice the morning of the eclipse. I was in Bowling
Sky was clear in western KY for eclipse. Total eclipse was 2 minutes and 40 seconds here. Awesome. Moon was a huge black disc surrounded by a massive ring of fire. The maximum eclipse was between Hopkinsville and Princeton which was 25 miles from where we live.
My original plan was to go to that spot between Princeton and Hopkinsville where a farm was hosting an event called Solquest if I remember right. Then I looked at the forecast on Sunday and they were calling for 10% chance of rain there but 0% chance in north central Tennessee so I switched my plan to Lebanon, TN right in the center of the path. During a pit stop I looked at the map and decided it might be better to pick a spot north of Nashville so I could move west quickly if