A group of friends and I will be traveling from Chicago to western Pennsylvania later this week and I was looking for some advice and feedback on good railfan spots. I’m especially interested in any scenic spots for some good photos. Horseshoe Curve and the Gallitzen Tunnels are a given, but I was wondering if anyone had any information on any other spots. In particular I am looking at the possibilty of going to Sand Patch and also possibly seeing shortline/regional railroads in the Pittsburgh area (W&LE, B&LE, Union). Any info on those or other areas would be much appreciated. Thanks for your input!
It will help if your indicate your routing between Chicago and Western PA.
There are some possibilities.
Dale
…One suggestion…The former WM trestle over a wide valley near Meyersdale, Pa. is now modified for use on the east - west trail through the area…and the main line east - west of CSX goes right under it…Bridge is roughly 100’ high and 1500 ft. long and it crosses a very scenic valley. Name of the trestle is the Salsbury Viaduct. Location: Just a few miles west of Meyersdale.
Like you said, Horseshoe Curve is a given. Sand Patch (my stomping grounds) always offers great scenery and good trains. Modelcar [morning Quentin] mentioned the Salibury Viaduct on the Keystone Sub (Sand Patch) and there’s also the summit, Mance and the overlook at Foley that provide excellent shots.
Also, don’t overlook the west end of Sand Patch. Some nice scenery there and double track main splits into a high line and low line for a few miles before meeting up again in Confluence. (Here’s a link to some of my Sand Patch pics. http://bbrant.rrpicturearchives.net/archivethumbs.aspx?id=4347 )
Lots of good places in Pittsburgh and the surrounding area. CSX and NS both have busy lines that practically run next to each other. Just go to Station Square and you’ll have CSX (former P&LE line) running along the river and NS running along the hillside behind you. Great shots can be had from Mt. Washington.
East of downtown Pittsburgh offers plenty of great shots. The new Waterfront area has the same CSX and NS lines mentioned above running through it. In nearby West Mifflin you have CSX, NS and the Union RR. The CSX line then continues onto McKeesport where a small yard normally has some interesting CSX power in it.
Over the hill from McKeesport is Wilmerding. The NS Mon Line (the line running behind Station Square) connects into the Pittsburgh/Harrisburg line just west of the WABTEC plant. (WABTEC is one of the leading manufacturers of railroad braking systems & my wife used to work there.) Lots of action in the Wilmerding/Pitcairn area including the intermodal yard in Pitcairn. Some additional shots can be had by going a little further east. The NS line continues through Trafford, PA and where there’s a connection with the Turtle Creek Industrial RR.
Just west of Wilmerding is the George Westinghouse Bridge which is great to either get shots from or include in the background of your shots. In East Pittsburgh you have the NS Pittsb
new castle is nice and big beaver is where the ft wayne line comes in to go to conway yard.seen alot of diffrent power over there.watch for bessemer tunnel motors.
stay safe
joe
…A great bunch of photos Brian…
West end of Connellsville yard on Sand Patch is a favorite for the grandson and I. Versailles just outside McKeesport offer some interesting shots ( where the old B&O crosses over the Yough to the old P&LE tracks.) W&LE can be had at Owensdale, just south of Scottdale on Saturdays (late morning-early afternoon) is a possibility. If you can time it right, Jacobs Creek, The overpass of W&LE and the CSX underneath ( difficult but possible).
The West Slope between Johnstown and the Summit Tunnels offer plenty of spots. Simply follow Rte 53 South and it will lead you through many West Slope towns with good vantage points of NS. Cresson is a good spot where you can watch the action from an observation deck, or from parking areas near the tracks and also from the front porch of the Station Inn, if you decide to stay there www.stationinnpa.com also, Lilly offers a Grade Crossing at Carneys Crossing, as well as a overhead bridge and a nice open field on the West side of Lilly where you can shoot trains passing under a classic PRR Signal Bridge.at MP254.7. Cassandra is a good spot,at MP255.5 just West of Lilly where an old iron Footbridge offers great views and a quiet place to relax with benches and shade. John Shuniak rents Hotel Rooms near the Cassandra Overlook starting at $35 a night single with AC and Cable TV. 814-736-4880. Summerhill offers an overpass, and space trackside to shoot trains passing under another classic PRR signal bridge at MP 263. South Fork at MP265.5 offers a couple of vantage points, one from an old bridge abutment where you can get an elevated vantage point of trains coming around the bend through SO interlocking. This is also the junction with an active coal branch called the South Fork Secondary, where ex-Conrail SD80MACS can often be found. Loadouts also exist in Portage, which is West of Cassandra. If you are lucky, you might catch an RJ Corman Coaltrain running between Cresson and Fallentimber, up the Irvona Secondary…lots of action between Johnstown and Cresson! Dave Williams @ nsaltoonajohnstown@yahoogroups.com
…Dave, a photo in latest TRAINS shows that Horseshoe got a “haircut”…and I believe the shot is looking towards the tunnels for the road and stream that pass under the ROW at that point and it shows the follage has been well trimmed…Question: Do you know it the trees and brush have been cut most of the way around the “Curve”, such as improving the view when one is up at track level, etc…?
The view has been improved from the center of the park Eastward, so that if you are standing near the Geep 9 at trackside and facing East toward the Kittanning Point Signal Bridge, the view is much improved there. The view Westward, especially beyond the Glen White Rd underpass (where the traffic light is) is still grown in with trees. Dave Williams @ nsaltoonajohnstown@yahoogroups.com
…Understand. Thanks for the info Dave…Will be in my home area of Someset Co. in a few weeks and just might make another jaunt over to the Curve to take another look.
Sure would be nice if they would clear the western view as well. Bet the eastern view is much, much better now as you describe. That was getting so grown up one couldn’t see much until the units were almost entering the Curve’s center…
If there were an easy way to post pics here,( I have hundreds of digitals of the Altoona area, )such as add attachments, where you could upload a pic and attach to posts like at Trainorders, or Yahoo…I could show pics of how the Curve looks nowadays…I understand that in a roundabout way, pics can be posted here, but method seems a bit complicated. Dave Williams@nsaltoonajohnstown@yahoogroups.com
Yes, of course it’s done by some but personally, I just gave up on doing any. It would be nice if it was less complicated. I’m not a computer wizzard but do move pic’s around on e-mail, etc…but it’s a bit more involved on here. On the sight at the Curve…several years ago I stood up at track level and took 3 shots just by carefully panning so the shots would fit together but the trees at that time were really obscuring a lot of the view of the complete Curve…Hope it’s a bunch better now. It really is a very scenic sight besides being a famous railfan spot.
All the above suggestions are great, but you don’t have to stay in the country all the time. Consider Pittsburgh, whose reputation as a grimy working town is about 40 years out of date. The city is a photographer’s dream, with tunnels, inclines, and great views all around – even downtown. (Especially where the Allegheny meets the Monongahela River = Ohio River!) The city preserved its traction network and updated it to light-rail about fifteen years ago. That combination of terraced, 1920s houses and the streetcars is unbeatable! There are also trains running up and down the Mon(ongahela) Valley that can be captured close up or across the river. Don’t think you’ll go wrong if you decamp for a night or two in Pittsburgh.
[:D]