Call It a Learning Experience

Adopt-a-train

Sometimes it just doesn't go right. You're out taking photos but you're not "feeling it", or you make a poor decision and miss a great shot. All you can do is call it a learning experience and try again another time.

That was me on July 27th. I looked out around 8 PM and noticed the sky was looking nice, so I decided to hit the road and see if I could catch a sunset train or two. I debated which way to go - Rivers or Sprague subdivision - and decided to head east to the CN Sprague subdivision.

The First Train

Here's a map of the area, courtesy of Google Maps. The Sprague subdivision runs from the top left / northwest to the bottom right / southeast in this area. The Perimeter Highway runs around Winnipeg - hence the name - and highway 1 is the Trans-Canada Highway and parallels the Sprague for a number of miles out of Winnipeg.

As I drove across the Sprague subdivision on highway 100, I saw headlights to the southeast. I was taking the exit to highway 1 anyway, as the sight lines on that overpass are such that you can't look directly southeast unless you are already taking the exit. Often I take the exit while looking for trains, and if I don't see any, I turn around short of Deacon's Corner and go somewhere else.

The train was close... closer than I would have liked. I didn't have much time to pick a spot to photograph it. It was too late to stop and photograph it from the overpass. I could have stopped just after the bridge over the floodway and taken a side shot, but I wanted to be on the other side of the train - the sun side.

As I approached the highway 207 intersection it was clear they were going to get to the intersection before I did, so I had to pull over and shoot from the highway on the "wrong" side of the light.

Fortunately I was fairly close to the tracks at that point but there was a lot of brush in the way.

A curious consist

Nice light on the nose... BC Rail second unit... wait, what's that in third position?

Kansas City Southern 4692

Kansas City Southern 4692 was paying a visit to Winnipeg! What luck!

That was exciting. This was only the second time I've seen a Kansas City Southern unit. I know I haven't blogged about the first time I saw a KCS unit (two, actually) but if you were on my mailing list, you would have seen the photos. You're on my list, right? You know where to go to sign up..

ANYway, I was stoked to see that. I watched the head end in the lovely evening light...

Soft train light

The train was entirely covered hoppers... maybe a frac sand train?

As the tail end approached, I spotted something else interesting on this train.

One of these things is not like the others

The passenger car was CN CHAMPLAIN (ICMW 101314). I saw this car back in September 2014.

As I understand it, unoccupied business cars like this are supposed to be marshaled at the rear of the train, but there is some rule about not being the last car on the train... I had a quick look but I couldn't find the regulation.

I photographed it, but I was not satisfied with shooting it from the "wrong side" of the sun.

The First Train, Round 2

I decided to try to get ahead of the train and photograph it from the other side of the train. I had two possibilities... beat the train to the crossing at Tinkertown Amusements (see map above) or take Fermor Avenue overpass and find a spot there.

By the time I caught up to the head end, they were already in the crossing, so the Fermor overpass was the only option.

I was there well before the train, and I noted that two tracks were being used to feed the hump yard in Symington. I thought about shooting from the overpass but I thought the view might be blocked by the strings of cars feeding the hump.

I zipped around on Fermor / Plessis Road / Symington Road - see map below. The red arrows indicate my trip and the blue arrow indicates the train's direction of travel.

It's a bit annoying to have to go all the way around, but there's no crossings, so... you can see where there used to be a crossing at bottom right. You can still go to the end of Symington Road (N) but the view is very restricted there. The Symington Road on the south side of the tracks is much better in the evening as you are on the "good" side of the light.

Fortunately I got there before the train, so I could photograph it before it disappeared behind freight cars.

Wires, wires everywhere

I made a bad choice here. As you can see there are fallen telegraph wires everywhere along here. I could/should have gone just a bit farther to get a clear gap... instead I got this:

Not my favourite

Here's the other side of KCS 4692. By then the light was pretty low and I was shooting at 1/60s shutter speed so it's a bit blurry.

KCS 4692 in Winnipeg

They passed the hump yard units - CN 6015 and friends.

Passing the hump yard dogs

Here's the tail end passing the hump yard units.

CHAMPLAIN and CN 6015 and friends

Those last two might be my favourites of this train. I know I complained about the telegraph wires but I think they added to these shots.

I had a hunch there was another train coming on the Sprague subdivision. I don't know why I felt this.. but I had a feeling. I headed east on the Trans-Canada toward Lorette siding to see if my hunch was correct.

As I approached the Lorette siding - the first one on the Sprague subdivision - I saw the lights facing west were lit - red. That meant there was a train on the east side of the signals. It didn't say anything about whether the train was going east or west, just that there was a train in the block.

I continued up to the siding and in the distance I saw headlights. My hunch was right.

The Second Train

By this time I was past the start of the siding, so I had a couple of choices if I wanted to get on the "sun" side of the train.

There is a private crossing in the middle of the siding. I'd never used it so I had no idea what the view was.

The other option was to continue to the west end of the siding, where I knew there was a signaled crossing. I chose this option.

I didn't have much time, but I made it there a good 30 seconds before the lights started flashing. I saw there is a dirt road paralleling the track on the west side, so I drove my Civic down there toward the signals, thinking maybe of including them in the shot. Bad idea.

I slammed on the brakes and bailed out to get the shot. Someday I swear I'm going to forget to put the car in park.

That train was moving!

Panning CN 2899

The above pan was the best of the photos. That was at 1/50s and the train was really motoring along.

The next photo shows why I picked a bad location.

BSW - Big Stupid Wire

Notice the giant wire and poles totally ruining what could have been a lovely sunset photo.

Remember when I talked about careful composition? I didn't do that here. Driving just a bit farther would have opened everything up and that lovely sunset photo would have been possible. I didn't have time to set up the shot and I blew it.

I did manage to salvage a half decent photo with some serious editing. 

Thank you, Adobe Lightroom

This photo is basically the same as the one with the wire, except that:

• I've cropped in a LOT
• I removed the wire
• Lots of spot healing
• Various editing to keep as much quality as possible

At least I got the exposure right for the setting sun.

So those were my two "learning experiences".

Lessons Learned

• Look for shots without "foreground clutter"
• It's better to get in position quickly and then spend a few seconds composing, than to try to get the "best" location and have no time to compose
• Some editing skills can save a photo

Better luck next time!

If you like abandoned places, check out BW Bandy's blog Everybody Has To Be Somewhere. He posts frequently and includes a few grain elevators now and then. He likes photographing hay bales, so I took this photo between trains and include it here for him.

See Also

• Disappointment
• Focus... Focus!

The CN Family Day Train

This post is dedicated to David Othen.

The CN Family Day train

On September 10 CN hosted a Family Day in Symington Yard in Winnipeg. CN brought in a ferris wheel and hosted shop tours and other activities for employees and their families. As part of the activities, CN ran a short excursion train along the CN Terminals Cutoff track several times during the day. This track is sometimes known as the St. Boniface spur because it goes through the St. Boniface neighbourhood of Winnipeg, but it's not really a spur at all since it connects to Symington Yard at one end and the CN Redditt subdivision at the other.

The train started just inside Symington Yard, in front of the shops, and headed down the ruler-straight spur over Marion Street and Archibald Street. It stopped on the bridge over the Seine River then back to Symington for the next group of passengers.

CN "Sandford Fleming" car

The train's route

I looked at the line on Google Maps and it was obvious that the light was going to be a... challenge. Basically the light would be behind the train at the start, and as the afternoon wore on it would shift to the front, but in all cases it would be high in the sky.

The train was scheduled to run from 11 AM to 4 PM and I was only able to be there for the first few runs, so... high noon sun. Oh well, work with what you have!

I elected to go to Dawson Road to shoot it shortly after it came out of the yard and crossed over Lagimodiere Boulevard. I parked by the side of the road, and a railfan on the other side of the tracks waved at me and told me the light was much better on his side. I had time so I drove around to Speers Road and parked behind him.

It turned out to be Jim Burnside, a local railfan whose photos appear often on RailsMBSK. We had never met so it was nice to finally put a face to the name.

We chatted for a bit and I agreed the light was better on this side. As it happened we were standing on what used to be route 59, so there is broken and overgrown pavement visible in a few of these shots.

CN 102 in Winnipeg

The train was scheduled to start at 11 and we heard a few toots from the yard but nothing came. I assume they were loading at 11 so it took a bit of time for them to get underway. During this time, another local railfan, Tim Burridge, showed up. We had met before but it had been a few years!

The train finally got underway and was upon us at 11:24. The sequence of shots around this text is the first run.

CN 3105 on the Family Day train

I swapped lenses to get the long shot on 3105 with the sun in its face. I was a little slow deciding to do this, so I had to crop in pretty far.

CN 3105, going away

I said my goodbyes to Jim and Tim and tried to beat them to Archibald Street. Unfortunately I had not planned my route, so I took a right turn leaving Speers Road and got stuck in a subdivision with no exit. Sheepishly, I drove back around and down Dawson Road to see the train coming back up the spur.

I took a moment to photograph the line of GWWD maintenance cars sitting outside their yard - a couple of flatcars, a ballast hopper and five Hart cars.

GWWD maintenance cars

Run 2

I returned to Dawson Road and waited by the side of the road for the second train. I knew the light would be terrible but I wanted to be ready to beat them to Archibald Street.

Yep, the light was terrible

11:51 for the second train.

The going-away shot was OK, though.

CN 3105 going away

I hopped in my car and drove down Dawson Road to try to beat them to Archibald. The lights and traffic were in my favour and I arrived beside the crossing a good 30 seconds before they crossed at 11:56.

Backlit CN 3090

The going-away shot looked pretty fine.

CN 3105 going away.. again

In retrospect I should have stepped across the intersection once they had passed, to get at least a bit of sun on the side, but A) I wasn't sure how far they were going and how much time I had to cross over, and B) it honestly never occurred to me.

Sun and shadow

They did not spend any time on the bridge; they pulled onto the bridge, stopped, then started back up the spur. I decided to shoot video with my iPhone, since I had all the stills I needed from the last minute!

I liked the little guy in the cab of CN 3090!

The conductor waving from the vestibule is Mark Perry, noted photographer and one of the many CN volunteers giving up their Saturdays for the train and the festivities. Many thanks to Mark for the intel on the train and thanks to all of the volunteers for their time and effort.

Round 3

I thought I could maybe squeeze one more train in before I had to leave. I went to Marion Street, midway along the route, and waited near the crossing there for the train to come along.

Unfortunately CN had to pay the bills so they ran a freight train on the "X track" which blocked the Family Day train from leaving. When I saw that, I decided it was time to leave. I headed out on Dawson but as I passed the location where I first shot the train, I saw the Family Day train was en route.

I pulled off the road and jumped out to take video of the train passing by. Jim was right - the light was much better on the other side.

That was it for me.

About the Train

The train was:

• CN 3090
• "SANDFORD FLEMING" / IC 800653
• "TAWAW" / CN 1059
• CN 102
• CN 3105

CN 3090 and CN 3105 are shiny new GE ET44AC locomotives, the latest in CN's fleet.

CN 102 was shiny but not at all new, being an E9 unit built in January 1950 as Chicago, Burlington and Quincy #9940A. It was acquired by Illinois Central in 1996 and may still be an IC unit for all I know. You may have noticed that some locomotives labelled as CN are actually IC units, with a little "IC" under the side numbers. I don't see that here but that might not mean much... I'm just a railfan reporting what I see or don't see.

CN 102 was just along for the ride... it wasn't running. In 2014 it was "leading" on the Family Day train, which was better for railfans!

2014 Family Day Train with CN 102

SANDFORD FLEMING is an observation car, lettered for the Illinois Central. It's too bad that it was in the middle of the consist so passengers couldn't see anything out of the end picture window besides the end of TAWAW. I last saw SANDFORD FLEMING in January 2016.

TAWAW is an ex CN car, ex "CAPE CHIGNECTO". It has been extensively rebuilt and is quite nice inside, based on the photos I've seen.

Other Coverage

Many other area railfans were out to shoot the train, and I'll link to a couple:

• "Red River Rails" aka Jack
• "Trainboy Productions" aka Isaac
• "The Cando Railfan" aka Taylor
• My video of the 2014 Family Day Train

See Other "business train" blog entries

Business Cars on CN

The kids and I were bored on Sunday afternoon, so I decided to "take them" railfanning. Aren't I a good dad? ;)

As we approached the CN Sprague subdivision south of Symington yard, I saw a long string of autoracks. I investigated and found three SD40-2s and a slug with a long string of cars ready to shove up the hump (consist).

I was thinking of driving up Plessis past the yard, but as I crossed the track by Tinker Town, I glanced south down the line and saw a very distant headlight. Train!

I turned right and headed down highway #1 toward Lorette siding. It became obvious that the train was in the siding at Lorette so I pulled up and parked on Station Road (here) at the north end of the siding.

The train was CN 3036 with four business cars on the head end! A lucky find. They were just crawling up to the end of the siding when I arrived.

I stepped out in the brisk (-27C) weather and walked along to photograph each car. The lead car was CN 1710, FRASER SPIRIT. 1710 is a power car, and I could hear the generator running, especially since Tier 4 ET44AC locomotive CN 3036 was so quiet.

CN 1710, FRASER SPIRIT

The next car was IC 800413, GREAT LAKES.

IC 800413, GREAT LAKES

Here's a closeup of the classy Illinois Central observation platform.

Closeup of GREAT LAKES' observation platform

That would be fun to stand on while the train was rolling along!

The third passenger car was a dome, IC 800723 / CN 99 AMERICAN SPIRIT.

IC 800723 / CN 99, AMERICAN SPIRIT

I'm just not sure which number the car is!

The fourth and final passenger car was IC 800653, SANDFORD FLEMING.

IC 800653, SANDFORD FLEMING

This is a theatre car, with theatre-style seats inside and a large rear window. When I saw it the window was covered up a large roll-up door.

That would be a fun place to be, too!

Anyway, the train sat there in the siding, obviously waiting for a meet. I stood outside taking photos and waiting. I was well-dressed for the -27C / -17F weather:

• Snow boots
• Jeans
• Three layers on my torso - T-shirt, hoodie, parka
• Toque with hoodie hood on
• My Freehand gloves with winter mittens on top

Thankfully there was no wind.

Every now and then, I walked over to the crossing to check the signal facing north. After 25 minutes, it was green over red and I saw a headlight in the distance. The meet was on!

My camera was getting a little sluggish in the cold and the battery light was blinking. I had a spare in my pants pocket but I decided to stick with the battery and trust that it would last long enough for the meet.

Here's CN 2842 approaching the crossing. That's my car to the left.

CN 2842 at a crossing

I boosted the exposure quite a bit as the sun was very close to the horizon by this point (4:39 PM).

Here's the meet.

CN 3036 meets CN 2842 at Lorette

The crew were on the ground for the inspection.

Inspecting the passing train

The eastbound train had CN 2871 as the DPU, near the rear of the train.

CN 2871 at Lorette

Note The Moving BOX on the well car ahead of the locomotive. I've never seen that before! I must confess that I don't pay a lot of attention to containers. You see OOCL, Triton, Tex, Zim, APL and so forth quite a bit, as well as CN and CP domestic containers. Occasionally something like the above container pops up...

Once the train passed, the crew got back on 3036 and they were on their way. In the cold, 3036 was smoking like a steam engine as they accelerated away. It turned out that the train did have a DPU, shiny CN 3005.

CN 3005 at Lorette, Manitoba

That was the end of the light and therefore the end of my railfanning. We hit the road back home and made supper.

Before getting in the car, I made sure to protect my camera gear from condensation due to the change in temperature. You do not want condensation in your lens - think fungus. I had left my camera bag on the trunk to get it down to the outside temperature. Once I was done shooting, I put the camera in the cold bag and zipped it closed before putting the bag in the car. At home, I brought the bag inside and left it alone for a few hours until it came up to room temperature. It's good to remember to take the card out before putting the camera in the bag!

Stay warm!

September 27, 2014 - Part 2

After the Canadian Pacific-based excitement of part 1, and the Winnipeg model train show, I headed home. I took my usual detour of driving along Wilkes Avenue with the hope of spotting some CN action before I got to the Perimeter Highway and had to head south for home.

The action was immediate. There was an eastbound freight headed by CN 2032 to catch!

Those ex-Union Pacific Dash-8s still look odd to me. I don't think crews like them, but they are a welcome change to this railfan from the usual SD70M-2 / ES44DC / SD75I parade.

I drove down along Wilkes some more, not seeing anything, and drove back to Carman Junction one more time "just in case". I was lucky enough to spot a headlight of a westbound train, so I parked and set up to catch it coming around the bend.

Wait... what is that behind the engines?

It was the CN business train! There were six passenger cars being carried behind the four engines (the latter two of which were the power for the business train).

The consist was:

• CN 5612
• CN 2611
• CN 2324
• CN 8958
• IC 800653 / SANDFORD FLEMING
• ICMW 101314 / CHAMPLAIN
• CN 1059 / TAWAW
• IC 800210 / BATON ROUGE
• IC 800413 / GREAT LAKES
• FRASER SPIRIT

Here's the video:
I understand the train was going to Saskatoon where the business train would split off on its own.

I gave chase to Diamond, intending to catch a more side-on view of the train. Diamond resident Brian S was there to catch the action as well.

SANDFORD FLEMING

CHAMPLAIN

TAWAW

BATON ROUGE

GREAT LAKES

FRASER SPIRIT

Purists might argue that although these cars wear the old green-and-gold colours, they are lettered for CN not Canadian National. I say "pfagh" to that; I'm just happy to see these old cars decorated in some semblance of the classic colours. I like the little touches like the "Canadian National Railways" roundels on FRASER SPIRIT and the "Illinois Central" gate on GREAT LAKES.

That was exciting!

The action was still not over - there were two eastbound trains to come.

Next up was CN 8801.

This Crandic car - CIC 2062 - caught my eye. "In recognition of Crandic employee Dave Schulte".

The second eastbound train was CN 2232 and CN 5605 leading an intermodal train.

That was it for me for that day... whew! Busy times.

To end this off, here are a few more photos from the Winnipeg train show in the fall of 2014.

Thanks for reading!

Go back to part 1