Slipping out of Union Station, one of the last runs for the night on the Metra Southwest Service is bound for Manhattan (the one in Illinois). Heading under a multitude of overhead signals guiding its path out of town, the train picks up speed and the conductor begins to collect tickets, his unmistakable figure (complete with hat) silhouetted in the rear window of the train car. Read the rest of this entry »
Manhattan Bound
Feb 3
31st Street Beach
Feb 2
I always love going down to the beaches in Chicago in the winter, especially at night. There is no one around, it’s very quiet except for the sound of the lake swelling against the break waters and distant fog horns. When staring out across the dark water and sky to the east, it almost seems like it’s a bigger body of water than it is, like an ocean. It’s so dark out there it’s almost like staring into a vacuum, your eyes struggle to see anything at all. And then you realize, hey, that’s Michigan. Read the rest of this entry »
Cruising Up Lakeshore
Feb 1
Hugging Chicago’s lakefront, the original Illinois Central Railroad mainline was built in 1856 and electrified in 1926. Today, it is one of Metra’s busiest stretches of commuter railroad, with hundreds of daily trains carrying thousands of commuters into the Loop at Millennium Station. South of Roosevelt Road, there are also a few freight trains along the line, six tracks wide at this point. Sunday night, we were lucky enough to find one of those freight trains approaching the 35th St. overpass, under the ever-present Willis Tower, its headlight illuminating the wide right of way of the Mainline of Mid-America. Read the rest of this entry »
High above Bellevue, IA is the overlook at the conveniently named Bellevue State Park. From this perch above the Mississippi River, you can see a long ways north, across the entire town of Bellevue, up the valley almost to Dubuque, IA, some 25 miles upriver. The view of the town is quite nice, railfans may recognize the view from up here for its famous stretch of street running trackage along the DM&E. However, I think the town is just as interesting looking, with its small town charms. The big church steeple and the town water tower stand tall over the house roofs, and especially stand out on a cold and snowy evening, just after the sun had set in the western sky. Read the rest of this entry »
Beecher Community Church
Jan 26
Yesterdays photo was looking east down Penfield Street in Beecher, IL. Todays photo is looking west up Penfield Street from almost the exact same spot. I decided to turn my strobes on the Beecher Community Church at the top of the hill. Read the rest of this entry »
