Across the Illinois River After Dark
The I-74 / Murray Baker bridge in Peoria, IL rises over a fog-shrouded Illinois River on a cold winter night. Be sure to join me on Facebook – Twitter – Flickr
Railroad Bridge in Fog
With our wildly fluctuating temperatures in Central Illinois lately, we’ve had our share of foggy days and nights. And I love shooting in fog. One such evening was this past Monday, when I headed towards the Illinois River after work. This is the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad’s massive Illinois River lift bridge shrouded in a [...]
Late Night in Yates City
It’s last call down at the local bar. Just before they turn out the PBR sign hanging out front, an empty BNSF grain train rumbles through Yates City, on its way back to North Dakota for a reload. Be sure to join me on Facebook – Twitter – Flickr
Front Street, Galva, IL
I’m slowly catching up on my blogging here! This photo is from back in March, taken on a warm spring afternoon in downtown Galva, IL. No one is around on this lazy Sunday afternoon in this typical Midwestern small town. A few clouds are gathered around the grain elevator looming over the old brick stores [...]
All Aboard
Waiting on the platform for his ride west, this gentleman was the only sleeping car patron to board here, with the rest of the substantial waiting crowd heading for the coaches at the rear of the train. The conductor of tonight’s Southwest Chief is watching from the vestibule as the Amtrak train slows for its [...]
Now Departing Galesburg
Amtrak’s westbound Southwest Chief departs Galesburg, IL after sunset on a winter evening. The many passengers who boarded tonight’s train will arrive in the much warmer climate in Los Angeles in about 36 hours, passing through the beautiful scenery in New Mexico and Arizona en route.
County Road 3000 N
Rising over I-55 just south of Chenoa, IL, County Road 3000 N disappears into the sunset on a winter evening. And as always, be sure to join me on Facebook – Twitter – Flickr
Sunset Over the Open Road
As the sun sinks closer to the horizon, a tractor trailer truck rolls north on I-55 near Chenoa, IL. If you’re seeking semi truck stock photos, please be sure to follow this link to my gallery! And as always, be sure to join me on Facebook – Twitter – Flickr
Spring Storm, Elmore, IL
Since it is just beginning thunderstorm season here on the plains of central Illinois, I figured it’s a great time to begin with some lightning photography. We had an early season storm move through the area last weekend, and I took the opportunity to head to one of my favorite spots near Williamsfield, IL where [...]
Night at the Power Plant
I thought I’d deviate from the Post Offices for once, and add to the “In the Three Oh Nine” series. This is the E.D. Edwards Generating Station south of Bartonville, IL along the Illinois River. It’s a 749 Megawatt coal fired power plant belonging to AmerenCilco, the local utility. Feeding the burners at Edwards Station [...]
Green Bay Packers Ride
As a die-hard Chicago Bears fan, this pains me to put this photo up on the blog. But in honor of the Green Bay Packers Super Bowl win last night, I figured I’d show this photo today. This is from a trip to ‘da north woods’ back in November, found on the side streets of [...]
Centralia Crew Change
I spent some time in Centralia, IL over the weekend. The town of Centralia hosts three railroad mainlines, all of which bisect the downtown district on a shared alignment. The BNSF’s former CB&Q southern Illinois coal route snakes through town, sharing track with the Norfolk Southern and crossing the Canadian National on the south end [...]
Icy Conductor
In the winter spirit still, I figured I’d update the “People Make The Trains Run On Time” gallery here on the blog. This is from the winter of 2008, as a snowstorm moved through Chicagoland, dumping tons of the white stuff on the landscape surrounding Elburn, IL, and its ‘out in the country’ Metra station. [...]
Five Miles Away
I often feel that the Midwest gets a bad reputation for being nothing but flat. Table-top boring-ness for as far as the eye can see. For the most part, though, this is an undeserved assumption. Yet there are a few places where the flatness is definitely not a myth. One such completely horizontal place is [...]
The Road in Road Trip
The most integral part of any road trip is the road. They go everywhere, crisscrossing the countryside, allowing you to travel to small towns and big cities alike. From Seneca, Nebraska to Austin, Texas, here are a few scenes OF the road, FROM the road, during my recent road trip around the middle of the [...]
Sunset on the Illinois River
A week ago, I was doing a little exploring of the Peoria area, waiting for the sun come out. The weatherman had said it would be a ‘mostly sunny’ afternoon, but by 5pm, the sun had not shown itself. There was a clearing line in the west though, so I knew we’d get a bit [...]
Amtrak’s California Zephyr in the Rocky Mountains
Amtrak’s California Zephyr is eastbound just out of the Moffat Tunnel approaching Tolland, CO. The late September sun is highlighting a large stand of aspen trees on the mountainside above the train. The route the train is on, the original Denver & Rio Grande Western mainline between Denver and Salt Lake City, is one of [...]
Sunset on the Union Pacific Mainline
One of the most impressive pieces of railroad infrastructure in the world is Union Pacific’s mainline across Nebraska. Part of the original Transcontinental Railroad, it’s now three tracks wide for most of the way across the state, and carries over 130 freight trains per day. This section acts as a funnel for most of the [...]
Green Dress
A woman in a green dress waits for her ride to the Loop at the Chicago Avenue Blue Line station in Chicago, IL. As always, join me on Facebook : Twitter : Flickr
An Abandoned Highway
Built in the early Eighties to connect the giant steel mills in East Chicago, IN with the Indiana Toll Road, the Cline Avenue Freeway curves through the heavy industry and rises high over the Indiana Harbor Canal. The road has a grim history. In 1982, during its construction, a large section of cribbing collapsed during [...]
Moving Your Freight While You Sleep
Part of what fascinates me about the railroad is that it is a 24/7/365 operation, through snow, rain, heat and gloom of night. Just like the post office, except with big colorful steel machines. And no where does the all-day-every-day culture better exhibit itself than from above a giant freight yard at midnight. Such was [...]
US 30 Suspension Bridge
From my ongoing Mississippi River project, this is the relatively new (built in 1999) suspension bridge over the Mississippi River at Clinton, IA. As always, join me on Facebook : Twitter : Flickr
Crew Change, Clinton, IA
While a loaded coal train departs on an adjacent track, a new crew member climbs aboard an empty coal train at Clinton, IA.
Sabula After Dark
After I waited for a while here getting eaten alive by mosquitos, the DM&E’s Nahant-Savanna local finally finished their work at Sabula and headed across the Mississippi River on their massive swing bridge. As always, join me on Facebook : Twitter : Flickr
