Dang 5 tracks! That's awesome! Those 2 EMD's sounded great then the GE's chug chug chug...lol. Awesome footage! Great catch on the OCS, it's been all over lately!
@DJGENEX71 Yeah, this location always hits the spot. Thanks for the compliments, this OCS was caught almost in complete luck, if a railfan hadn't passed on the information, I would have already been on my way back home at this time.
Haha yeah, it certainly worked out that way. Perfect, but stressful nonetheless. The only reason I shot the OCS from up on the bridge and not where I was shooting the coal train in the beginning is because it didn't look like the helpers were going to clear in time to get a clear shot of the OCS.
Man, what a great video. Those SD40-2 helpers on Train 500 sounded awesome from overhead. What I would've given to be right there along side you on that day. Absolutely spectacular. Five stars, Fav'd & Shared.
Yea I was on the sidewalk of the 53 overpass when the F's rolled through. I originally wanted to shoot them from the old bridge abutment (where I shot the 500's road power/helper ahead), but then when that drag went from slow as fuck to slow as death, I moved to the bridge when I knew the F's were at 247. Had I stayed where I was I would have shot the F's going under that same signalbridge RIGHT as the 500's helpers cleared...but I played it safe and didn't risk having the shot ruined.
From left to right: 4-3-2-1-0, 5 main tracks. 4,3, and 1 are really the only ones used for mainline runthroughs. No. 2 Track is used rarely, and the 0 Track is normally used as storage for hoppers. 2, 1, and 0 converge at AR less than a mile east of here, and the 5 track configuration goes back to 3 a mile and a half west of here at MO in Cresson, so you'd really only get 3 trains here maximum. But does the Pittsburgh Line have enough traffic a day to make all 5 occupied? You better believe it.
Now that you said July I HAVE to ask, when were you up there? Might have run into you by accident that week when I was up in mid-July. I got some pretty killer shots from up there too, not too mention meeting a group of guys who ONLY wanted to see black units and nothing else, and who prayed to god that all the ex-Cons would get painted ASAP...lets just say there were some CONFLICTING VIEWS between my railfan party and theirs!
That's too funny. I was there July 23-27. And no dude, ya don't have to worry about me wanting NS to paint their units all to black. If it were up to me, I'd make them repaint all their SD80MAC's back to Conrail blue as they should be. And even make NS do a new SD70M-2 in heritage Conrail blue like U.P. did with their fallen flag roads.
Well, dont we all agree to that.. Im sure the " Blue " group won.. Knowing Mike, he'd go nuts on em and who knows what everyone else in his group thought and did.. lol
From Altoona to Johnstown, the Pittsburgh Line is triple tracked. At the old PRR timetable station "SF" west of MP 246, tracks 2 and 3 continue west towards the Allegheny Tunnel. Track 1 diverges to the left on a 2.46% grade, dubbed "The Slide", and is primarily used by eastbounds only due to the steep gradient. This configuration continues until CP-MO in Cresson, where 0, 1, and 2 tracks (the upper 3) level out with 3 and 4 tracks (the bottom two). The staggered tracks go for about 3 miles.
Yea, it was a great setup there, could have been better if I shot it from my original spot at the old bridge abutment, but oh well. And lets just say that picture may not be on any NS wall calenders...but it looks DAMN GOOD as the wallpaper for my phone!
Yea, Rt 53/MP249 is a great spot for afternoon westbounds, and outstanding for glint shots of PM eastbounds when shooting from the other side of the Rt 53 Bridge. I have a few more sweet videos from this spot I'm gonna post in a little while. Thanks for the subscription by the way.
That is a perfect video. The meet was perfect, the fall colors were perfect and the horn was perfect. Oh, and the EMD pushers were definitely perfect. One of the best RR videos on YouTube!
Thanks for the compliments Jim. The Canon is GREAT, but sadly, YouTube can't handle its image quality, you should see what this looks like played through a regular TV!! Its funny, since the Canon XL1S camcorder comes in pieces (body,lens,mic,viewfinder), things can go wrong...i.e. junk got in between the lens and the body, so the majority of the shots from that trip out to the PITL were blurry because it focused on the crap rathar than he trains...but THANKFULLY this is one shot that survived!!!
haha if I stayed where I was initally, THATS what could have been better! Same awesome color, same trainsm same location, EXCEPT, 500's helpers would have cleared right before the OCS coasted past it, which would have looked phenominal. BUT...I'm not gonna complain with the shot I walked away with!
Wow, you weren't kidding Mike! This turned out to be spectacular, the color, the helpers, the F's... oh and it sounds great through my headset. Great job! It turned out well, I'm glad you caught them!
On a side note, 500's leader is 8302 (has been assigned to NJ coal for awhile), and even though it is black, I never get tired of seeing those rare exConrail D8-40C's, NICE!
haha if only they could work hard a LITTLE BIT FASTER!!! But yea, the master volume dial was turned up WAY too much, but I didn't expect to move from my orignal vantage point so...just forgot to set it back!! But yea, I think the echo at the end's the best friggin part, the most memorable anyway.
Wow! I Just Went Over this bridge today when i went to galetzin Cresson and the Curve. But Wow Did I Want 2 set up there. Nice choice and spot right on Pa 53
Yup, its one of my favorite lazing-around spots on the PITL. To get a better view than this, drive north up 53 from Cresson until right before the bridge, take a right on a dirt road near a few houses, park in the dirt road/path not blocking the local traffic, and follow the path right out to an old bridge abutment which overlooks a clear well-lit shot looking east.
If the weather forecast didn't call for hit or miss afternoon clouds, then I was going to catch him on the west side of the curve. But I didn't wanna risk it, so I just took someone else's advice and shot him here. Had fun waiting with Tony Kimmel and a few other railfans.
Well That Sucks lol but at least you werent alone! I Only Wish That I was With some railfans but now I Am :D i got a friend from school who doesnt get to see much trains on the Line running through our town and its a coal line so little to no trains at all on the line
well to Start Amazing entrance view!!! Listen to 500's engines rumble!! Awesome shot of 500 & 955. nice to see Some Conrail Dash 8 Blue in there! only if that Gp38-3 would some how lead! Awesome echo of the outstandingly clean K5LA of 4270! Wow were those helpers working hard!!! 5* 4 sure and a Fav! amazing job
perfect meet and love that conrail on the coal train
trainlover1999 3 weeks ago
@trainlover1999 As do I, it's a shame that all the blue Dash 8 models have since faded to NS black.
AliceInChains243 2 weeks ago
Not only a great youtube name and band. But a great video to boot,excellent video & sound was fantastic !!!! I give it 5 stars.
dragonriversteel 1 year ago
Dang 5 tracks! That's awesome! Those 2 EMD's sounded great then the GE's chug chug chug...lol. Awesome footage! Great catch on the OCS, it's been all over lately!
Thumbs up all the way!!!
DJGENEX71 1 year ago
@DJGENEX71 Yeah, this location always hits the spot. Thanks for the compliments, this OCS was caught almost in complete luck, if a railfan hadn't passed on the information, I would have already been on my way back home at this time.
AliceInChains243 1 year ago
Perfect meet. :)
admydragon 1 year ago
Haha yeah, it certainly worked out that way. Perfect, but stressful nonetheless. The only reason I shot the OCS from up on the bridge and not where I was shooting the coal train in the beginning is because it didn't look like the helpers were going to clear in time to get a clear shot of the OCS.
AliceInChains243 1 year ago
Awesome video. 5***** and favorite.
kenjr29mfl 1 year ago
Thanks dude! Glad you enjoyed it.
AliceInChains243 1 year ago
Excellant video 5*
pwalpar 1 year ago
Thanks!
AliceInChains243 1 year ago
Great! What else can ya say, but great! Thanks.
48alfaone 1 year ago
Man, what a great video. Those SD40-2 helpers on Train 500 sounded awesome from overhead. What I would've given to be right there along side you on that day. Absolutely spectacular. Five stars, Fav'd & Shared.
SFLRailFan 1 year ago
What the hell is NS doin puttin a B32-8 on loaded coal on the alleghenies!?!? They must be desperate. Killer K5LA still on that 4270
xxxDeath9572xxx 2 years ago 2
its nt a B32, its a regular C40
NSrailfan1 2 years ago
I can see that.. I didn't know that as of 7 months ago.. The unit will have helpers until CP-HOME as the lead unit doesn't have cab signals.
xxxDeath9572xxx 2 years ago
are you up on the bridge where the road crosses at that point?
jmano33 2 years ago
Yea I was on the sidewalk of the 53 overpass when the F's rolled through. I originally wanted to shoot them from the old bridge abutment (where I shot the 500's road power/helper ahead), but then when that drag went from slow as fuck to slow as death, I moved to the bridge when I knew the F's were at 247. Had I stayed where I was I would have shot the F's going under that same signalbridge RIGHT as the 500's helpers cleared...but I played it safe and didn't risk having the shot ruined.
AliceInChains243 2 years ago
i wana see 5 trains meet there one day that would b cool
jordan1210 2 years ago
Is that 5 mains!!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
PaulPeirceFan 2 years ago
From left to right: 4-3-2-1-0, 5 main tracks. 4,3, and 1 are really the only ones used for mainline runthroughs. No. 2 Track is used rarely, and the 0 Track is normally used as storage for hoppers. 2, 1, and 0 converge at AR less than a mile east of here, and the 5 track configuration goes back to 3 a mile and a half west of here at MO in Cresson, so you'd really only get 3 trains here maximum. But does the Pittsburgh Line have enough traffic a day to make all 5 occupied? You better believe it.
AliceInChains243 2 years ago
This is an awesome vid and goes in my favorites. Great catch and nice job! 5* vid all the way....
pahogger 3 years ago
Yea man this is my second favorite shot of all time, you'll see the first soon enough...hint hint
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
Sweet, I can't wait. I took my nephew to this spot in July, and he loved it.
pahogger 3 years ago
Now that you said July I HAVE to ask, when were you up there? Might have run into you by accident that week when I was up in mid-July. I got some pretty killer shots from up there too, not too mention meeting a group of guys who ONLY wanted to see black units and nothing else, and who prayed to god that all the ex-Cons would get painted ASAP...lets just say there were some CONFLICTING VIEWS between my railfan party and theirs!
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
That's too funny. I was there July 23-27. And no dude, ya don't have to worry about me wanting NS to paint their units all to black. If it were up to me, I'd make them repaint all their SD80MAC's back to Conrail blue as they should be. And even make NS do a new SD70M-2 in heritage Conrail blue like U.P. did with their fallen flag roads.
pahogger 3 years ago
They could also do PRR, N&W, Southern, and many others, but I think that those would be the main four.
trainkid16 2 years ago
Well, dont we all agree to that.. Im sure the " Blue " group won.. Knowing Mike, he'd go nuts on em and who knows what everyone else in his group thought and did.. lol
xxxDeath9572xxx 2 years ago
perfect timming
shityname5 3 years ago
NS at its best
ChanFram 3 years ago
I don't mean to sound like a dolt, as I've done the Altoona area before, but are the mains staggered here to ease the climb up the hill?
monty5329 3 years ago
From Altoona to Johnstown, the Pittsburgh Line is triple tracked. At the old PRR timetable station "SF" west of MP 246, tracks 2 and 3 continue west towards the Allegheny Tunnel. Track 1 diverges to the left on a 2.46% grade, dubbed "The Slide", and is primarily used by eastbounds only due to the steep gradient. This configuration continues until CP-MO in Cresson, where 0, 1, and 2 tracks (the upper 3) level out with 3 and 4 tracks (the bottom two). The staggered tracks go for about 3 miles.
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
Well done- if someone was off to your right and took a still right when the pushers came into full view, they could've made the NS calendar!
monty5329 3 years ago
Yea, it was a great setup there, could have been better if I shot it from my original spot at the old bridge abutment, but oh well. And lets just say that picture may not be on any NS wall calenders...but it looks DAMN GOOD as the wallpaper for my phone!
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
wonder if that was an attempted Shave & a Haircut from 4270?
xxxDeath9572xxx 3 years ago
Well Mr T was the one driving, and he knows Tony Kimmel pretty well, thats why the horn was layed on as much as it was...cuz we're awesome
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
lucky little You!
xxxDeath9572xxx 3 years ago
Hey Justin I've Been To Horseshoe It Is So AWSOME!!!!! Next Summer I'll Get You A Video Of It. I Promise.
skittles569 3 years ago
Very nice!!! man i wanna go to th P-line soo bad.... to go to horse shoe and that like 7 line track that u just shot!
Stephenson18 3 years ago
Yea, Rt 53/MP249 is a great spot for afternoon westbounds, and outstanding for glint shots of PM eastbounds when shooting from the other side of the Rt 53 Bridge. I have a few more sweet videos from this spot I'm gonna post in a little while. Thanks for the subscription by the way.
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
That is a perfect video. The meet was perfect, the fall colors were perfect and the horn was perfect. Oh, and the EMD pushers were definitely perfect. One of the best RR videos on YouTube!
Jim
-What type of camera did you use?
fleecejackets 3 years ago
I apologize, I just read your channel description and saw the camera type.
Again great video!
Jim
fleecejackets 3 years ago
Thanks for the compliments Jim. The Canon is GREAT, but sadly, YouTube can't handle its image quality, you should see what this looks like played through a regular TV!! Its funny, since the Canon XL1S camcorder comes in pieces (body,lens,mic,viewfinder), things can go wrong...i.e. junk got in between the lens and the body, so the majority of the shots from that trip out to the PITL were blurry because it focused on the crap rathar than he trains...but THANKFULLY this is one shot that survived!!!
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
No problem, and wow I can only imagine! And I see what you mean, I had an old VCR recorder, same thing...
thanks again, I hope to see many more!
fleecejackets 3 years ago
Greatness!
iRECKONER 3 years ago
AWESOME shot, definitely favorited
fall foilage, the OCS, and a meet...what could be better!
redsoxfan423 3 years ago
haha if I stayed where I was initally, THATS what could have been better! Same awesome color, same trainsm same location, EXCEPT, 500's helpers would have cleared right before the OCS coasted past it, which would have looked phenominal. BUT...I'm not gonna complain with the shot I walked away with!
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
awesome view and catch!
Sabrestrainsfan 3 years ago
Wow, you weren't kidding Mike! This turned out to be spectacular, the color, the helpers, the F's... oh and it sounds great through my headset. Great job! It turned out well, I'm glad you caught them!
On a side note, 500's leader is 8302 (has been assigned to NJ coal for awhile), and even though it is black, I never get tired of seeing those rare exConrail D8-40C's, NICE!
o00o00ozy 3 years ago
haha if only they could work hard a LITTLE BIT FASTER!!! But yea, the master volume dial was turned up WAY too much, but I didn't expect to move from my orignal vantage point so...just forgot to set it back!! But yea, I think the echo at the end's the best friggin part, the most memorable anyway.
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
Wow! I Just Went Over this bridge today when i went to galetzin Cresson and the Curve. But Wow Did I Want 2 set up there. Nice choice and spot right on Pa 53
xxxDeath9572xxx 3 years ago
Yup, its one of my favorite lazing-around spots on the PITL. To get a better view than this, drive north up 53 from Cresson until right before the bridge, take a right on a dirt road near a few houses, park in the dirt road/path not blocking the local traffic, and follow the path right out to an old bridge abutment which overlooks a clear well-lit shot looking east.
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
Yep I Know exactly where Your At. It is quite a nice shot! Only If You Saw them going through Cresson Galetzin and over the Curve!
xxxDeath9572xxx 3 years ago
If the weather forecast didn't call for hit or miss afternoon clouds, then I was going to catch him on the west side of the curve. But I didn't wanna risk it, so I just took someone else's advice and shot him here. Had fun waiting with Tony Kimmel and a few other railfans.
AliceInChains243 3 years ago
Well That Sucks lol but at least you werent alone! I Only Wish That I was With some railfans but now I Am :D i got a friend from school who doesnt get to see much trains on the Line running through our town and its a coal line so little to no trains at all on the line
xxxDeath9572xxx 3 years ago
well to Start Amazing entrance view!!! Listen to 500's engines rumble!! Awesome shot of 500 & 955. nice to see Some Conrail Dash 8 Blue in there! only if that Gp38-3 would some how lead! Awesome echo of the outstandingly clean K5LA of 4270! Wow were those helpers working hard!!! 5* 4 sure and a Fav! amazing job
xxxDeath9572xxx 3 years ago