We spent a recent family weekend in the border region near Montzen. On two occasions I got out to make a few photos in Remersdaal: once during daytime, once during nighttime. Both times I got a mixed freight train from Antwerp to Köln headed by a double Traxx engine. And that’s where the similarities between the two photos end. 4 different liveries, 2 operators and … Continue reading Night and day
Car traffic to the port of Zeebrugge has been booming in recent months. Many car trains drive to and from the port 24 hours per day, operated by almost all freight operators present on Belgian rails. On one of the few dry days we’ve had in weeks, I ventured out into the fields to flash some trains. Besides a Railtraxx and a Crossrail train, I … Continue reading Empties under a starry sky
After a day of work, we noticed an interesting train heading towards Zeebrugge. Taking into account cloud cover, I figured I had a chance of getting a sunny picture of this train in Drongen. Good guess, it seems, as the low sun was still lighting the train and the cloud cover over Gent. Continue reading Afterwork Backbone
Tomorrow the spring anti-weed campaign starts again on East-Flemish tracks. Here a picture from last autumn’s campaign, seen in De Pinte. Continue reading Weedfree
The port of Antwerp is origin and destination of many container trains. I got to shoot a few at the end of August, beginning of September 2022. Operation of the trains was very diverse.First highlight are the regular Transfennica container trains, connecting the Combinant terminal in the north of the port of Antwerp to Bayonne, near the Spanish border. Except for the last mile, the … Continue reading Johntainers
Wednesday august 10th I went chasing trains along the Antwerp – Aachen freight corridor. Those days off, with nothing to worry about but the photos, are rare, so I wanted to stand along the tracks at sunrise. Which meant waking up really early, but which also meant fluid traffic. Still dozy from the long ride I had to prepare for action quickly as a first … Continue reading A busy summer day
It was, again, a very hot day and I didn’t feel like sitting at the pool from early on. I’m sure my son, if he could speak, would have said exactly the same thing. So I took him to Rouffach with the airconditioned car, where we set up gear and a playing blanket under a large umbrella. It was a day in France that felt … Continue reading France with a Belgian sauce
The first week of august was hot, incredibly hot, in the Alsace region. After a short night I decided that it was time to get up early and enjoy the cool morning temperatures along the tracks. Well, a little before 7am I was standing next to the tracks in only a t-shirt. At least temperature was still bearable.Of course I got to see some trains: … Continue reading Cool morning
On the way back from our Swiss holiday last year, we had to stop for a picnic. I chose a spot near Frick, where we could sit quietly in the shade and where I could set up my tripod with camera. Armed with a remote and sandwich, I could enjoy a family lunch while also shooting some trains.The last train we saw was headed by … Continue reading Multitasking
Today I did something that I haven’t done in a long time: take a day off to make photos of passenger trains. Passenger. Trains. Really. The intercity trains between Schaarbeek and Kortrijk are still hauled by vintage 21 and 27 series locomotives. These machines are about my age and as such I’ve known them all my active railfanning life. They are being gradually withdrawn though, … Continue reading Chasing passengers
Railscapes 