The search for photo opportunities became harder as the forest became more dense. No big deal though, getting there is half the fun; that is one of the reasons this hobby has become a passion. Right on time for the next freight train up the mountain we found this view on one of the Albula railway’s many typical bridges. Loco 626 is in charge of … Continue reading Through dense forests
Sledges are dangerous. Trust me. I would experience that in person in a couple of hours – at this moment we were only making sure not to be hit by Continue reading “Long freight”
Initial plans for this trip focused on the Gotthard railway. When wheather turned out to be better in the eastern part of Switzerland, I was happy to propose the Rhaetian Railway, on my photo-bucketlist for a long time already. We hadn’t prepared for shooting photos in this region, but in Bergün it all came together. We left the car in town and hiked into the … Continue reading High and higher
In Switzerland, rail still has an important share in the modal mix. Government takes adequate measures to get traffic off the trucks and onto trains. As a consequence, they have managed to preserve the peace in the beautiful Alps. And that’s one of the reasons why I love this part of Europe so much. To get all this traffic on rails, it is still possible … Continue reading Mini freight
With the focus directed well, you see more than you would usually see. 20 years ago, I never saw any freight train on the Rhätische Bahn network. Now, with the right information, the main focus during our 2 days along the RhB would be the freight trains, passenger trains being a welcome change. We first saw train 5120 from Samedan to Thusis. The 6-axle locomotive … Continue reading First freight
Backlight is perfect for the last shots of the day, with low sun. Like the day before, we ended up standing above a viaduct, with the sun in front of us. The hike up here and the view were how I like them best: steep and scenic. The bench made for a comfortable wait. Continue reading Backlight on a bridge 2
In our search of sunlight and snow, we ended back up on the north side of the Gotthard pass. The viaduct at Amsteg would get some of the latest winter light. It is located high above the small town. When the train exits a tunnel it enters the bridge immediately. Check out this alternative view: it shows it more clearly, from the other side. For … Continue reading High up there
Winter photos in the Alps could use some snow. In lavorgo, temperatures were too high and the white stuff had melted completely. We headed north, back up the mountain pass, to get some colder temperatures (try to explain that to a non-rail enthousiast!). We weren’t very persistent though: we ended up in Chiggiaogna, with another nice snowy mountain view, with warm and dry feet. Was … Continue reading Warm feet
I try not to post more than 1 photo per location; my good excuse now is that I like this spot, and that we got to see a lot of interesting trains here. Soon after the BLS train passed us, we heard a rumble in the distance announcing the next one. SBB’s 11626 has been decorated with a “mustache”. We were lucky to catch the … Continue reading Too interesting
In the previous post, I promised it would be better. While driving down the mountain, temperature increased and the snow disappeared quickly. We noticed the BLS train we photographed before, riding slowly and coming to a halt. That meant we had a chance to get a better picture of this train. We chose a famous location, but one I hadn’t been to before. And yes, … Continue reading Second chance
