Almost 10 years ago, on July 4 of 2015, I stood on this exact same spot. 10 years later I tried with different material, reaching a bit higher. And offering a very different view.The Railtraxx shuttle to Linz had 266 017, aka PB12, as a leading unit. This loco used to run for Crossrail Belgium until a few months ago. It exchanged its red coat … Continue reading Higher up in the air
Last Easter vacation, we spent a family holiday in Coussac-Bonneval, south of Limoges. There weren’t many local trains to watch, but there is some interesting diesel action near Limoges. Inspired by the excellent picture of BramTrains, I made a plan to go after SNCF’s Infrastructure operation to the quarry of Verneuil-sur-Vienne. I only knew approximately when the first of 2 train pairs would return to … Continue reading All about parenting
Be it in Ghent or Antwerp, you can’t escape Railtraxx and their class 66 locomotives. In recent years the company has their fleet with a lot of these engines. On December 7th I got to photograph two of them. The day was shorter than expected: the Combinant shuttle was still partially hidden by the shadow. The container shuttle from Kalishoek to Antwerpen-Noord was running completely … Continue reading Railtraxx in the ports
As shadows were getting longer, a distant noise announced the train I came here for. The rush hour train with a 21 series locomotive was nice, and a freight train would only make it better. The then regular SNCF train towards France was about right on time and marked the moment to head home after a succesfull photo-evening. Continue reading Tubes for France
And yes, I was lucky in Güterglück. Of the multiple freight trains that I saw, I’ll show 2. Very surprising to me to see so many freight trains on a Sunday. I wonder if this is normal in the east of Germany. Continue reading A busy Sunday
A bit closer to track level, aiming my telelens through the bushes, I snapped a photo of Railtraxx’ train 42554 from Passau to Antwerp. I discovered this view on a rainy day, and it turns out to be useful on a regular overcast moment too, albeit without the special effects with water involved. Continue reading A view for when it’s overcast
This is a place I keep returning to, because it’s just so much fun. To get there you have to climb up a hill, find a way between walls and bushes, and concentrate to get your gear up in one piece. A mini-adventure so to say, and I prefer it this way. It’s one reason why I love this hobby so much. The hill offers … Continue reading Mini-adventure
A bit more than 10 minutes after the previous shot, the valley was bathing in the first sunrays of a pleasant spring morning. The peace was shortly interrupted by a Transregio Desiro on it’s way to Mainz, racing with a few cars to get to Boppard first. I would continue chilling out on the little wall for a little longer, enjoying spring. Continue reading Little race
On april 3rd 2016, commercial operation started on the second phase of LGV-Est. High speed trains from Paris to Strasbourg could from then on run at high speed until Vendenheim, where the LGV connects to the classic network. SNCF and SNCB now expect people travelling to Strasbourg to to use Thalys and TGV trains, with a transfer in Paris. For that purpose the classic international … Continue reading Last time in style to Switzerland
This is the last spot of the afternoon already: freight train traffic was scarce. A northbound intermodal train runs through the town of Braubach. “through” has to be taken literally here: it passes right in front of the houses. Considering this is one of the busiest freight lines in Germany, you can understand why inhabitants of the villages are complaining about noise. Let’s hope authorities … Continue reading A railfan’s dream house
Railscapes 