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Location/Date of Photo |
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» Southern Pacific Railroad (more..)
» Steam 4-8-4 (more..) |
» Columbia River Gorge (more..)
» Home Valley, Washington, USA (more..)
» October 20, 2009 |
| Locomotive No./Train ID |
Photographer |
» SP 4449 (more..)
» Unknown |
» Ken Kuehne (more..)
» Contact Photographer · Photographer Profile |
| Remarks & Notes |
One year ago today, SP 4449 is nearly home after its long trip back from Michigan. This was my favorite shot of my entire trip up there to see this locomotive, and if you'll indulge me, I'll tell the story behind it.
After its service stop in Wishram, I'd shot the 4449 at Horsethief Lake. I'd parked myself so that I'd be the first one out of there, allowing myself the maximum amount of time to get set for my next shot. This next shot would likely be my last, as chasing looked difficult in the area beyond Home Valley. At the point just west of North Dalles, where the tracks rejoin highway 14, there was a swarm of fans at a nice looking shot, but I passed it up because of the crowds and I couldn't see a good place to park. Chamberlain Lake causeway was my intended goal, and I figured I'd have plenty of time once I got there, despite getting stuck behind two slow drivers. As I was about to park and jog out above the tunnel, I was stunned to see the 4449 race onto the fill! I wouldn't have enough time to pull off a shot of it!
What followed was one of the most frantic chases I have ever been on, as I balanced safety and insanity while hoping for one last shot. My goal was Home Valley, a shot I knew to be decent as well as being far enough away that I might be able to buy enough time to actually get a decent shot off. The obstacles were plenty. First was Bingen with its slow speed limits. Next was the Hood River Bridge, where I got stopped for an eternity at a red light, while dozens of other cars turned west ahead of me, then proceeded to hold me up after I finally got the green. Most of them quickly turned off, and I passed the rest in short order as I blasted off in pursuit of 4449. My worst fear was running into a cop...rounding a corner a few miles down the road at well over the speed limit, here came a state trooper! Lucky for me he had a dump truck in front of him and missed getting a radar reading on me till I'd dropped my speed back down. After that however, I was off to the races.
At the first overpass over the tracks west of Bingen, I was expecting to find the 4449 long gone, but as it turned out it was just ahead of me! I quickly caught it, passed it, and slowly pulled away from the 4449, which gave the distinct impression of a steaming, snorting bull pursuing a matador. All other chasers were long gone by now except for me and a single other car, and I could have settled in for a few miles of nice pacing, but I didn't. Finally I reached Home Valley. Screeching to a halt in a cloud of dust, I didn't even bother turning off the car as I grabbed my camera and dashed across the road to the tracks. With only seconds to set up, I trusted my instincts when setting up this shot, and came away with this one which really captured the emotion of the moment for me. With a smattering of fall colors in the background, the 4449 bears down on me at the Home Valley curve. |
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| | Views: 10,538* Favorited: 129 | | Since added on October 20, 2010 | |
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