The $25 Photo. While making the drive from Southern California to Albuquerque in a single day, I got lunch in Winslow with a friend who mentioned there was a CSX leader on the point of a westbound grain train. At the time, the train was sitting in Gallup and getting DPU's added, which we thought would take considerable more time than it actually ended up being. Hustling east to try and make it to Lupton in time for a shot of the foreign leader with a background of the beautiful light rocks in the background...this soon changed from a reality to a dream as I realized there was no chance in beating the train to Lupton. For those of you who have made the drive out there before...you know there are very many places to see a train between Lupton and Holbrook. In an effort to gain a little more distance toward my final destination, I texted my friend for advice on a location to try and see the train and he replied by dropping a pin on a road considerably to the south of I-40...but in the perfect position to have time to set up for the train. Getting off I-40 to turn onto this road, you can imagine my surprise when it turned out this road was THE only road visitors are supposed to use on the grounds of the National Park Service's Petrified Forest. Wonderful. So I roll up to the gate and have to pay $25 to enter the park...and boy did that Park Ranger at the gate want to talk. Come on dude, I've got a train to set up for! After hearing this guy's life story (nice guy, just the wrong timing for that type of conversation) I barrel down the road through the any stunning views the park offers and finally make it down to the tracks. Well...as it turns out, most people visiting the Petrified Forest aren't doing so to take pictures of trains...so the overpass over the tracks was quiet literally that. A small, narrow, two-lane overpass with no real room for pedestrians to walk down the sides. Added bonuses to the situation were that there was nowhere really good to park the car near the bridge, and being a National Park, I had a feeling they would frown upon me sending my drone up for photos. So I find a little pull off near the bridge finally and two Park Rangers pass me in their law enforcement vehicles and give me a wave. Awesome, this must be an ok spot then if two different people who work here have passed and waved! Well, that thought only lasted until this park service Prius rolls up with a white haired gentleman behind the wheel. He rolls down his window and begins questioning why I'm there, so I explain just to see a single train and then I'm out of there. He says he doesn't care why I'm there (so why did you ask) and that I need to park in a designated, public parking spot. I kindly retort and counter that to achieve shooting this train, there are no such spots nearby and that this was the best place to do so safely...and add that there are no "No Parking" signs present. The gentlemen in the Prius responds "Hmm, well this is interesting then, isn't it." We eventually reach a compromise of having me move my vehicle down to the other side of the bridge on the outside of a gate that read "Park Service Usage Only." Fine, I'll take a hike back up to the top of the bridge if it means I can get this shot after all this effort. After another 20-30 minutes of waiting...the dark blue and gold nose of CSX 3273 finally came into view and it led the snaking grain train through the Petrified Forest westbound. Happy with my catch, I hoped back in the car...stopped at a couple overlooks and sped out of there for ABQ. The best part about this whole story? The grain train was ultimately bound for Hanford, California, my hometown.
