Posts Tagged ‘CSX’
Hey now!, and a boat
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A triplet post for this final installment of a fairly long scuttle that began on Troy Hill, crossed the Allegheny River and then proceeded through Pittsburgh’s Downtown to the Monongahela River and then finally over to the South Side Flats section. At this final destination, the CSX Pittsburgh subdivision’s locomotive traffic flows along their right of way, often offering a wandering photographer the opportunity to say his favorite thing:
HEY NOW!
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Presumptively, those rail cars are filled with either coke or coal, but since I don’t know for sure – let’s just call it minerals. This sort of specificity has gotten me in trouble with the sort of people who see everything through a political filter. ‘Freaking liberal pansy boy,’ call it coal. Well, in response, I don’t know – for a fact – what it is. Looks like, smells like, but ‘fact’? Can’t swear on a Bible about something? Then you should speak in general terms about it. That’s the mantra.
The locomotive was heading ‘towards Ohio,’ which is something I can actually say categorically.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Out on the water, a Towboat was negotiating itself against the river currents. I watched it for a bit, but it didn’t seem to be docking so I headed back out to the streets. A rideshare chariot was summoned and soon I was back at HQ and fending off the attentions of Moe the Dog.
Back next week with something different – at this – your Newtown Pentacle.
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Hey Now! West End edition.
Monday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
As described last week, your humble narrator was perpetrating a constitutional scuttle, around the titular center point of the Pittsburgh Metro area. My horrific footfalls carried me from a T light rail station on the North Side over to the West End Bridge, whereupon I’d squamously cross the Ohio River and enjoy a point of view or two from the other side.
Midway across the span, a CSX freight train appeared, one which was moving directly towards my point of view.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
That’s CSX #3430, pictured above. I’m told that it’s a ‘GE ET44AH’ model locomotive, which you can read more about here. Right about this moment was when the other train, the one which had been held in place for a bit, began to move. Fun.
Did I mention that it was cold and windy?
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The train passed over an outfall which allows Chartiers Creek to express itself into the Ohio River, quite close to the confluence of Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers which form the headwaters of the Ohio.
I kept on keeping on.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’ve always thought that if you really want to hide something, and you’ve got a budget, that the best place would be a train cargo car. The budget would be required to keep the thing you’re hiding constantly moving, and if there’s enough cash available you could theoretically keep the hidden item on the move indefinitely. Connecting it to one random freight train after another, you eventually send it to a train yard in either southern Mexico or Boreal Canada where your secrets can be forgotten.
Theoretically, the same approach would work with a semi trailer, and leave behind a far sparser paper trail.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Just before it was time to deal with my terrifying descent down a flight of stairs on the south side of West End Bridge, a tug caught the eye.
Yeah, I know… it’s a Towboat out here, not a Tug. I know.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The Gale R. Rhodes has been mentioned here before, in this post from 2024, which was published about a couple of weeks prior to the ‘orthopedic incident.’ That’s how I’m referring to the broken ankle situation from this point out, so just get used to that one, lords and ladies.
Back tomorrow.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
Cold and lonely, always afraid
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Continuing with a forced march around Pittsburgh, in today’s post.
Simple plan. I’d follow the headwaters of the Ohio River to the West End Bridge, cross over to the southern shore, then track back up the shoreline towards that brewery I hang around, nearby the train tracks on the South Side of Pittsburgh. Drink wasn’t on the menu for this particular day, but I was very interested in capturing a few shots of freight trains.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Hey Now! Norfolk Southern was getting up to something on their elevated trestle tracks. The static train in the foreground was CSX’s, and they seemed to be held up by signals. These train shots are all telephoto ranged ones, with the zoom lens dialed all the way out to its maximum objective.
One kept on keeping on.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
My cursed footsteps pollute the waterfront trails with intransigence, but nevertheless did your humble narrator navigate his carcass to the West End Bridge. This part of the walk exposed me to stairs, which the rotting worms in my skull box have devoted a phobia about, an afterimage of the ‘orthopedic incident’ which defined my life for most of last year.
I’m all ‘effed up.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s not the going up that affects me, it’s the descent. In particular, it seems, the steel steps that are painted with Pittsburgh’s ‘brand color’ of PPG brand ‘Aztec Gold’ seem to really excite the old amygdala, especially so when descending them. ‘Mustn’t grumble.’
After urinating on a nearby bush, your humble narrator moved upward and onwards, and ascended the scary steps.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This walk has become one of my ‘stations of the cross’ routes. That’s what I call easy to reach areas that are ‘pregnant,’ in terms of photo possibility, but which also offer long stretches of mostly flat terrain that I can lean into. The ‘easy to reach’ part is kind of important.
Back in Queens, I’d head south – out of Astoria – for a Dutch Kills walk which served a similar function and ‘reachability.’ Down Steinway to Northern, where it becomes 39th. 39th to Skillman and Sunnyside Yards, Skillman to Hunters Point Avenue, and then I’d hang a left towards Dutch Kills. After visiting a few spots along the water, I’d then scuttle back out to 43rd street and turn north for the walk back home to Astoria.
That walk was often referred to as my ‘patrol area.’
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Hey now! That’s a ‘heading away from Pittsburgh’ CSX freight train appearing on the second track, alongside that train from the Norfolk Southern shot which was being held by signals. Lucky!
Back next week with more.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
Ends are always odd
Thursday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
At the end of a medium length scuttle, and your humble narrator once again had a pint glass filled with a yummy oatmeal stout beer in his grubby mitt, and that’s when CSX #913 appeared.
Hey Now!
The locomotive was pulling a mixed up line of rail cars. Automotive cars, containers, even semi truck trailers were in line behind it.
A ‘GE ES44AC-H’ model locomotive, that’s what I’m told #913 is.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I was there for the length of two drinks, about an hour, and the only train which passed through the CSX subdivision choke point during the interval was #913.
It gets dark really fast in Pittsburgh during the winter, as the burning thermonuclear eye of god itself lowers itself behind Mount Washington and probably Ohio, a deep shadow is cast.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
There’s some of the semi trailers the train was hauling. I get comments all the time about only showing the locomotive engine, and not running shots of what it’s hauling, so there you are.
As the sky grew dim, and the air colder, I headed within and paid my tab. A quick visit to the loo followed, and then back out into the street.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
An elevator was used to raise my point of view, and I hung around in the dark for a bit, hoping another train might be transiting through.
No such luck, and I made my way back out to the street. I’d be summoning a ride to get back to HQ, something easier accomplished from ‘up here’ rather than ‘down there.’
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Along the way, I couldn’t help but react to the ‘noir’ being offered up by those darkened streets. Spooky. This is what 5:30-6 p.m. looks like here.
It took a while for a cab to get to me.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Eventually, the rideshare chariot arrived and a reunion with Our Lady of the Pentacle and Moe the Dog ensued. Good times.
Also, Merry Christmas to all you Goyem.
Back tomorrow with something different – at this – your Newtown Pentacle.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
rolling rolling rolling… rawhide!
Wednesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The last legs of this particular walk were fairly uneventful, as your humble narrator picked his way along the shoreline of a Monongahela River ‘rail trail’ and towards my eventual destination at the Sly Fox Brewery.
I was scouting out a couple of locations along the way, ones with a pretty good view of the rail tracks used by CSX.
I’ll be showing you a scene quite similar to the one above in the future, but with a CSX train hurtling through it. This setup looks like it could be kind of promising.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Once I was again safely sequestered from vehicular traffic and onto the rail trail, which follows the former ‘right of way’ of a defunct railroad, my headphones were reinserted into those ear holes one might observe on the sides of the sensory and gustation stalk that sticks out of the collar of my t-shirt. Just had to watch out for bikes.
As mentioned in a prior post, these photos were gathered on the Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend, and Pittsburgh was pretty much deserted.
Good. That’s the way I like it. The human infestation can be noisome.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
There’s a bend in the path when you reach the South 10th street bridge, which is where the trail transmogrifies into ‘Colors Park.’ Herein, street art and so called ‘graffiti’ is encouraged and allowed. By creating an out door gallery space for the pursuit, it cuts down on the vandalism and ‘tagging’ for nearby spots where graffiti is unwanted. Smart.
CSX’s tracks are on the other side of that little fence, found at more or less the center of the shot above.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
There’s always a bit of new art on the pier of the South 10th street bridge, which is where I took a moment to consider and observe.
I moved on. This excursion was about movement, and accruing speed in my striding gait. The ankle was singing an aria by this stage. It seems that I’ve got arthritis in that joint now, and as it was a cold day…
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Y’know, back in NYC… the NYPD would be very interested in this sort of scenario. In Pittsburgh… it’s likely that a groundskeeper just forgot to load up his fuel can after cutting the grass and left it behind by accident.
Regardless, one continued on. Thump, drag, thump, drag… hey, cut that out… thump right, thump left, thump…
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Hey now! Suddenly, CSX’s #3166 hurtled past.
I had less than 15 seconds to get this shot set up after I heard the thing coming. This is why I like shooting trains at the brewery, incidentally, as there are grade crossing signal arms on either side of that space and you get nearly a minute of preparation time for lining up your shot and figuring out the exposure settings.
Back tomorrow.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
The Newtown Pentacle 