On our way back in my apartment, we stopped at Union Station, where the 4449 was waiting with her train for departure the next morning. For this trip, the train would be made up of privately owned passenger cars, with the seats available for purchase (though too much for my budget)
Fortunately, even though the train station was closed for the night, the platform was left open so rail fans could come out to get their night pictures, myself included.
The moon was almost full, though not for a few more days.
The next morning, the train was scheduled for an 8am departure. The night before, we'd scouted a spot in the NW industrial district where we'd be able to watch the train cross the bridge over the Willamette. Unfortunately, that spot didn't work out so well for pictures, though we were lucky enough to get a good roll-by at track level next to highway 30.
We then headed for Washington; my hope was to get a shot east of Washougal where the tracks cross under SR14. However, once we'd crossed the Columbia, we saw we were already ahead of the train. So, we made the decision to stop in a neighborhood in Vancouver. Parking near the crossing was filled up by rail fans so we turned around to get back on the highway when the gates came down. We were barely able to hop out of the car and grab a shot as it passed by. This BNSF officer was also stopped at the crossing.
Since my car was sitting there running, we were able to get back on the road right away and passed the train in time to stop at the overpass near Washougal. The special rolled to a stop just short of the bridge to meet a westbound Amtrak train.
Then, as the train started rolling again, EVERYBODY had to run across to the other side.
I tried my best to block out the Amtrak unit but it still snuck into the shot.
We caught it again one more time a bit east of there then were unable to catch it before we got to the Bridge of the Gods at Cascade Locks. I decided to cross the river and use the multiple lanes and higher speed limits on I84 to get ahead of the traffic and the train. We stopped at Mosier and took pictures from the train from across the river.
From there, we continued on to The Dalles, where we crossed the river on the highway 197 bridge. Just across the river, the tracks pop out of a cut and go under the bridge. There is a small parking area just past the end, so you can run back along the bridge (on a sidewalk) to where you can get a good shot. I got out to two other rail fans and said a brief hello when we looked up and were surprised to see the train already there! I was barely able to fire off a shot between the girders as it passed.
Just a short distance further, the train stopped at Wishram for servicing, which allowed us and everybody else to set up for their next shots. Keegan and I elected to drive up to the Stonehenge memorial overlooking the river. We appeared to be the only rail fans up there so we picked our shots and waited. The temps were in the upper 90's so spending any time in the sun was uncomfortable. Eventually, the train came along and Keegan and I were able to get our shots then get back in the car and on the move again.
We decided to make one more stop so we put the pedal to the metal and eventually got ahead of the train so we pulled over at a small crossing with a number of other folks stopped there. Several miles of track was visible so we had time to watch the train approach.
And one final picture of some of the crowd assembled there.
From there, the train continued to Spokane and Keegan and I headed back west, but that is another story.
-Ryan
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