Hello Everybody, Summer is almost here, I've been recently been going to Plymouth MI once a week with my grandma but just see locals or power moves. Sadly CSX has been rerouting trains Q334 Q335 via Ohio and Indiana instead of Michigan. The only mixed freights you see in the daytime is Q392. Q322 and Q321 run at night. The Auto Rack trains run in the early morning and I got school Q231, Q241, and Q243 trains run in the early morning. Q272 and Q399 runs at night in Plymouth MI. Q216 I believe runs at around lunch hour. Its Pretty much locals and As Needed trains. So I am thinking about going someplace different. The NS Michigan line I know is not busy. The Norfolk Southern Detroit District trains mostly run at night. So its either the Downriver area (CN Shoreline sub and NS Detroit Line Wyandotte) or the CN Flint sub (not durand or Flint or Port Huron) I know lots of towns on the flint sub have viewing platforms between Flint and Port Huron. Which is better for railfanning: Wyandotte MI or the CN Flint sub? Please reply
If you want reasonably busy, you can go to Battle Creek and check out the CN operations out here. Alternatively, the CN South Bend Sub heads west out of BC and there are some really nice scenery points along the line including Vicksburg, Indian Lake, Pavilion, and Schoolcraft, where the GDLK crosses CN.
In Kalamazoo, about a half hour away from BC, you can get a good variety of trains. Amtrak, NS, Grand Elk, and CN all run around Kalamazoo. Amtrak's schedule is easy enough to follow. Grand Elk is pretty hit or miss in the afternoon but in the morning and evening you have a good shot of seeing at least 501 or 105. CN operates its L549 (?) job out of Kilgore Yard on the SE side of town, near the border of Kalamazoo, Comstock, and Portage. This train is out in the evenings between 6 and 7 on weekdays. I believe the current power is a recently-repainted SD40-2W. NS runs two trains to Kalamazoo after they left in 2009. B33, which runs from Jackson, MI shows up in the early morning or dead of night. If you're extremely lucky, you can find them on the yard lead the following morning. However, as far as I am aware, this has only happened once. The other NS train operates from Battle Creek, specifically Hinman Yard. I'm not too sure about this train other than the fact that it arrives mid-day.
Hope that helps.
the contents of the above post are my opinion and mine alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.
Q321 and Q322 rarely run at night. Although it can be ANY time during daylight, only a Sunday Q322 has been reliable 8pm for a train in night. Remember you got G650 and some NB grain empties which come any random time. Regardless,
Plymouth is a shadow of what it used to be.
60 mile radius - stretch it to 65 miles. Vickers Junction is by far my favorite spot to Railfan, even compared to Fostoria, Deshler, and Berea. Park at the stub end of Droulliard or Wales. I was there for 7 hours and saw 35 freights. CN runs a M383 direct to Walbridge.
Also, I'll let you know when I go Railfan Plymouth. Railfanning with bored parents straight sucks.
Other options actually worth the drive are Delray Junction, but don't go reclining that seat and let your tripod sit out. It's pretty sketchy there. I haven't been bothered but have heard a few bad stories. Romulus is a safe bet, and not that far. Anywhere south of Carleton gets Q150/151 and Q132/131 which is nice to see. Once in a while they take the long way and go up to Plymouth.
If you want to see LOTS of trains, and a VARIETY of trains, within 60 miles of Livonia, Michigan, then you should head South on Interstate 275 and go to TOLEDO, OHIO. And, while you are down there, take your Grandma over to Tony Packo's and treat her to lunch and tell her THANK YOU for carting you around.
I recommend Delray. I'm there a few times a week. Park on the gravel drive opposite the St. Mary's Cement sign. Just be smart and don't leave your equipment out and keep your eyes open. I've never had a problem.
Delray and Milwaukee Jct are the hotspots in Detroit. Let us know if you are going and need details for locations and trains. No railfans or any railfans in the right mind have had any problems there with local people.
I'm not sure how far it is from Livonia, but if you're looking for somewhere to sit on the Flint Sub, there's a platform in Imlay City and the Amtrak station in Lapeer has a decent view. You can see signals from both the platform in Imlay City (the platform is downtown, west of the M53 underpass, the siding is east of the M53 underpass) and the station in Lapeer (the siding at Lapeer is some distance west of the station, but you can see the east end signals). Both sets of signals will only give you a partial idea as to what's going on, but it's better than no idea at all. Plus, in Lapeer, there's a shortline in town that often parks its locomotive within sight of the Amtrak station.
I'd say Erie. Park on Vienna Rd to watch CN and NS, then if you hear CSX, it's only a mile away to catch ones there.
Didn't you already fill up your summer plans? viewtopic.php?t=32570
~Z~ wrote:I'd say Erie. Park on Vienna Rd to watch CN and NS, then if you hear CSX, it's only a mile away to catch ones there.
Didn't you already fill up your summer plans? viewtopic.php?t=32570
I've always been eyeing cities out there, but I've always forced myself to Toledo as its so close and is busier. Might give The area a try. Any recommended spots? Doesn't seem to be that car-friendly.
Oak street in Wyandotte gets my vote. There are places with more trains. But Oak street has good parking, good sight lines, you can see headlights all the way to CP Mill. It's safe. And there are lots of fast food places down on Biddle, just a few blocks away. And you can always take a quick trip down to the Detroit River, keeping an ear on the scanner. The cops are familiar with trainwatchers, and I've never been bothered. I usually take my bike in the van and ride around the area just for the exercise. There used to be a bunch of guys down there on a summer night, but not so much anymore. And quite often, a couple coyotes come trotting down the tracks around midnight. One night, two of them came right past us, crossed Oak street, and laid down in the grass and watched us for a half hour. When a CN train came north, and blew the horn, the coyotes howled back at it, like dogs do when you play a harmonica. They kept it up for quite a while. It was pretty cool.
"Ask your doctor if medical advice from a TV commercial is right for you".
~Z~ wrote:I'd say Erie. Park on Vienna Rd to watch CN and NS, then if you hear CSX, it's only a mile away to catch ones there.
Didn't you already fill up your summer plans? viewtopic.php?t=32570
I've always been eyeing cities out there, but I've always forced myself to Toledo as its so close and is busier. Might give The area a try. Any recommended spots? Doesn't seem to be that car-friendly.
Any recommended spots? How about where I already wrote...
~Z~ wrote:I'd say Erie. Park on Vienna Rd to watch CN and NS, then if you hear CSX, it's only a mile away to catch ones there.
Tier4GEVO wrote:Q321 and Q322 rarely run at night. Although it can be ANY time during daylight, only a Sunday Q322 has been reliable 8pm for a train in night. Remember you got G650 and some NB grain empties which come any random time. Regardless,
Plymouth is a shadow of what it used to be.
60 mile radius - stretch it to 65 miles. Vickers Junction is by far my favorite spot to Railfan, even compared to Fostoria, Deshler, and Berea. Park at the stub end of Droulliard or Wales. I was there for 7 hours and saw 35 freights. CN runs a M383 direct to Walbridge.
Also, I'll let you know when I go Railfan Plymouth. Railfanning with bored parents straight sucks.
Other options actually worth the drive are Delray Junction, but don't go reclining that seat and let your tripod sit out. It's pretty sketchy there. I haven't been bothered but have heard a few bad stories. Romulus is a safe bet, and not that far. Anywhere south of Carleton gets Q150/151 and Q132/131 which is nice to see. Once in a while they take the long way and go up to Plymouth.
On a typical weekday: Plymouth sees between 23-25 trains average (including the locals). Some of the locals here in town (such as D708, D908, D906, and D717) are pretty much road trains with set offs. Last I heard Q321/322/272/399 are the mixed freights on the 28 hour schedule so somedays you can see them all in the daylight hours in addition to the auto rack trains. Q392 seems to be on a pretty dedicated (daytime) schedule due to the size of their train from the set-outs they make for the Plymouth Sub's 1-2 road turns that run into town everyday (one of the two are daylight trains may I add). Many of the extras are running daylight, too. Plymouth is an interchange spot so you'll catch lots of switching and interchange action to keep busy with between the road trains coming through town - which is why I like it here so much and is still a decent place to see trains in Michigan if you don't want to drive to Toledo. In regards to the container trains: Atleast 2 of the 4 intermodals run through here per-day. Yes we don't have as many trains as we did even 5 years ago (Most noticeable decline has been the trains to/from the Plymouth Sub), but many trains now are running daylight compared to the ones in the past that were often nocturnal, plus north of Plymouth has really picked-up on train counts lately thanks to all the new potash and extra bulk trains we have seen. In regards to Romulus: (from my experience) it's is only good during the early morning or late evening if you want to catch CP or NS trains, everything else during the day I've seen is CSX trains that can be seen in Plymouth without the extra drive.
Last edited by Racer on Wed Jun 01, 2016 12:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"...and I was in the front and Matt grabbed and pulled my ears from behind me and made horsey sounds."
Go to Ann Arbor and you'll find the Ann Arbor Railroad, and just a little north around M-14 you'll find the Great Lakes Central Railroad. In Milan there's the Norfolk Southern and Ann Arbor. Then in Diann there's Ann Arbor and Indiana and Ohio. In Riga there's the Indiana and Ohio with the Adrian and Blissfield. In Adrian and Blissfield there's the Adrian and Blissfield Railroad.
Fred wrote:Since you requested a 60 mile area, I'd go with Oak Street in Wyandotte. It's safe & plenty of stores & restaurants close by.
Ever since 2010, when one of Wyandotte's finest decided to ticket me for 28 in a 25, then got angry enough when I questioned him about the placement of the sign that he had another unit pull me over 15 minutes later for supposedly rolling a stop, I've sworn off that little piece of paradise forever. If thats the kind of nonsense they want to pull, I'll go somewhere else where I'm welcomed. Forget Wyandotte.
Fred wrote:Since you requested a 60 mile area, I'd go with Oak Street in Wyandotte. It's safe & plenty of stores & restaurants close by.
Ever since 2010, when one of Wyandotte's finest decided to ticket me for 28 in a 25, then got angry enough when I questioned him about the placement of the sign that he had another unit pull me over 15 minutes later for supposedly rolling a stop, I've sworn off that little piece of paradise forever. If thats the kind of nonsense they want to pull, I'll go somewhere else where I'm welcomed. Forget Wyandotte.
Joshua Niederkohr wrote:Go to Ann Arbor and you'll find the Ann Arbor Railroad, and just a little north around M-14 you'll find the Great Lakes Central Railroad. In Milan there's the Norfolk Southern and Ann Arbor. Then in Diann there's Ann Arbor and Indiana and Ohio. In Riga there's the Indiana and Ohio with the Adrian and Blissfield. In Adrian and Blissfield there's the Adrian and Blissfield Railroad.
Yeah, you can go to those places and see those railroads, but you're not likely to see a train during any random hour you might sit around with grandma.
"I shot the freight train / But I did not shoot the fantrip"
Okay, I was thinking How busy is Wyandotte these days in like a less than 4 hour visit? I know In Romulus, Norfolk Southern mainly runs their trains at night but what about the Detroit line? I know the Detroit line is quiet on the weekends but what about during the week Plus I want some CN action thats NOT in a quiet zone like Durand. I am thinking about going to Battle Creek at the end of this month. I gotta tell you guys this: When the summer starts I am not going railfanning in Ann Arbor, Romulus, Milan, Diann, Riga and for some reason I showed my mom Delray but she does not want to go because its in SW Detroit. I am still hoping to go to Durand and Deshler in August. I may go up north with my dad to the Upper Peninsula at the end of August for a week long vacation and I am hoping to get some train action up there. I looked everywhere on google But I am not getting useful I am not going into WI and we are probably going to go as far west as Marquette. I am still going on my railfanning trip with my mom and my grandma but to North East PA because I did not find any useful info on Southern IL and Southern IN. And Galesburg and Rochelle are quiet or becoming quiet zones. Anyway Here are the places I am hoping to go this summer Battle Creek, Deshler twice, Durand, Greenwich. Fostoria, of course Plymouth because its kinda my hometown for railfanning, Bellevue, North East PA, I have to go up north in August so yeah hoping to catch LSRC train 326, Hopefully Wyandotte if its busy like I said up top and somewhere along the NS Chicago line. By the way which will be better for railfanning Wauseon or Oak Harbor Ohio because I am going on June 11th to those places one side I heard has 70 trains (Wauseon) and the other side has 55-65 plus another line that has 10-15 trains a a day( Oak Harbor) I am going in the late morning into early afternoon because I know the afternoon on a Saturday is dead on the Chicago line. So which it will be better Oak Harbor or Wauseon
CSXBOY wrote:Okay, I was thinking How busy is Wyandotte these days in like a less than 4 hour visit? I know In Romulus, Norfolk Southern mainly runs their trains at night but what about the Detroit line? I know the Detroit line is quiet on the weekends but what about during the week Plus I want some CN action thats NOT in a quiet zone like Durand. I am thinking about going to Battle Creek at the end of this month. I gotta tell you guys this: When the summer starts I am not going railfanning in Ann Arbor, Romulus, Milan, Diann, Riga and for some reason I showed my mom Delray but she does not want to go because its in SW Detroit. I am still hoping to go to Durand and Deshler in August. I may go up north with my dad to the Upper Peninsula at the end of August for a week long vacation and I am hoping to get some train action up there. I looked everywhere on google But I am not getting useful I am not going into WI and we are probably going to go as far west as Marquette. I am still going on my railfanning trip with my mom and my grandma but to North East PA because I did not find any useful info on Southern IL and Southern IN. And Galesburg and Rochelle are quiet or becoming quiet zones. Anyway Here are the places I am hoping to go this summer Battle Creek, Deshler twice, Durand, Greenwich. Fostoria, of course Plymouth because its kinda my hometown for railfanning, Bellevue, North East PA, I have to go up north in August so yeah hoping to catch LSRC train 326, Hopefully Wyandotte if its busy like I said up top and somewhere along the NS Chicago line. By the way which will be better for railfanning Wauseon or Oak Harbor Ohio because I am going on June 11th to those places one side I heard has 70 trains (Wauseon) and the other side has 55-65 plus another line that has 10-15 trains a a day( Oak Harbor) I am going in the late morning into early afternoon because I know the afternoon on a Saturday is dead on the Chicago line. So which it will be better Oak Harbor or Wauseon
I'm not very knowledgable of the Downriver area traffic. I know CN 383, 382, 31M, 20N, 21N, 331 run through but have no idea on the others.
Also, I heard you mention Oak Harbor.
Come June 18!! Me and 2 others will be there, and you would probably recognize them from YouTube.
Q231, Q241, and Q243 trains run in the early morning. Q272 and Q399 runs at night in Plymouth MI. Q216 I believe runs at around lunch hour. Its Pretty much locals and As Needed trains. So I am thinking about going someplace different. The NS Michigan line I know is not busy. The Norfolk Southern Detroit District trains mostly run at night. So its either the Downriver area (CN Shoreline sub and NS Detroit Line Wyandotte) or the CN Flint sub (not durand or Flint or Port Huron) I know lots of towns on the flint sub have viewing platforms between Flint and Port Huron. Which is better for railfanning: Wyandotte MI or the CN Flint sub? Please reply
