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As I mentioned, on my last trip to Scotland, I had hoped to see a steam train, but didn't. But I didn't make plans for seeing one, so I wasn't surprised. Also, I saw Glenfinnan Viaduct, which the steam train crosses twice daily. I knew it was there before I saw it, but I found out later that the viaduct and steam train were famous from the Harry Potter movies. In the movies, it was the Hogwarts Express, but in actuality, it's The Jacobite.
While steam trains are fun, I'm also a fan of bridges, so I really wanted to get a photo of this train on this viaduct. On the previous trip, it was a cool, wet day, and it was kinda late, and I was with my dad (in his 70's), so I didn't walk up the hills for a better view of the viaduct. But this time I did some research. One of the things I learned was that the hills are rotten with photographers. A few sources indicated that you won't get a photo without other photographers in it. One site said that to get a place to park, you need to be there before the train leaves Fort William.
I think I was there before the train left Fort William, but there were no parking places anywhere. I made a couple of passes, but there was nothing. And this was September - not the high season!
We drove on up the glen and came upon an entrance to some sort of dirt road. There was ample room to park without blocking the gate, so I did. We went up a nearby hill, and we were greeted with the view of the valley - and a bridge over the tracks!
I wanted to get closer, so I went on down into the boggy ground, while Cindy stayed on the rocks at the peak of the low hill. I was pondering how badly I wanted to climb the fence, but kept going to the bridge, to find it open to crossing.
And on the other side of the tracks, I discovered that the fence was lower, older, rustier, and easier to cross. So I did! I went up a little bit, where the hill got lower, then crossed over to near the tracks. In the above photo, on the left side of the tracks there's a short post. I sat just above that.
I sat there a bit, waiting and pondering, when a commuter train went by. Apparently, The Jacobite waits at Glenfinnan Station for this train to pass, but it still seemed to take a long time for it to appear.
I waited. I climbed down to the tracks, and up the other side. Then I walked down the tracks to the other side of the bridge, and back up. I sat down again to wait.
On the trip, I occasionally tried to take photos on my phone, s I could post them to Instagram, on the trip. I decided I do one shot of the train before the bridge, then drop the phone, pull up my camera, and get a shot of it just past the bridge. Then I'd turn the camera for a vertical shot, with smoke billowing high, as it got closer to me.
And then I heard it in the distance! It had come out of a tunnel about a mile away.
I got this shot with the phone. It would have been better if the train had closed about half the distance to the bridge - but I can't quibble about fifteen feet! So it was a good shot for Instagram. I threw the phone in the grass...
And got this one. Good one!
And then I tried for the second shot. I turned the camera, zoomed out, and still missed the shot. The train was moving so fast! I didn't expect that.
In hindsight, I shouldn't have turned the camera, since the smoke wasn't that tall. If I'd just zoomed out, the train would have been closer, its nose would still have been in the frame, and I still would have captured enough smoke. Also, maybe then it wouldn't have been out of focus.
As it went by, I picked up my phone and took a shot of the passenger cars going by. Here's a totally random capture...
And then it was gone.
Here's a shot of it at the end of the line in Mallaig. It had reversed and took its place at the other end of the train for the return trip.
So that's how I got one good shot of The Jacobite.
If you're interested in seeing more of The Jacobite, you can check out these videos.
A short and pretty film, from the driver's viewpoint, with his story.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgCm5Q9Wqo0
Half an hour travelogue, but if you skim through it, you can see more of the scenery. Also, you can see there are photographers at every point along the way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPili9cFnMw
You can hear what it sounded like when I first heard it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ebGpxgy0wo
Here's the Wikipedia article about engine 45212:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LMS_Stanier_Class_5_4-6-0_5212
This year, engine 45212 shares service with engine 45460. Apparently the nameplate on the front is shifted between the two from week to week, depending on which one is in service.
While steam trains are fun, I'm also a fan of bridges, so I really wanted to get a photo of this train on this viaduct. On the previous trip, it was a cool, wet day, and it was kinda late, and I was with my dad (in his 70's), so I didn't walk up the hills for a better view of the viaduct. But this time I did some research. One of the things I learned was that the hills are rotten with photographers. A few sources indicated that you won't get a photo without other photographers in it. One site said that to get a place to park, you need to be there before the train leaves Fort William.
I think I was there before the train left Fort William, but there were no parking places anywhere. I made a couple of passes, but there was nothing. And this was September - not the high season!
We drove on up the glen and came upon an entrance to some sort of dirt road. There was ample room to park without blocking the gate, so I did. We went up a nearby hill, and we were greeted with the view of the valley - and a bridge over the tracks!
I wanted to get closer, so I went on down into the boggy ground, while Cindy stayed on the rocks at the peak of the low hill. I was pondering how badly I wanted to climb the fence, but kept going to the bridge, to find it open to crossing.
And on the other side of the tracks, I discovered that the fence was lower, older, rustier, and easier to cross. So I did! I went up a little bit, where the hill got lower, then crossed over to near the tracks. In the above photo, on the left side of the tracks there's a short post. I sat just above that.
I sat there a bit, waiting and pondering, when a commuter train went by. Apparently, The Jacobite waits at Glenfinnan Station for this train to pass, but it still seemed to take a long time for it to appear.
I waited. I climbed down to the tracks, and up the other side. Then I walked down the tracks to the other side of the bridge, and back up. I sat down again to wait.
On the trip, I occasionally tried to take photos on my phone, s I could post them to Instagram, on the trip. I decided I do one shot of the train before the bridge, then drop the phone, pull up my camera, and get a shot of it just past the bridge. Then I'd turn the camera for a vertical shot, with smoke billowing high, as it got closer to me.
And then I heard it in the distance! It had come out of a tunnel about a mile away.
I got this shot with the phone. It would have been better if the train had closed about half the distance to the bridge - but I can't quibble about fifteen feet! So it was a good shot for Instagram. I threw the phone in the grass...
And got this one. Good one!
And then I tried for the second shot. I turned the camera, zoomed out, and still missed the shot. The train was moving so fast! I didn't expect that.
In hindsight, I shouldn't have turned the camera, since the smoke wasn't that tall. If I'd just zoomed out, the train would have been closer, its nose would still have been in the frame, and I still would have captured enough smoke. Also, maybe then it wouldn't have been out of focus.
As it went by, I picked up my phone and took a shot of the passenger cars going by. Here's a totally random capture...
And then it was gone.
Here's a shot of it at the end of the line in Mallaig. It had reversed and took its place at the other end of the train for the return trip.
So that's how I got one good shot of The Jacobite.
If you're interested in seeing more of The Jacobite, you can check out these videos.
A short and pretty film, from the driver's viewpoint, with his story.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgCm5Q9Wqo0
Half an hour travelogue, but if you skim through it, you can see more of the scenery. Also, you can see there are photographers at every point along the way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPili9cFnMw
You can hear what it sounded like when I first heard it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ebGpxgy0wo
Here's the Wikipedia article about engine 45212:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LMS_Stanier_Class_5_4-6-0_5212
This year, engine 45212 shares service with engine 45460. Apparently the nameplate on the front is shifted between the two from week to week, depending on which one is in service.
Train rambling
Date: 2019-10-24 10:31 pm (UTC)From:But perhaps I should just get it out and take some photos of it.
Re: Train rambling
Date: 2019-10-25 05:15 am (UTC)From:It's a nice looking train in red. In the US, steam trains are almost always the basic, boring black. That's one reason I wanted to see one in the UK. Or course this one was black...