Minneapolis Daily Photo Blog

0

Old Number 5059

This is the prow of a retired locomotive at the Minnesota Commercial Railroad roundhouse in St. Paul. Look closely, the number is actually 5059, the 50 has been painted over.

1

Red Great Northern Boxcar

This week,  I'm showing some of my graffiti-covered railroad close-ups.

0

Graffiti-strewn Boxcar

I love taking photos like this. Old rusty boxcars are a tapestry of textures and colors. Ok, I admit, I do a lot of post-processing to draw out the colors, but the final effect is fun to look at. I have a few more, so come back this week and enjoy!

2

The Glorious Engine

Yesterday I ventured out with my buddy Dusty to explore the yards of the Minnesota Commercial Railroad. We stopped in the office to pick up our permission form and went exploring. You'll see a lot of railroad photos on my site, please keep in mind, I am a professional, do not attempt this at home! All kidding aside, seek permission where you can and be careful. Trains cannot stop. You hear all kinds of analogies about how heavy they are, but here's the numbers for an average train: 3 locomotives at 420,000 lbs each with 75 cars at 260,000 lbs each = 20,760,000 lbs or 10,380 tons. That's heavier than than the WWII Cruiser USS Springfield; a 610ft blue-water warship with 56 guns. And... Navy Warships go much slower than the average train, so that whole force=mass x acceleration thingy means it's going to hurt even more.

1

Barrels of Fun

Ever wonder what the Parks Department does with the garbage barrels in the winter? It seems I found where they hide them. Goes to show that in the right light, everything looks good.

0

Chirp, Chirp!

It's my sister's birthday today, Happy Birthday Sharon!

0

Minnesota Commercial

Check out this long load of sand!

0

Sunset at Hidden Beach on Cedar Lake

Some day it will be summer again. Little snow and delightfully mild temperatures have made winter in Minnesota an endless November.

1

Misery and Short Life Rumbles through Kenwood

Never forget, Minneapolis is still a major railroad junction. This is the Twin Cities & Western line and that is three of their eight engines heading westbound through Kenwood on what used to be the Minneapolis and St. Louis Railroad's main line out of the city. Their yards used to be where the Sam's club is now, which is where St. Louis Park got it's name. One of their lines went through the town in South Dakota that my dad grew up in. Out there, it had the nickname 'Misery and Short Life Railroad' — from the abbreviation 'M & St. L RR' on the engines.