Nashville

Quick! A train! I caught this CSX freight snaking out of Radnor Yard while we were conducting an impromptu craft beer crawl after a biscuit-heavy brunch in The Gulch neighborhood of Nashville.

My wife, Rachel's attendance at a rail industry trade show occasioned a visit to Nashville, Tennessee, recently. It was an immersion into the city's ample cultural offerings--food and drink everywhere, and there was country and pop music emanating from most doorways and even sewer grates--and on the side I managed to squeeze in more than my usual amount of collateral rail fanning.

The best camera is the one you have with you. After a busy and rainy morning of trade show logistics, I captured this image of a CSX coal unit train waiting at the historic Nashville L&N station with my iPhone. I bumped into another railfan in this same spot who turned out to be Brian Schmidt, a Trains magazine editor who was in town for the rail industry trade show.

A CSX intermodal train passes hip and trendy condos in the Gulch. Not visible to the right, my new railfanning pal Brian Schmidt cursing me for distracting him from his railfan photography with my irresistible conversation skills.

A GP38 road slug set knocking covered hoppers around the Gulch.

Get a load of this lovingly painted transition-era Louisville and Nashville Geep at the Tennessee Central museum.

Serious dudes trying to stay out of the way
of real railroad operations: Andy Elkins,
center, yours truly on the right,

Another of Tennessee Central's workhorses is this SW wearing early Illinois Central-inspired colors.

Day two of my visit to Nashville was full of intriguing surprises. Friend and colleague Andy Elkins--a fellow infrastructure protection professional--gave me the backstage tour of Nashville that included the Tennessee Central rail museum, barbecue restaurants, and cab ride on Nashville's budding commuter rail line, the Music City Star.

Ex-Amtrak F40PH #121 powered our Music City Star train.

Obligatory front-end view of F40PH #121.

The cab end approaches the Nashville station. The car's Chicago Metra heritage is
apparent in the colors and lines.

In this cab car view, our inbound train is in the hole for a meet with an outbound train.

Outbound view from the F40PH cab. Unlike many commuter rail lines, the Music City Star route is curvy, single track, and features many interesting bridges and scenic views.