Amtrak Capitol Limited Montage - Plenty of K5LA!

Over the years I have shot several Amtrak Capitol Limited's over the CSX Keystone and Cumberland Subdivision's. Here are 17 trains shot between 2009 and 2012, including both the eastbound 30 and westbound 29 on the east and west slopes of Sand Patch grade.

I finally dug through the archives and figured these shots were appropriate for a montage. Unfortunately, I realized that in my travels to CSX I place priority of the Amtrak Capitol Limited dead last, in fact, there are times where I just skipped seeing it altogether. I regret making such decisions, because there are a few places that now come to my mind of where I would like to shoot this train and I will make a better effort on future trips. In the mean time, these 17 shots range throughout the seasons and were mostly shot on the east slope of Sand Patch grade.

June 6, 2009
An on-time 29 cruises through Cooks Mill at 79 MPH just before hitting the start of Sand Patch grade in Hyndman. This will be the last time the Capitol Limited reaches high speeds until it reaches the Laurel Highlands after its steep climb up the Allegheny Mountains.

June 7, 2009
That next morning the 30 races through Hyndman after declining Sand Patch grade. The town is usually quiet, especially early in the morning, unless the occasional train or four wheeler is riding through town. Notice the car drive around the gates.

June 8, 2009
In the last leg of its daylit journey through Pennsylvania, the defect detector just east of Glencoe announces 56 axles, which is a surprising amount considering the train typically has 40 or 44. To my surprise, there were two private cars on the rear!

October 3, 2009
After watching a CSX train pull out after gaining permission into Cumberland Yard, I stuck around to catch the 30 rip through at track speed. Although not the ideal location, I'm glad I didn't scram because of the surprise Dash-8 in the consist. 30 has just crossed into Maryland and will soon be at its station stop in Cumberland, MD, about an hour late.

February 2, 2010
This is one of my all time favorite shots of the Capitol Limited, although I would have executed it much differently given another go at the situation. Atop the overlook at Fairhope almost knee deep in snow, 30 winds through the curves with another surprise Dash-8 in tow!

July 19, 2010
On a gorgeous summer morning, 30 pops out of the Falls Cut Tunnel with whining dynamic brakes.

That same evening, 29 throttles up the hill into the small town of Glencoe.

July 20, 2010
On a foggy morning, while waiting for an intermodal to come out of the tunnel, 30 sneaks up from behind with a lot of horn before entering Sand Patch tunnel.

That evening, a friendly crew on the 29 gives a lot of extra horn at the Fairhope Road crossing. The perfect plumes of smoke from both engines was probably my favorite thing about this catch.

August 9, 2010
Here is something you don't often see but it does happen frequently. 30 is running opposite main to get around a helper unit at Hyndman that is dropping back down to Cumberland after shoving some empty autoracks up the hill.

That evening under a mauve and pink sky with very little daylight to spare, 29 heads past the Fairhope overlook with a minor delay. The log truck at the crossing is an obvious sign of the logging industry found in the mountains of southern Pennsylvania.

August 10, 2010
Train 30 works its way up the west slope past the depot in Meyersdale.

March 15, 2011
Amtrak 30 was supposed to have the inaugural run of the 156 Phase I heritage unit on this day, but unfortunately the unit was pulled off and sent back to Chicago for some unknown reason. Instead, there remained some Amtrak 30th Anniversary equipment, but what a let down. We could have been the first to bag this train in any sort of daylight. Anyway, here she is rolling through the Falls Cut Tunnel on the opposite main.

March 17, 2011
Amtrak 30 climbs up the west slope at Glade City, which is where the grade starts to
become a challenge for freight trains. The Beech Grove was tagging along on the rear.

That evening on the Cumberland Sub we see 29 passing the CPL's at Magnolia. Within a few weeks these signals were replaced.

June 22, 2011
Amtrak 66, the Phase II heritage unit, trails on 30 as it drops down the hill through by the Fairhope overlook. Of course the bugs decide to come out as the train approaches and get all over the shot. I was not happy when I reviewed the shot after the train past. But I learned by lesson, during the summer months, I now sink a quarter bottle of bug spray into each location before the train comes in order to deter those nasty little devils.

January 5, 2012
With some snow on the ground, 30 hurries up hill under the former Western Maryland's viaduct at Keystone.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the compilation. Thanks for watching!