CHOO-CHOOOO! ALL ABOARD THE AUTISM EXPRESS. TRAIN THREAD.

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RustedFox

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In some other thread, several of us mentioned that we liked trains. Go ahead, get all your train-related autism out here.

Rode the Oregon Scenic Coastal Railroad yesterday between small Oregon coast towns. Nice views. 30 min ride each way.

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If you want trains with breathtaking views, you've got to hit up the swiss Alps. You don't even need to take some scenic train in the area, any old transit train will do, since it's all going through the mountains. Went last summer to interlaken, absolutely breathtaking. Wife and I wanted to go there for our honeymoon over a decade ago, but we were broke residents and couldn't afford it then. I'm glad we finally got that one off the bucket list!
 
Next month I am heading to Colorado.
There I will ride 5 trains in 5 days.
33 Garrow Gauge mining camp trains and 2 Standard Gauge.
3 pulled by steam engines and 2 pulled by old diesel locomotives.
Train Nerd Heaven!!!!!!
 
Next month I am heading to Colorado.
There I will ride 5 trains in 5 days.
33 Garrow Gauge mining camp trains and 2 Standard Gauge.
3 pulled by steam engines and 2 pulled by old diesel locomotives.
Train Nerd Heaven!!!!!!
Do NOT ride in the first car behind the steam engine.

Ask me how I know.
 
Oh boy, I've been waiting for this!!!
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This is my current Lionel train collection. I've got stuff from the Pre-WWII era, up until now. Unopened special sets in original packaging are on top of the shelving. The small totes are a collection I bought from one of my attendings during residency, it was his grandfathers. The finished basement in this new house is mine to fill with a layout.

My "serious modeling" is done in N-Scale with an emphasis on the Kansas City Southern around Baton Rouge, set in the late 80's-early 90's

For many years, I've volunteered at railroad museums in Arkansas, Louisiana, and now in Kentucky. I've gotten to work on restoring steam locomotives at all of them.

Made friends with one of the local paramedics who has the same trains and HAM radio 'tism and we go railfanning if we get the same days off. I do some amateur rail photography.
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Both when I was an exchange student and when the Army sent me to Europe, made sure to ride as many trains as possible, including the French TGV.

I took November of '23 off after my late wife died and took the AutoTrain home from Florida. It was a bucket list for me, but gonna have to do it again when I can really enjoy it.
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'99-'00 timeframe, I worked for Genesee and Wyoming RailLink as a switchman, but was cross-trained as an engineer, and maintenance of way. We were an industrial short line between a quarry and a plant in Little Rock. The pic got destroyed in a move, but my engineer and I had our picture taken by a rail photographer out of Nevada.

And Ironically, I'm watching the movie "Unstoppable" while typing this
 
Oh boy, I've been waiting for this!!!
View attachment 407016
This is my current Lionel train collection. I've got stuff from the Pre-WWII era, up until now. Unopened special sets in original packaging are on top of the shelving. The small totes are a collection I bought from one of my attendings during residency, it was his grandfathers. The finished basement in this new house is mine to fill with a layout.

My "serious modeling" is done in N-Scale with an emphasis on the Kansas City Southern around Baton Rouge, set in the late 80's-early 90's

For many years, I've volunteered at railroad museums in Arkansas, Louisiana, and now in Kentucky. I've gotten to work on restoring steam locomotives at all of them.

Made friends with one of the local paramedics who has the same trains and HAM radio 'tism and we go railfanning if we get the same days off. I do some amateur rail photography.
View attachment 407017

Both when I was an exchange student and when the Army sent me to Europe, made sure to ride as many trains as possible, including the French TGV.

I took November of '23 off after my late wife died and took the AutoTrain home from Florida. It was a bucket list for me, but gonna have to do it again when I can really enjoy it.
View attachment 407018

'99-'00 timeframe, I worked for Genesee and Wyoming RailLink as a switchman, but was cross-trained as an engineer, and maintenance of way. We were an industrial short line between a quarry and a plant in Little Rock. The pic got destroyed in a move, but my engineer and I had our picture taken by a rail photographer out of Nevada.

And Ironically, I'm watching the movie "Unstoppable" while typing this

Bro, your resume is fuggin' MANLY.

Riverboat badass. Trainmaster. Military. Medic. Physician.
 
The Man in Seat 61 is my hero.
I would always rather take the train than fly.
I will forever refer to the gorgeous station in Antwerpen as "Our Lady of the Immaculate Connection."
I have taken the Jacobite steam train (not exactly to Hogwarts, but pretended to,) the Glacier Express, the Caledonian Sleeper, The Grand Canyon Rail, the Flåmsbana, and the Jungfraujoch. I keep the apps for most of the European rail systems on my phone for "the next time" because there will always be a next time. I realized I left off the Eurostar, but of course, yes. The Orient Express is on the list, but I don't know if it's *really* the same as Agatha Christie portrays it, so haven't gone down that rabbit hole yet. Haven't had a chance to try the new OBB Nightjet service yet either.

And (ok, nerd alert) my ringtone is the "Appel en gare" song of SNCF which plays whenever a train arrives at a French station. Which I have never, EVER heard anyone else use. At least in the states. But it's confusing as hell if I'm in France.

This is the Flåmsbana, which is a mountain train from Myrdal to the village of Flåm in Norway
 

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Ah yes the Jacobite train! I didn’t get to ride it, but got to see it ride over the scenic bridge in the Scottish highlands, a few weeks ago. Still had a steam engine!
 
If my flavor of autism is not trains but it is that I check online forums like this as if it was an addiction.... does that make this thread not for me or perfectly designed for me?


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