ACH Photos

Photos from somewhere out there on the high iron

07/22/2026

Excited For P42s: Back in February I made a trip to Culpepper, VA and spent the day photographing trains. When I got there, I learned Amtrak's Crescent had dual P42's, which in today's day and age on long distance trains, is pretty rare. It still feels weird getting excited about P42s, but I know from the previous generations that one day, all of a sudden, the familiar just disappears. While not my original target here, man was I stoked to get this bonus.

07/21/2026

The Man Himself: Steam engines, as many have come to learn, are a labor of love. They require an intense devotion to the craft of railroading in a way that diesels do not. Few people exemplify that more than Union Pacific's Ed Dickens. On a beautiful morning in the Lehigh Gorge, he took the Big Boy for a scenic ride on the R&N. I actually jumped on my bike and gave chase, and it was an absolute THRILL to be riding my bike beside UP's Big Boy. Right before this shot, Ed and I made eye contact and gave each other a brief air high five, both in sheer amazement and disbelief this was actually happening. It was a very special moment, and of the times I had with 4014 out east, racing it on my bike through the Lehigh River gorge was certainly one of the tops.

07/18/2026

Rarely the Bridesmaids: Vintage F Units in 2026 are almost always the main attraction when they're running on a railroad. But when you're playing third fiddle to Big Boy and 2102, well, those are the breaks. Such was the case on June 13 when Reading and Northerns F Units crossed the old bridge outside of Jim Thorpe in spectacular lighting. Any other day THIS would've been the image I left the day with bragging to friends. But as we waited for Big Boy, I very casually grabbed this and honestly forgot about it until I started going through folders tonight. Kind of funny in retrospect, but here we are.

07/17/2026

On a warm summer evening in Nesquehoning, PA I had a chance to grab the most unlikely of unlikely photos. Cars from the Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, and Reading and Northern office car fleets sat together under the night sky. The logistics it took to pull off some of the photos on this stretch of railroad were daunting but worth it. When I saw the schedule release, I immediately booked an air bnb in Jim Thorpe so we’d have a base of operations. I hauled my bike up from VA so I could ride to the gorge from town, avoiding any sort of traffic disaster. We scoped out spots, checked and triple checked sun angles, all to make sure that we were in prime position for shots. We woke up at ungodly hours to camp out in fields, take hikes, and get “THE” shots. And man, did we ever. I hope everyone appreciates the dedication it collectively has taken the photography community to chronicle this incredible adventure, showcase these experiences, and get the shots of a lifetime. They don’t just happen by accident, they take a lot of planning and hard work by really dedicated individuals who love what we do. This post is dedicated to all of that, the behind the scenes that goes into this. It’s hard work, probably a little crazy. But I wouldn’t want to feel compelled to do anything else. Just wanna be “somewhere out there on the high iron.”

07/16/2026

I’m so glad so many of you have enjoyed my photos of Big Boy! Enjoy this video of them tackling the Allegheny mountains just outside of Horse Shoe curve. Once in a lifetime experience, it truly doesn’t get any better.

07/12/2026

Union Pacific 4014, Clear, Middle Grade" Yesterday I witnessed history watching UP 4014 pull hard up the Allegheny mountains at MG after their stop at Horseshoe curve. The diesels were all in idle, and engineer Ed Dickens had Big Boy dialed in pulling the train up the 1.86% grade at MG tower. We left home at 0100 hours and hiked 2 miles in for a shot at glory, and I am so glad we did. I will treasure this photo, this moment, the ability to proclaim "I was there", for the rest of my life.

07/10/2026

American Hot Shots: After taking the celebratory 250th train through Washington, D.C. the crew of CSX P001 wasted no time getting out of town. The 250th scheme units looked incredibly sharp pulling the F40s as CSXT P001 made tracks for a crew change in Richmond.

07/04/2026

Steam, Steel, Stars and Stripes. Happy birthday, America.

06/16/2026

"The Magic of Steam Railroading." I joined thousands of others in Nicholson, Pennsylvania to watch Union Pacific Railroad's 4014 "Big Boy" cross the bridge. As they made their way across, a girl and her dad took in the scene, marveling at the surreal scene in front of them. Scenes like this playing out across the route show why the hard work of Ed Dickens and his team are so worth it.

06/15/2026

“It was all a dream.” I’m back after chasing the Big Boy through Pennsylvania. After a wildly improbable day of chasing 4014 on the R&N, we went for dinner and of course had to swing by Nesquehoning. Simmering under the starry eastern skies was Big Boy, far from Cheyenne, and certainly a wild sight in the Pocono mountains. It was so crazy walking beside the UP OCS on a beautiful mountain evening, chatting with friends, telling stories, laughing, and in awe of the moment. Maybe one day this fever pitch will break, we will all wake up and realize it was a dream. But that’s why we endeavor to capture these images, right? To show that indeed: the 4014 ran next to the 2102. It happened. It was real. We lived it. While it was a dream; dreams CAN come true. And it was magnificent.

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