Railfanning in MD on the NEC

[capltd29]

Hello,

I'm looking for a good spot to go see some trains this coming friday on the Northeast corridor. I will be traveling by MARC so i was wondering where the best place to go where I can avoid being too suspicious and still have good vantage points to get some good pics. I was thinking Seabrook or Perryville.

Any Suggestions?

Thanks

 

[Rafi]

Hello,
I'm looking for a good spot to go see some trains this coming friday on the Northeast corridor. I will be traveling by MARC so i was wondering where the best place to go where I can avoid being too suspicious and still have good vantage points to get some good pics. I was thinking Seabrook or Perryville.

Any Suggestions?

Thanks

IMHO, the best place for in-action railfanning is at BWI, where there's a passenger walkway above the NEC tracks. You'll see Acelas, Regionals, LD's, and MARC trains.

Harpers Ferry runs a close second, but it's impossible to do a daytrip out there, unfortunately, since MARC only runs inbound in the morning and outbound in the afternoon.

Rafi

 

[capltd29]

Thanks, I was wondering if there were any issues with BWI such as security guards and such bothering you. Also, I would like to go somewhere where there are places nearby that I can find lunch or something.

 

[Rafi]

Thanks, I was wondering if there were any issues with BWI such as security guards and such bothering you. Also, I would like to go somewhere where there are places nearby that I can find lunch or something.

You shouldn't get any trouble from security at BWI. That passenger walkway always has railfans relaxing in the chairs. If an officer approaches, just tell the truth and you should be fine. The worst that would happen is that they'd ask you to leave if they feel like you've been there too long, but I've never seen nor experienced anything like that. As for eating around BWI, there is a very basic sandwich/soda stand in the station itself. Aside from that, you're looking at driving to a Subway near the airport, or just heading down to Arundel Mills Mall, which is about 10 mins away.

Rafi

 

[Green Maned Lion]

For examining trains up close, my favourite is Newark Penn Station, because they seem to have no problem with me racing around their building, down stairs, up stairs, through halls, and up escalators, for hours on end. Heck, they never even bother me for camping out on the PATH ramp stampedeway during rush hour. However, thats probably a bit far for you.. xD

However, for watching Amtrak trains in motion, my favorite vantage point is actually any of a number of New Jersey transit commuter stations amtrak does NOT use. I'd imagine MARC has several of those. Another new favourite for watching Amtrak in motion, by the way, is Secaucus Junction. Although Acelas don't blast through there at 125+, due to its location in between the tunnels and NWK.

 

[The Metropolitan]

As far as train watching goes, you should be fine at any of Seabrook, Odenton, BWI, or Halethorpe.

BWI of course has the overhead bridge, and you can use the free shuttle to go to the Airport terminal if need be (though most of the food items are on the OTHER side of Security).

Seabrook has a small strip shopping center nearby, which might give you refreshment.

I've trainfanned at Odenton before and the trainwatching there is really neat as the Amtrak trains go zipping through, and then you get a whiff of brakes as the Northbounds begin to slow for BWI. However, there's not much around there in the way of refreshments.

Never trainfanned **EDIT - meant to say HALETHORPE!*** Odenton <--(ignore that) before, but there is the Francis Avenue bridge that goes over the tracks and offers at least some view if you perch on the pedestrian access stairs. There are a few storefronts on Southwestern Boulevard, and our #77 bus will take you on the quick ride into "Downtown Arbutus" if you want to get a good meal.

I would also probably would recommend the stretch south of Baltimore over that north of Baltimore if you're arriving and departing by MARC. Our service to Perryville is still pretty limited to be very useful for someone railfanning on a flexible schedule.

 

[capltd29]

I've pretty much decided that I'm gonna ride Amtrak 84 to Baltimore in the morning, just because I feel like riding an Amtrak Train, then take MARC south to Halethorpe for the day and see what I can see there. I'll probably end up taking MARC back down to Washington to get home.

Thanks for the Advice