Time and hobbies (as in Trains)

Canadian Pacific maintenance crews replace rail in West Chazy New York on April 25, 2016. This is part of the ongoing maintenance invested on the D&H North End mainline on a regular basis.

On April 24, 2016 Norfolk Southern/Canadian National train 930 a manifest freight connected Montreal, QC to Harrisburg,  PA waits in Rouses Pt. NY for a Canadian Pacific crew to take it South to Albany where it will get handed off to an NS crew.

Well here I am on a gorgeous weekend at the end of April. The last week or so has been banner for seeing the efforts of Canadian Pacific Maintenance of Way workers on the Canadian Pacific D&H North End around the Plattsburgh, NY area. I have spent a lot of time taking photographs and filming the heroic efforts if these skilled artisans practicing their trade.

This brings me to the subject at hand: time. Always a sticky wicket for most people. For me lately has been trying, balancing work, family, girlfriend, trains and volunteering. Things are ramping up on the railroad and I've been trying to sneak out there and do what I can for work. I have been getting a backlog of photos and especially video which has been impossible to keep ahead of. Video takes a lot of time to do putting in captions and information.

Since Monday I have a lot of fascinating pictures and video of the maintenance workers in the area in both West Chazy and Plattsburgh. At least for day to day sightings I have been able to keep Facebook up to date.

I'm still working out what I plan on the blog for. Since I started Champlain Valley Rail Snapshots I have been wanting to make it into more than a Facebook page so while it is something of a commitment I am really happy to finally  have

www.champlainvalleyrailsnapshots.com

So everything in moderation I guess is the key. Definitely not get stressed out by hobbies, and prioritize effectively.

As of late the railroad has been busy with maintenance so daytime trains have been intermittent, so I have a chance to catch up on some of backlog.

In the end running Champlain Valley Rail Snapshots has been a very rewarding experience and I have met so many people and made a lot of wonderful memories.

On April 21, 2016 Amtrak 68 the Adirondack flies South past the old D&H Station in West Chazy. Today May 1, 2016 marks the 45th anniversary since the formation of Amtrak which was to take over the burden of passenger service from the ailing freight carriers.