When most folks hear there is a blizzard on the way they queue up a binge-watch list and pop some corn. That sounds nice but when I hear of a coming snow event I get so excited to re-live my childhood I drop everything, layer up and head out on my fat tire bicycle to fill my lungs with fresh winter air!
Never satisfied to be without a camera, the GoPro is always strapped to my head somewhere so I can create some really cool content while I’m at it. This latest Nor’easter had all the best attributes for a picture-perfect snowfall and I knew there had to be some interesting subject within riding distance that was not afraid of the cold and wind (riding distance in the snow on a bicycle is much more limited, even for an expert cyclist, you get winded pretty fast when your tires don’t have the benefit of dry surface traction). One that would stoically stand in the frigid elements without ever complaining. Also, a subject that has deep, chiseled character in its countenance. Hence, the eternal once-homeless residents of The Steamtown National Historic Site train yard were a perfect choice! It was only a fifteen-minute snow ride up the hill on Washington Avenue; if I needed to, I could always get off the bike if it got too slick to keep my tires moving me forward and nobody would be there to object to my photo project on a snow day! Well, as it turned out I had plenty of steam left in me to pedal all the way to the top of the hill and get myself through the lot with my image-stabilized GoPro Hero 9 cranking all the way.
There’s something special about the heavy, rusted steel and the wind-battered signage on the sides of a steam locomotive and its accompanying train cars that just grabs at you when you see it in full glory!
Here is a potential product which any steam train aficionado would love to watch and share with anyone in their circle. I think you will enjoy it as well.