Buddy Burton Photography

Decorah Eagles

2012-02-01T07:40:00.001-06:00

This morning's picture of the male and female Eagles in Decorah. Report says that they may have been copulating(mating) over the weekend. To see LIVE video of the Eagles log onto--http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles . Video Capture--©2012 Raptor Resource Project.

Yet some more Eagles

2012-01-25T16:55:00.000-06:00

More images from the Cedar River Roller Dam area.

A WARNING for those daring to ride the dam.

DON'T!!!

To see the rest of the photos from today's outing, go to--

"eastern iowa railpics".

More birds

2012-01-18T16:18:00.000-06:00

Bald Eagle was above Old River Rd SW when I took this photo. He was no more than 50 or so feet off on a tree limb

Another Eagle.

A flock of Geese bathing in the Cedar River.

Three more Bald Eagles.

Couple more. Bet there were at least 10-15 in the area

on Wednesday.

Mama Squirrel

2012-01-13T09:39:00.001-06:00

Mama Squirrel taking care of the burrowed nest

at the end of our driveway.

Piece of RxR history

2012-01-11T16:42:00.000-06:00

A former telegraph pole still stands near the UP mainline; took this while strolling on the Prairie Park Fishery. A piece of RxR history.

The Birds

2012-01-11T16:39:00.000-06:00

No not the music group, but birds.

Some wild turkeys grazing near East Post Rd in Marion.

Only seen one Bald Eagle today, perched up on the south-side of the Cedar River.

A swarm of Geese.

One group of geese in "V" formation.

Nice sunrise

2012-01-08T07:36:00.001-06:00

Dawn brings out its hues on Sunday morning(1/8/12)

at the homestead.

Halo Moon

2012-01-07T22:05:00.002-06:00

Approximately 9:50pm CST on January 7, 2012-The moon gave out a halo over our homestead in NE Cedar Rapids, IA. A beautiful sight!!!

NOTE: Due to the size of the halo, two photos were used to give you an idea on how big it was.

Bald Eagles-1/3/12

2012-01-03T18:01:00.003-06:00

Eagle flying over the Indian Creek Nature area.

Eagle sitting on the North-side of the Cedar River

in SE Cedar Rapids.

Another sitting on the south-side of the river

in SE Cedar Rapids.

Even a wren stops by for a photo.

More of the Eagle on the south-side shore of the Cedar River

in SE Cedar Rapids.

This gives you an idea of where the Eagle is positioned.

Another view.

A little closer.

PRESENTS!!!

2011-12-25T06:50:00.001-06:00

Christmas morning opening presents.

Photos taken with my Android phone--
©2011 Buddy Burton

Bekah with a video and CD.

A hamster

Moose

Grandma Jan got me this in Branson. Union Pacific-opoly.
SWEET!!!

An Angry Bird.

A wine glass courtesy of the kids.

Even our "other kid", Sassy gets a present.

Merry Christmas y'all!!!

Merry Christmas!!!

2011-12-24T09:27:00.002-06:00

New Covenant Bible Church Christmas trees

2011-12-18T14:03:00.001-06:00

Couple pics of the Main Street decorations at New Covenant Bible Church in Cedar Rapids, IA. Dec 18, 2011

How about some "steam"?

2011-12-18T06:24:00.000-06:00

Steam rolling off of our backyard light this morning around 5:30am while letting the dog "do her business".

You know you are bored of railfanning when......

2011-12-07T16:32:00.001-06:00

You start taking Seagulls at the Cedar River Roller Dam

and wishing for Bald Eagles.

Or the afternoon lull has made you "pooped".

Scenic-11/30/11

2011-11-30T16:24:00.001-06:00

Church in Fairfax

Speed limit sign in Fairfax.

Did we mention that its Deer Season?

Red-tail Hawk.

Photo Verses Part 1

2011-11-18T10:26:00.001-06:00

These are some of my photos from this site that I have added Scripture Verses to. I hope that someone will be blessed by these photographs and will put joy in your heart, like it has done to mine.

Enjoy!!!

Lightning Show

2011-10-23T22:28:00.001-05:00

There was a wonderful lightning show north of Cedar Rapids Sunday evening.

First the video compilation then the photos.

Where's my key?

2011-10-12T18:09:00.004-05:00

Where's my key to open my heart?

Well it wasn't here or at the location of

7th Street SE and Otis Rd SE where this

statue is.

Nature/Scenic--10/3/11

2011-10-03T17:42:00.001-05:00

A Heron stands in the Cedar River waiting

on lunch.

Still waiting. He would make several attempts

at catching him some lunch.

A Hawk looks for some lunch too near the Prairie Park

Fishery.

I do not have any idea what these are. If you know,

please comment for me. But they look interesting.

Scenic, Fall Colors-2011

2011-10-02T16:55:00.003-05:00

Some Fall Colors from Prairiewood in

Hiawatha, IA during the Nature Fest.

Pond and a bit of reflection at Prairiewood in

Hiawatha, Iowa.

More from Prairiewood during Nature Fest--click here.

On the walk back from Jan Lamm's house, a few more

colors in Bowman Woods.

Iowa Top Blog

2011-09-26T07:00:00.003-05:00

"eastern iowa railpics" and "Buddy Burton Photography" has been selected as Iowa Top Blogs.

It is such an honor to be a designated Top Blogger in the State of Iowa.

Thank you to all of the viewers and followers for making it possible.

Backyard creatures

2011-09-25T18:03:00.004-05:00

Some flying and crawling creatures in my backyard-

before the rains came.

Bumblebee

Spider taking a Siesta.

An Admiral Butterfly perched on one of our flowery

plants in the backyard.

Another bumblebee.

Bumblebee and the Admiral join in the feeding.

And another bumblebee...

....and a housefly, plus another bumblebee.

Bumblebee feeding on Nectar.

The Admiral sitting on top of the world.

McLoud Run

2011-09-19T18:23:00.001-05:00

Mixture of colors of McLoud Run

McLoud Run.

CN wooden truss crossing over McLoud Run.

Many small dams along McLoud Run.

McLoud Run is the only stream in Iowa that has

these three Trouts in an urban area.

The sun piercing through the trees on McLoud Run.

Butterflies of McLoud Run.

The Wooly Worm

2011-09-19T07:57:00.001-05:00

We had our first sighting of the infamous "Wooly Worm" in our backyard this morning.

My son is taking him to school for "Show and Tell". Here is the booger who also can

predict the upcoming winter weather very well.

Nature and Creatures

2011-09-18T08:22:00.004-05:00

While walking Boysen Trail, seen another tree

with mushrooms growing out from the trunk.

It's so wonderful how God can create such

a wonderful picture for us photographers

to take and cherish.

Taken 9/17/2011.

Red-tail Hawk paid a visit to our backyard

looking for food.

Taken 9/3/2011.

Our pup, Sassy, looking at the world from the

front window.

Taken 9/4/2011.

Goldenrods and a Plane

2011-09-05T20:20:00.002-05:00

Photo of the 1929 Ford Tri-Motor plane that had been

on display in Iowa City this past weekend, takes flight

over the city. People rode on this plane for $70.

The Tri-Motor Plane took a loop toward my vantage

point and I snapped him passing under me.

While waiting for the KCS Detour train to arrive, I snapped

off a couple photos of Goldenrods in bloom on Eagle

Road east of Oxford, IA.

To view the KCS/BICB train and the update

from "eastern iowa railpics", click here.

Red-Tail Hawk

2011-09-03T22:39:00.001-05:00

Seen this Red-Tail Hawk sitting on my neighbor's fencepost Saturday morning.

Grabbed the camera and VOILA, a picture-perfect shot.

Balloons and Critters

2011-08-29T16:27:00.003-05:00

8/28/11--A trio of hot-air balloons pass over my mother-in-law's

neighborhood as we were there for dinner and opening

Bekah's EARLY birthday presents.

8/29/11--Some critters along the tracks in Waterloo.

The Scenic Route of Boysen Trail

2011-08-14T21:42:00.003-05:00

The following are photos along my walk on the Boysen Trail. Photos are in no particular order.

Which way to go??? BTW, they both come back

together on the other side.

Raspberries??

A small dam where Dry Creek meets Indian Creek.

A former Milwaukee Road overpass. There is plans to

turn it into part of the Marion Trail.

The most beautiful part of the park; the Dry Creek

Walking Bridge.

A beautiful sunset at the end of my walk and this day.

from "Train Festival 2011"

2011-08-13T09:46:00.000-05:00

You can see more from Train Festival 2011 at

"eastern iowa railpics" by typing in keyword

Train Festival in the "Search this Blog"

section.

from "Isaac and Rebekah"--Flowers and Gazebo

2011-07-22T18:39:00.002-05:00

Couple species of Hibiscus blooming near the African exhibit

at the Niabi Zoo.

Tiger Lily.

The kids in the Gazebo at the Niabi Zoo.

The kids sitting on Butterflies.

From "eastern iowa railpics"-7/13/2011

2011-07-18T09:53:00.003-05:00

Beverly Yard job working General Mills.

Union Pacific's M-NPPR, led by MKT "heritage" unit

#1988 passing thru Koch(Cook) west of Mechanicsville, IA.

An enhanced shot of above photo.

M-NPPR at Stanwood, IA.

A nearly full moon rising over Eastern Iowa.

Video from Dick Beals Fireworks Party-July 4, 2011

2011-07-05T08:48:00.003-05:00

Dick Beals Fireworks-July 4, 2011

2011-07-05T00:44:00.002-05:00

The kids in the swimming pool.

A very nice crescent moon before fireworks.

One of the neighbors had a band playing.

The sun's rays glowing up from the horizon.

One of many Candle Balloon floating by the crescent Moon.

One of the neighbors fireworks

Some photos of the fireworks.

Tiger Lilies

2011-07-03T10:25:00.002-05:00

Our neighbor to the east of us has Tiger Lilies

growing along the fence. So I grabbed a couple

shots. These ARE beautiful blooms.

Just noticed that there is a critter in this shot. SWEET!!!

Galesburg RxR Days-6/26/11

2011-06-26T18:25:00.004-05:00

We get to Galesburg and a car show was being held.

How about a baby blue Mustang?

A Cobra...

....and my "dream" truck.

A magician doing some tricks at the RxR Days.

Bekah petting the rabbit at a Petting Zoo.

Isaac chasing a piglet.

"HEY!!!" is Bekah reaction.

Another train passing by.

"Oh No You Don't"!!! with food in hand, mind you.

Inside a steam engine on static display at the museum.

Bekah tooting for the right-of-way while Isaac looks on.

One of the cantilever signal bridges in town near the
BNSF Yard.

BNSF "Potash" train enters Galesburg on the Ottumwa
Sub.

Closeup shot of the train.

M-O-W's truck

A CB&Q car on static display near the museum.

Bekah climbs the wall at the Discovery Depot Museum...

..and works the mail.

Isaac trying to get a shock at the Discovery Depot Museum.

Isaac...

Bekah.....

...and even ME, taking a turn on the "conveyor belt" slide
at the Discovery Depot Museum.

A BNSF empty hopper train passes near the
Discovery Depot Museum.

See ya later!!!

Storage Shed damaged

2011-06-11T18:32:00.000-05:00

Our next door neighbor "The Burleys" had some folks come to work on

getting a tree off of their house which suffered some minor damage

from the Severe Storms on Wednesday. Here is a view

of my storage shed as a limb is wedged.

Here is one of the fellows cutting into the tree to get

it off of my shed.

Couple views of the damage.

Looks like a new shed is in order. :(

Aftermath of Severe Storms-6/9/11

2011-06-09T14:21:00.017-05:00

Photos of the aftermath from 6/8/11 storms in our neighborhood.

We assumed the winds were topping out at nearly 80 mph when

these trees fell, thus the damage.

Ash tree broke at the bottom of the trunk in our backyard.

Panoramic view of the tree. The tree fell into our neighbors

backyard and landed on their wooden fence.

Another tree next to us did the same thing and the bark

peeled off of this one.

Another tree next door nearly took out the neighbor's

kitchen and patio area.....

which the 70-80mph winds yanked it up from the roots.

Faded Barn

2011-05-11T18:47:00.000-05:00

Rode around the area near Central City and Alburnett to see if the CN had the L563 coming. The local was not around to be seen, but this barn caught my eye and snapped a few photos off for you to look.

Happy Easter from "Buddy Burton Photography"

2011-04-23T23:44:00.000-05:00

Blue Jay

2011-04-20T15:19:00.000-05:00

Got my first Blue Jay of the Spring season, just outside of

my car; looking for worms.

Snow in April???

2011-04-16T09:52:00.000-05:00

Winter's last HURRAH in April.

Daffodils in bloom--4/10/11

2011-04-10T20:30:00.000-05:00

While out watering along the fencerow where I seeded

grass, I noticed the Daffodils that I re-located last summer

has bloomed.

Closeup of one of the bloomed Daffodils after dusk.

Crescent Moon--4/6/2011

2011-04-06T21:00:00.001-05:00

Tonight's moon has a dark, shadow side visible to the naked eye.

Here are three photos to provide proof all at different ISO settings.
ISO 1600

ISO 800

Another view at ISO 1600.

Birds in air, in water

2011-03-30T16:56:00.000-05:00

Some SeaGulls flying over Cedar Lake in Cedar Rapids.

Pair of ducks swimming in Cedar Lake.

Lonesome SeaGull flying over the lake.

Flock of SeaGulls swarming over Cedar Lake.

Birds of Cedar Lake

2011-03-02T16:19:00.001-06:00

Took a 30 minute walk--in between
railroad shoots--around Cedar Lake in downtown

Cedar Rapids and found a few feathered friends

all in a section of the lake where there is water.

Bald Eagle sitting on the ice edge while a Mallard passes

by.

Couple ducks swimming.

Couple more Mallards

Seagull flying.

As I was approaching, this duck takes off.

More Bald Eagles

2011-02-16T18:09:00.001-06:00

Another set of Bald Eagle photos taken at random along

the Cedar River from the Roller Dam area.

Bald Eagles @ the Cedar River Roller Dam

2011-02-09T19:20:00.003-06:00

Spent almost the entire day at the Cedar River Roller Dam in Southeastern Cedar Rapids on February 9, 2011. Although the weather was very cold, breezy and still snowpacked, the Bald Eagles were out in full force.

Here are some of the best shots from the day; total 56 photos out of over 200 made it to this update.

Enjoy the photos!!!

Feel free to leave a rating or comment.

A member of the Cedar Rapids Police Dept took in

some of the views while patroling. The same officer came

by my vantage point saying that he gets a chance to come

down once a day to enjoy the view. "He loves it."

This one is earning his "stripes".

YouTube video of the Bald Eagles from the Roller Dam--

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LcA8oDDDb4

More Bald Eagles-Cedar River Roller Dam

2011-02-06T23:15:00.000-06:00

A few of my Christian friends told me that there were

a bunch of Bald Eagles near the Roller Dam on the

Cedar River. I drove over to the area on February 6th

and they were not kidding.

Here are the best photos from that short shoot

(in no particular order).

I am planning to head back on Wednesday and get

more. Check back here if and when I do get more photos.

Enjoy!!!

Bald Eagles-1/26/11

2011-01-26T19:37:00.000-06:00

Spotted a couple Bald Eagles on the way back to Cedar Rapids

around the Iowa River Basin at the Amanas.

The second one was up high in a tree across from the

other Eagle.

Back across the road for a couple more before

heading home.

Cardinal on tree limb

2011-01-09T12:41:00.000-06:00

My wife pointed me to a Cardinal outside our living room window. Grabbed the camera and got this. Love these beautiful birds; they are my favorite species.

November 28-December 27, 2010

2011-01-08T09:44:00.000-06:00

11/28/10

Decorating the Christmas tree

The finished tree.

12/1/10

Chase of the CRIC01(Cedar Rapids-Iowa City)

turn. This day, Rock Island heritage unit 513 was leading.

The train topping Walford Hill.

CRIC01 topping East Yocum.

CRIC01 crossing the Iowa River in Iowa City as a flock of seagulls

fly around.

12/5/10

The kids decorated a Gingerbread house. A few days later,

it was eaten.

Christmas morning 2010

The kids opening their presents.

12/27/10

Overnight, frozen fog developed and gave us a beautiful

sight; a bona-fide winter wonderland.

The Moon & Decorating the Tree

2010-11-28T12:07:00.000-06:00

11/27--The moon in the last quarter stage, over our

corner bush in the front of our house.

11/28--Isaac......

....and Bekah decorating the Christmas tree.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

2010-11-25T12:06:00.001-06:00

May Your Thanksgiving be filled with good times, games, family and lots of

Turkey. Happy Thanksgiving!!!

from "eastern iowa railpics"--Oct 20 to Nov 10, 2010

2010-11-14T23:18:00.003-06:00

10/20--UP 3836 east-UPS pig train[a.k.a. The Bird]

10/20--UP 6898 crossing over from 1 to 2 at CPA086

with a loaded coal train.

10/27--CN L563 with 5273 & EJE 664 coming into

town along I-380 with 57 cars.

11/3--Amtrak #6 detoured over the UP for a couple day

due to bridge work in Burlington, IA on the BNSF

Ottumwa Sub. Here UP 8532 pulls #6 thru Fairfax

at 70MPH.

11/3--A pair of GP9's are the power for CIC's Job 5;

working on pulling hoppers to ADM's "Dry Grind"

plant.

11/3--CIC Job 5 shoving the hoppers into "Dry Grind".

11/3--EJE 664 takes the lead on CN L563 north

with 29 cars bound for Manchester.

11/3--A view of the train passing by McCloud Place NE.

11/10--Iowa Interstate's CRIC10 with 502, 500 on

the head-end and 508 pushing on the rear; passing

Amana with 100 cars.

11/10--CRIC10 passing MP 19.

11/10--CRIC10 nearing the top of the east wye @ Yocum.

11/10--CRIC10 passing thru Homestead and the

local feed mill.

11/10--CRIC10 nearing some ex-RI block signals

at Eagle.

11/10--CRIC10 passing the Hawkeye Express parked

in the Vernon siding. The Express is owned by the Iowa

Northern Rwy.

11/10--A UP eastbound merchandise train's DPU(left)

passes a westbound UP empty coal train east of

Stanwood, IA.

11/10--An eastbound coal train gets his green light

after meeting one each way at Stanwood, IA

Recent photos

2010-11-01T10:22:00.000-05:00

October 2010: My second "wooly" worm sighting.

They can be great forecasters for winter.

Black=cold; brown=warm.

August 2010: Deer in the bushes next to a soybean field

on Old Bridge Rd SW.

August 2010: Rabbit on Irish Rd near Mt. Vernon, IA

May 2010: Chipmunk eating on our patio.

May 2010(Trainboard Prototype Winner): A Row of

MOW's at Beverly Yard, Cedar Rapids, IA.

from "eastern iowa railpics"--Iowa Northern

2010-09-06T15:49:00.002-05:00

Iowa Northern--8/25/10

The Iowa Northern's "South Job" crosses the Cedar River

(Penford) bridge with its corn train.

Along for the ride are the two new slugs purchased.

IANR 3956[mother unit is 4002].....

....and 3955[mother unit is 4001(left)]

The "South Job" entering the North Yard yard limits

at Quaker Oats.

The basic use for a "slug" is to provide the "mother" locomotive

traction which cuts fuel costs.

Iowa Northern's "Hawkeye Express"--8/29/10

The Iowa Northern sent down the "Hawkeye Express"
for its trip to prepare for the upcoming Iowa Hawkeyes
football season in Coralville. Here, the Express is tied down
for the night near the Eastern Iowa Airport south of
Cedar Rapids on the CIC Iowa City Main.

The train made the trip down Subdivision 3B(Amana Main)
on August 30th along with the IAIS Business cars.

from "eastern iowa railpics"--Kate Shelley High Bridge

2010-09-06T15:41:00.000-05:00

A visit to the Kate Shelley High Bridge in Boone, Iowa--August 11, 2010.

The view is breath-taking.

Old span....

New span.

Both spans.

Westbound coal train crossing the new span. Speed limit

on the new span goes up to 60 mph. The old metal span

[now closed], used to have a speed limit of 20mph.

New Kate Shelley was completed in 2009.

from "eastern iowa railpics"--Chicago & NorthWestern 1995

2010-09-06T15:29:00.000-05:00

September 1, 2010--UP 1995[The Chicago & Northwestern]

Heritage unit was the second unit on train M-CBPR

(Council Bluffs, IA-Proviso, IL), working Beverly Yard

in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

September 5, 2010--The same unit on the same train,

M-CBPR again working Beverly Yard.

Critters out my front windows

2010-08-08T10:11:00.000-05:00

8/5/10--A big bad spider in the corner of the front window.

8/8/10--A Sunday morning visitor; a Cicada or "heat bugs".

Along Hwy 30--August 3, 2010

2010-08-03T23:47:00.001-05:00

A mural on the side of a building depicting "A City

Flourishing on the Mississippi"-Clinton, IA.

Outside of Grand Mound, IA a trio of steam-powered tractors.

Near Calamus, IA--Crop-duster.

Near Fairfax, IA--an extra Iowa Interstate turn train
piercing thru the cornfield.

Olympic and Boy Scout units

2010-07-07T23:01:00.000-05:00

July 6, 2010

UP 2002-The Salt Lake Olympic Unit-leads train

M-CBPR(Council Bluffs, IA-Proviso, IL) by a field

of soybeans

......and rounds the bend into Bertram, IA.

July 7, 2010

UP 2010-The "Engineering" Special-passes MP 86

enroute to Joliet, IL from Council Bluffs, IA.

The Baggage car, "The Promotory" in the consist

of the train.

Close-up shot of the unit leading the Special thru

Eastern Iowa on July 7, 2010.

Frog, Rainbow and Storm Photos

2010-06-19T10:24:00.000-05:00

First two shots are from the house where a neighbor

captured a frog and gave it to my son. Isaac did not

know what to do with the frog so I suggested that I would

release the frog at the nearest creek.....

....which I did on my way to work on Friday(6/18/10).

Next couple are of a rainbow after a line of storms

brought 70mph winds to our city. Taken from

Boysen Road in Marion, IA.

This is looking to the SE, into the departing storms and

the sky took on a peachy color. The bottom part of the

rainbow can be seen on the right.

Next trio are after sunset of some wonderful after-storm

photos. First two of a couple "lucky" lightning shots looking

to the south and southeast.

This one I was REALLY overjoyed for. Can't time it

out better than this.

Clouds leaving a "bumpy" mark on the sky on the rear

of the storms.

Feel free to comment and rank.

More from Wisconsin

2010-05-31T22:08:00.000-05:00

5/30/2010

Cardinal looking for breakfast.

Airplane took a couple laps around the lake.

The Geese did too.

We take another ride out on the lake in the afternoon

and I spotted three separate sailboats.

Some waterskiing.

Took to the flower garden that the in-laws had and

grabbed several pics.

The wren's were taking in some food...

...so were the hummingbirds.

5/31/2010

Distant Thunderstorm

Carp jumping out of the lake.

Carp swimming near the dock.

Another Carp jumping out of the water.

The lakefront house where my in-law's live.

Good Morning

2010-05-29T06:35:00.000-05:00

The "full" moon over Lake Kegonsa setting

in the SW sky.

Some goslings head for shore.

Good morning y'all!!!

Stump removal and our trip

2010-05-28T22:51:00.002-05:00

Before we left for Wisconsin, the tree person came

to remove our stumps. Or I should say grind them.

West of Anamosa, a street named Julie Ann.

Platteville, WI is famous for the mysterious "M" on

the side of a hill.

We arrived at Lake Kegonsa and the first thing from

the kids was, "Can we go on a boat ride?"

Springers Restaurant and their Friday evening

"Fish Fry".

The shoreline on the south-side of the lake.

This would kill my legs.

Love the stonework.

A nice look west(two pics)

Someone waterskiing, before the wipeout.

Got the firepit going and the kids roasted

marshmallows(see "Boat ride, marshmallow roast").

More to come.

The Itsy-Bitsy Spider

2010-05-17T22:30:00.000-05:00

Spider hanging on our Dining area light. Gonna have

to dust off the shades.

Another view(with flash) of the spider in its glory

[before it was disposed of at the toilet].

March 29-April 28, 2010

2010-05-04T22:24:00.001-05:00

March 29, 2010

Iowa Interstate's CBBI with heritage 513 leading

passes the restored West Liberty Depot.

CBBI crossing the Cedar River in Moscow, IA

CBBI passes the River Valley CO-OP mill in Walcott, IA

A BNSF train brings interchanged traffic from the

Iowa Interstate in Rock Island, IL

April 12, 2010

CN L563 departs Cedar Rapids with only three cars

for Manchester.

April 21, 2010
The eastbound "Bird" near Mechanicsville, IA.

Someone informed me of a barn with Lady Liberty
near Mt. Vernon. Liberty holds an apple; at an
apple orchard.

An eastbound coal train pulls away from CP Bertram
on the UP Clinton Sub.

April 28, 2010

Iowa Interstate's eastbound mainline train,

CBBI passing OS Yocum with a trio of

Geeps leading the way.

Iowa Interstate's other mainline train, BICB passes by

Homestead, IA and a grove of dandelions.

Close-up's

2010-03-14T06:41:00.000-05:00

Some of my "close-up" shots.

CRANDIC's Job 12 pulling coal

A Union Pacific eastbound train near Otis, IA

A rarity on rails; Union Pacific's E9A.

March 5, 2010

2010-03-05T19:51:00.000-06:00

Theatre Cedar Rapids returned to the downtown

area after being out near Linndale Mall

while the building was being renovated after

the 2008 Floods, with a new look on the inside

and the outside.

Out on the Cedar River in SE Cedar Rapids,

I spot our National Symbol, the Bald Eagle,

perched up high on a tree limb overlooking

the river.

A painting of "American Gothic" is displayed on

a small barn off of US Hwy 30, east of the

Palisades-Kepler State Park.

Heritage unit and our Nation's Bird

2010-02-17T21:14:00.000-06:00

February 1, 2010--This was the first chase of the Iowa Interstate's

newest heritage locomotive.

IAIS 513 donned the original Rock Island paint scheme;

seen here at the West Liberty Rock Island depot.

February 15, 2010--My first sighting of our National
Bird, the Bald Eagle. Here he feasts on a carcass
that the Union Pacific trains have left behind.

February 16, 2010--Iowa Interstate's heritage unit,

#513 leads the CRIC-16 into Coralville, IA on

a cloudless sunny day.

New Years Eve gathering

2010-01-03T09:50:00.000-06:00

On New Years Eve on the way home, I came upon

a gathering of deer looking for food. Taken around

21st Street and 35th Ave SW in Cedar Rapids, IA.

November 9-December 13, 2009

2009-12-13T19:27:00.000-06:00

11/9/09: New warning signs installed on

I-380 in Cedar Rapids.

11/10/09: The last quarter moon next to a

communications tower near my home.

11/10/09: An eastbound UP coal train at Bertram, IA.

11/11/09: A CRANDIC crew pulling cars out of the

"N" track lead to the 900's.

11/11/09: IC 9574 north @ McCloud Place.

11/18/09: CRANDIC's Job 2 pulling 65 loaded

coal cars along the newly-finished "P" main.

11/22/09: Our Christmas tree

silouhetted in the hardwood floor.

11/23/09: GTW 4904 sits in the "A" yard with

Quaker Oats in the background.

11/23/09: UP 8071 east @ MP 86.

12/2/09: A CRANDIC crew pulls alcohol from

ADM.

12/5/09: Couple bellringers in front of the local Walmart

in Marion, IA.

12/2/09: Spellcheck anyone?

12/7/09: The kids making Christmas cookies.

12/7/09: IC 9574, longhood, northbound @ Robins, IA

after the first light snowfall.

12/7/09: Job 2 pulling over 40 coal cars to "Co-Gen"

12/7/09: got Concrete?

12/13/09: A picture-perfect shot of Prairie Creek in

SW Cedar Rapids.

More next month.

October 4, 2009-November 4, 2009

2009-11-06T09:19:00.002-06:00

October 5, 2009 CRPE-5 passes Walford, IA on the

CRANDIC Amana line.

October 9, 2009
a]Rock Island High Cab Caboose #17823 on display
at the Vinton Depot in Vinton, IA.

b]A Western Union sign still hangs from the
Vinton Depot in Vinton, IA on the ex-Rock Island line
now occupied by the Iowa Northern.

c]Eastbound CN train on the "rollercoaster"
west of Jesup, IA-CN Fort Dodge Sub.

October 14, 2009
a]Eastbound CBBI, MP 230.

b]Couple trees in fiery red

fall colors in the Longfellow Dst of Iowa City.

c]UP 7121 east, MP 79-Clinton Sub.

October 19, 2009
One of many beautiful trees and shrubbery showing
their true fall colors. Devonshire Drive NE,
Cedar Rapids.

October 21, 2009

a]IANR's South Job passing tall Silos in Shellsburg, IA

b]Passing by the Vinton Depot-Vinton, IA

c]Working the LaPorte City CO-OP track at the depot.

d]Beverly Yard Transfer job coming into downtown
Cedar Rapids, getting ready to back up the train into
the UP North Yard.

e]Fall colors in them there hills-NE Cedar Rapids.

October 26, 2009
The CN hosted the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern
672 on its Cedar Rapids local. Here the local, Manchester-bound,
passes Robins, IA.

October 28, 2009-UP 7399 west and its partners
"elephant style" a stack train west of Bertram, IA.

November 4, 2009
a]Iowa Interstate's CRIC-4 climbs
Fairfax Hill with 143 cars plus IAIS 510 midway in DPU.
Leaders were 508, 503.

b]Iowa Northern was also in town. Here the Corn Train
crosses the Cedar River on the rebuilt CRANDIC trestle,
bound for LaPorte City and points north.

c]On the way back from the eastern end of the
Clinton Sub, I decided to get my shot of a westbound
with the Land O Lakes Feeds in Clarence, IA.
Here it is the light power that will
be used for a empty coal train in Cedar Rapids.

d]Westbound stack train rounds the mile-long turn between MP 75 & 76.

Before departure & On-The-Road-Home pics

2009-09-07T18:14:00.004-05:00

Before departing:

A Downey Woodpecker helps itself to a feeder

that Bill and Connie set up.

This by far is my best shot of the hummingbird

that comes around to feed off the nectar feeder.

On-The-Road-Home photos:

Field of soybeans turning colors and corn on top

of a Wisconsin hill.

Farm in the rolling hills of SW Wisconsin.

The haybarn once again on the way back this time going

southbound.

After passing Dubuque, we pass another scenic farm
close to Cascade, IA.

A BIG Bird, lake sunset

2009-09-06T20:01:00.000-05:00

A BIG bird. A crane?

Sun setting in the clouds on the horizon @ Lake Kegonsa.

On-The-Road Pics, Boat Troubles at lake--September 4th

2009-09-05T09:46:00.010-05:00

Sacred Heart Church-Fillmore, Iowa

Yard crew working the CN Yard in Dubuque, IA

Ex GTW unit sitting in the "house" track in the Dubuque CN Yard.

Hay barn southwest of Mineral Point, WI.

An equestrian stable near Mt. Horeb, WI.

When we arrived at Lake Kegonsa, Bill and Big Papa(Ron Hagen)

were having a bit of boat trouble.

Bill became the boat motor while Ron rides in luxury.

Click here for video of Bill walking in his boat on Lake Kegonsa.
Listen for Julie's comment about "quiet motor".

Indian Creek flooding

2009-09-04T20:01:00.001-05:00

Some photos from the recent flooding of Indian Creek

in Marion, IA from August 27, 2009.

Look toward town on Central Ave.

A field on the westside of Central Ave flooded.

Geode Street was closed.

Lininger Park was flooded next to Indian Creek.

Trains, State Fair, Zoo

2009-09-04T13:09:00.002-05:00

IAIS GP38-2 711 works the #2 track, getting ready to head eastbound, while an eastbound merchandise train waits for a crew.

September 2, 2009-Iowa City, IA.

On our way to Des Moines, seen this sign.

Yes there is such a place called "What Cheer" in Iowa.

Iowa State Fair Aug 14, 2009

State Fair Logo for 2009.

The Capital Building in downtown Des Moines, IA

It's several "Great" pumpkins.

Isaac watching the chicks.

The kids riding some John Deere.

Blair Park Zoo, Aug 15, 2009

The next day was the Blair Park Zoo just south of Des Moines.

A Gecko sitting on bambo.

One of the many species of birds in the zoo.

Blue fish.

Sea Otters

Peacock watching over the turtles.

All different forms of fish on a feeding frenzy after throwing

feed into the water.

Couple Giraffe's necking

An American symbol, the Bald Eagle.

Lioness perched on a rock.

Kids watching some baboons.

Another species of bird.....

....and another.

Bass Pro Shops east of Des Moines in the suburb of

Altoona, IA.

Railroad Photography

2009-08-02T13:55:00.002-05:00

A compilation of railroad photos taken around
Eastern Iowa and ON LOCATION sites;
from "eastern iowa railpics".

NEW!!! July 2009: Iowa Interstate coal train, PE-CR, wedges
thru a cut @ MP14 on the CRANDIC Amana line.

NEW!!! July 2009: Union Pacifc eastbound Z-Train, a.k.a. "The Bird"
in the midst of a field of corn near Bertram, IA.

NEW!!! July 2009: Wisconsin & Southern GP38 3801 @ Pleasant Springs, WI

NEW!!! July 2009: WSOR SD40-2 4053 @ Stoughton, WI

NEW!!! July 2009: WSOR MP15AC 1503 @ Stoughton, WI

5/29/2009: Iowa Northern's ex GTW "transfer" caboose sitting in
the CRANDIC's Wilson Yard, waiting for pick-up to take back
to Waterloo with 40 plus cars.

5/29/2009: UP's Z Train, "The Bird", zips across the Cedar River Bridge.

5/29/2009: UPY 659(Job 52) waits to get clearance to head
to Wilson Yard to exchange cars with the CRANDIC; seen here
near MP 86 on the Clinton Sub.

5/29/2009: CIC 121, slug 125(Job 2) eases around the "S" curve southward
taking some Iowa Interstate hoppers to the 900 yard.

5/29/2009: CN 5268(SD40-2W) with 17 cars, passes under the 32nd Street NE
overpass.

May 2009: Eastbound stack train coming into Beverly Yard while
a merchandise train works the southside of the yard.

April 2009: Iowa Interstate's PECR heads down the other side
of Walford Hill on the way to Cedar Rapids with 120 loaded
coal cars. 1 of 7

Iowa Interstate PECR with ES44AC 502 on the lead;
passing MP 12(Walford, IA) on the Amana Main. 2 of 7

Iowa Interstate PECR passing thru Walford, IA. 3 of 7

PECR passing by Fairfax, IA. 4 of 7

PECR coming into Cedar Rapids. 5 of 7

Nice view of Iowa Interstate's PECR coal train. 6 of 7

ES44AC 510 bringing up the rear. Coal cars reporting marks
are NOKL. 7 of 7

February 2009: Iowa Interstate's ICCR with IAIS ES44AC 500
on the lead-Tipple Creek.

February 2009: IAIS ES44AC 503 leading CRIC back to Iowa City;
seen here south of Fairfax, IA.

April 2009: GTW 5859(CN)-Cedar Rapids, IA

January 2009: Depot--Ft Madison, IA

January 2009: ATSF 4-8-4 2913-Ft. Madison, IA

January 2009: Union Pacific ES44AC-Mechanicsville, IA

January 2009: UPY 657-Cedar Rapids, IA

January 2009: CRANDIC MP15DC 121-Cedar Rapids, IA

Weekend on the lake-July 18, 19

2009-07-19T19:48:00.001-05:00

July 18th
Bill and Connie's small garden
One of the many perennials growing in their yard.
Rebekah kayaking for the first time. She did a great job.
Her Aunt Barb would be so proud of her.

Here is the video of Bekah kayaking

Isaac taking a dip in the lake.

Hummingbird buzzing around a Nectar feeder.

July 19th

Julie, Connie and Jessica watch us depart the dock.

View of the shoreline on Lake Kegonsa

Bill(left) and Isaac on the boat in the middle of the lake.

Couple more views of the shoreline of the lake.

Heading back in to dock.

Julie raising the boat up.

Little bit later, Isaac wanted to take to the kayak, but that didn't last
too long.

Here I am in the kayak. As you can see I was hanging on for dear life.
The kayak was tipsy so I did not want to go into the water.

Isaac playing with the kayak.

Weekend in Wisconsin-July 17th

2009-07-17T17:40:00.005-05:00

Grandpa Bill, Isaac and Bekah fishing. Bekah got her line caught
in the boat pulley. Isaac had a lure stuck to his sweater.

FINALLY caught me a hummingbird buzzing around a feeder.

Isaac and the lure.

Bekah aiming for the lake. Mind you the temperature is
58 degrees.

A lake Heron flying over.

Bill and the kids.

A few more of the hummingbird feeding.

Matt(left) and Andrea(center) talk with Bill.

Matt gets ready to blow his candles...

..and gets help from the kids.

Let's roll our tongues for the camera!!!

Bekah(orange hat) reading while Aunt Jessica texts.

More to come....

Family

2009-07-17T16:35:00.001-05:00

July 17, 2009-Our trip up to Lake Kegonsa, WI
Cloud formations over Jones County, IA

Bridge crossing the Mississippi River in Dubuque, IA

Big "M" near Platteville, WI

Conversating near the Pier

Grandpa Bill and Isaac on the pier

Panoramic view of Lake Kegonsa

The "crazy cow" at our stop in Belmont, WI

The kids on the pier.

Other photos:

May 2009: Rebekah singing at Kids' Concert in the Westfield Chorus