Midnight Railfan

About Me

Hello everyone and welcome to my website! My name is Swade and I currently reside in the Cincinnati, OH area and most-often railfan CSX and NS, with some shortlines and museums here and there, such as IORY, CIND, and CCET. Linked above is my YouTube Channel (Midnight Railfan), so check out my channel and subscribe if you enjoy my content! I try to publish railfanning videos 2-4 days a week, though I am currently working my way through Graduate School, so that may vary dependent upon how busy I am. You'll find a list and photographic roster of "special" locomotives from different railroads that I have caught in the tabs at the top of the website. Separate from my special catches, I have a page dedicated to steam engines. I have seen 5 operational steam locomotives in the last year, with many more chases planned for 2022, which can be found below. I am also in the process of creating a series where I cover the history of rail lines (districts, subdivisions, etc.) near where I live that will be coming in 2022. I have recently done a large overhaul to the site to make it more descriptive, easier to navigate, and more visualing appealing, so take your time to look around and enjoy!

2022 Steam Schedule

Mid-Atlantic Tour

During the week of May 26 - June 1, I will be traveling to two mid-Atlantic states (Maryland and Pennsylvania), as well as West Virginia to video steam engines under steam and visit museums thta house multiple steam locomotives. I am dubbing this as my "mid-Atlantic Steam Tour", which I hope to use as a tradition for one main annual steam tour per year. I am looking at an East Coast tour in 2023 (Carolinas, Georgia, and Delaware), but we will cross that bridge when the time comes. I also hope to return to PA in the fall to visit Horseshoe Curve and to see N&W #611 in operation. Below is the schedule.

• May 26, 2022: Strasburg Railroad (Chase of #90) & Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, Ronks, PA

• May 27, 2022: Steamtown & Electric City Trolley Museum, Scranton, PA

• May 28, 2022: Chase of Newly Restored Reading 4-8-4 #2102, Port Clinton, PA

• May 29, 2022: Chase of Excursions at Cass Scenic Railway, Cass, WV

• May 30, 2022: Chase of Chesapeake & Ohio #1309, Cumberland, MD

• May 31, 2022: Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum, Baltimore, MD

I have included a full list of my planned steam chases for 2022, which is found below. Feel free to email any suggestions to swadetrainz@gmail.com!

Confirmed/Pre-Planned Chases:

• Ohio Power 0-6-0 #3 (Hocking Valley Scenic Railroad, Nelsonville, OH): January 2022

• KI & Miami River Railroad 4-4-0 #19 (Kings Island, Mason, OH): Summer 2022

• Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad 2-4-0 "Judy K" #44: May 20, 2022

• Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 #765 (Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, Cleveland, OH): May 21, 2022

• Great Western (Strasburg) 2-10-0 #90 (Strasburg Railroad, Ronks, PA): May 26, 2022

• Baldwin Locomotive Works 0-6-0 #26 (Steamtown, Scranton, PA): May 27, 2022

• Reading 4-8-4 #2102 (Reading Blue Mountain and Northern, Port Clinton, PA): May 28, 2022

• Cass Scenic Railroad (locomotives dependent upon day): May 29, 2022

• Chesapeake & Ohio 2-6-6-2 #1309 (Western Maryland Scenic, Cumberland, MD): May 30, 2022

• Alaska Railroad 4-6-0 #152 (Huckleberry Railroad, Genessee Township, MI)

• Detroit & Lima Northern #7 (Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, MI): June 10, 2022

• Jones & Laughlin Steel 0-4-0T #58 (J&L Narrow Gauge RR, Youngstown, OH): June 11, 2022

• Iowa Interstate 2-10-2 #6988 (Silvis, IL): June 12, 2022

• Cass Scenic Parade of Steam (Cass, WV): June 18, 2022

• Great Smokey Mountain Railroad 2-8-0 #1702 (GSMR, Bryson City, NC): June 19, 2022

• ATSF 4-6-2 #415 (Abilene & Smokey Valley Railroad, Abilene, KS): September 3, 2022

• Gulf, Mobile & Northern 4-6-2 #425 (RBM&N, Port Clinton, PA): November 5, 2022

Under Review/Awaiting Schedule:

• Florida East Coast 4-6-2 #148 (U.S. Sugar, Clewiston, FL): TBD

• Southern 2-8-0 #630 (Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum, Chattanooga, TN): TBD

• Milwaukee Road 4-8-4 #261 (Friends of 261, Minneapolis, MN): Fall 2022

• Southern 2-8-0 #154 (Three Rivers Rambler, Knoxville, TN): Winter 2022

All Day Railfanning

UPDATE AS OF MARCH 20, 2022: Due to unforseen circumstances, the ADR series has been post-poned until further notice. I hope to restart the series, but current life committments have not allowed for it.

All day railfanning (ADR) is a series I used to do in late 2020 through mid-2021 where I chose a specific location or locations that were very close to each other on a certain railroad line and spent at least 8 hours at that one location (typically closer to 10-12). Due to other obligations such as school and life in general, I discontinued the ADR series during the summer of 2021. I am bringing this back temporarily beginning in May of 2022. I will include the link to the YouTube playlist once it is created and the trailer is made. I have plenty of locations planned for 2022 and beyond, so stay tuned for the list below. List of locations:

• Under Review

Steam Locomotive Histories

UPDATE AS OF MARCH 20, 2022: Due to unforseen circumstances and time committments, the History of Steam Season 1 Episode 1 Pere Marquette #1225 has been delayed to May 21. All other episodes will be adjusted. The narration for the first episide is nearing completion.

I have plans to start an informational series during Spring 2022 about the steam locomotives I have chased throughout the years and upcoming years. These informational videos will cover the history of the steam locomotive, times it has operated, current status, and several other factors that will be scripted out. I am particuarly excited for this series, so stay tuned for the first video for the first season!

Schedule for Releases (dates subject to change):

• Pere Marquette #1225 - May 21, 2022

• Little River #110 AND Little River #1 - June 6, 2022

• Southern #4501 - TBD

• Hocking Valley #3 - TBD

• Kings Island Steam Locomotives #12 & #19 - TBD

• Nickel Plate Road #765 - TBD

• Union Pacific #4014 - TBD