Beginner Rail Fan Asks, "Where's It Best To Start?"

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Alain

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Jan 28, 2003
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343
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San Diego, California
Hello All,

By way of introduction, I was born in Newark [yea, that one!] in the late 1940's.

My best friend and I used to invest our Saturdays/Sundays [and our allowances!] chasing diesels and GG-1's all over Penn Station. Tracks 1,2 and 3 were our main haunts in the late 1950's and very early 60's. Track 2 is where the GG-1's would glide in. The one in the attached photo is on Track 2 and I can still hear the hum of those motors winding down to a halt! BBBBBbbbrrrrrrrr...

The "Hudson Tubes" hold a fond spot in my heart too, [you can see the signage for "the tubes" in upper RH of photo] as does the Newark Subway cars. Great fun for two kids running loose in Newark's Penn Station all day; subsisting on burgundy soda machines and hot dogs...and NO adult supervision!

Anyway, would the members of this forum consider just scanning the frequencies from 159 thru 160 MHz sufficient to get started in this type of monitoring? I ask because now I'm in San Diego...and maybe reliving my youth, just a bit, once again! TIA.Pennsylvania_Railroad_GG-1_4899_at_Newark,_NJ_in_September_1964_(786983409).jpg
 

trainman111

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Richmond, VA
Man, awesome photo!

You could certainly scan the railroad band (160.215-161.565), however, a search of the database shows some pretty comprehensive listings for the railroads in California. I'm only vaguely familiar with San Diego, but if you click the below link, scroll down to the BNSF Railway section. Then, look for both "San Diego Subdivision" and "San Diego Yard". North of San Diego, BNSF operates on North County Transit District trackage, so be sure to enter the NCTD frequencies as well. Lastly, south of San Diego, the San Diego & Imperial Valley railroad takes traffic south to Mexico for interchange with the Baja California Railroad. To save you the trouble, here's what I would program if I lived there:

160.590 - BNSF San Diego Subdivision
161.370 - BNSF San Diego Yard
161.145 - NCTD San Diego Subdivision Dispatcher
161.250 - NCTD San Diego Subdivision Road
161.355 - NCTD San Diego Subdivision Yard
160.425 - NCTD San Diego Subdivision MofW
160.725 - NCTD San Diego Subdivision MofW 2
160.560 - Metrolink Road
160.455 - SD&IV Road

That should just about cover everything in the metro San Diego area!

 

Alain

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Joined
Jan 28, 2003
Messages
343
Location
San Diego, California
Trainman111,

Thank you for your prompt reply. Yes, the GG-1 was so beautiful.

The one's that we used to see were the Tuscun Red and that really dark Forest Green color. The black GG-1, of course.

We would be running around, from track to track then to the lobby for a drink...then suddenly would could feel the ceiling above us begin to shake moderately. We knew it was the GG-1. We'd go flying up the stairs, not waiting for the escalator---too slow. We could miss talking to the GG-1 engineer if we waited! Great time to be a kid in Newark.

Again trainman111, thank you for responding to my post!
 

MiCon

Mike
Joined
Feb 9, 2006
Messages
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Location
central AZ
Having someone give you frequencies to listen to is a great way to get started and get your interest up. However, given the fact that the RR band is pretty narrow (160.0 ~ 161.995), your suggestion of searching it will give you a better idea of what you can hear. I don't know where in the SD area you are, but searching the RR band might get you traffic near your location that would be short range, like HT use at a siding, or even RR's at the military bases. There's also the SD MTA (light rail) that runs from downtown to most of the surrounding communities.

Personally, I'd spend a few days doing the frequency search to build a database of what you can hear.

The most common traffic will be the passenger trains using NCTD (North County Transit District) which includes MetroLink north of Oceanside; AmTrak; Coaster (O'side to SD); and Sprinter (O'side to Escondido); and the MTA light rail. I can give you those frequencies, but finding them yourself is half the fun.

Have fun.
 
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