Railfanning Amtrak At Chicago's Roosevelt Road & West 18th Street

After storing my bags in the Metropolitan Lounge, I began the walk down Canal Street to Roosevelt Road to go railfanning. Unlike last year, when I was here railfanning in the pouring rain, this year, it was bright and sunny, which makes things much better from a photography standpoint! My plan this year was not only to railfan at Roosevelt Road but also to walk a couple blocks further south to West 18th Street near the Amtrak Locomotive Shop facilities to get photos there that also include the Willis Tower in the background similar to what you can photograph at Roosevelt Road. Included here is a collection of photos taken on a beautiful, sunny autumn day in Chicago, Enjoy...

Amtrak Train #49 (seen in the lower left-hand corner of the above photo) backs out of Chicago Union Station
heading into the coach yard with the Willis Tower in the background.

Metra's coach yard as seen from Roosevelt Road.

BNSF EMD GP39-3R #2661 switches coaches in Metra's yard.

Former Chesapeake & Ohio "Moonlight Dome" was part of a series of cars used by Iowa Pacific Holdings new venture
"Pullman Rail Journeys" which operates First Class Pullman service in original cars that run on the end of Amtrak's
City Of New Orleans train that runs between Chicago and New Orleans, LA.

More cars operated by Pullman Rail Journeys including 2 full-length dome cars along with former
New York Central Dining Car #448 seen in the center of the above photo.

Looking north from Roosevelt Road, some P42's are sitting on on one of the coach yard tracks.

Walking towards West 18th Street, I pass the Amtrak Chicago Locomotive Shop with an F40PH NPCU
from the Pacific Northwest visiting, appearing sandwiched between 2 P42's.

A wide-angle view of the Locomotive Shop and Car Washer Building with the Willis Tower in the background.

Looking north from West 18th Street, Amtrak's Wheel Trueing Building sits next to several locomotives.

LEFT: Amtrak Train #365 - The Blue Water crossing the Ex-Pennsylvania Railroad and Gulf, Mobile & Ohio Railroad lift bridge at
21st Street. RIGHT: A wide-angle view of the same train showing the full lift bridge structure. The train had P42DC #176 leading.
Special Thanks to Trainorders.com for help in identifying the above pictured train.

A view of Amtrak Train #390 - The Saluki on the St. Charles Air Line crossing over the ex-PRR main which has Train #365 passing
underneath. The Saluki is a state-sponsored train that runs to and from Carbondale, IL. Special Thanks to Trainorders.com for
help in identifying the above pictured train.

A wide view of Amtrak power at the Chicago Locomotive Shop with the Willis Tower in the background, I love railfanning in Chicago!!!

Just my luck that a cloud ducked in front of the sun when I took this photo! Here we have Amtrak Train #371 - The Pere Marquette
heading into the yard for servicing, passing the Locomotive Shop facilities with P42DC #30 leading this Superliner-equipped train.
Special Thanks to Trainorders.com for help in identifying this train.

Shortly after beginning my walk (and eventual bus ride) back to Chicago Union Station, I got a quick photo of
Amtrak Lincoln Service Train #302 being turned for servicing.

After spending over an hour both at Roosevelt Road and West 18th Street, I started walking back to Union Station. Once I crossed Roosevelt Road, I found a bus stop and used a Chicago Transit Authority bus to get me the rest of the way back because I wanted to get in a quick lunch before boarding my next train. After a quick lunch at McDonald's in Union Station, I headed back to the lounge and retrieved my luggage. It's now time to continue my journey across the country as I'll be leaving Chicago today on the Southwest Chief bound for La Plata, MO. Click the link below to continue...