My 2023 CPKC (very abbreviated) Holiday Train Chase

I have several traditions in my life. For me, the holiday season begins when I see a brilliantly-illuminated, holiday-decorated, diesel-powered locomotive and two dozen lit-up boxcars rolling through New York.

For me, the Christmas season does not commence until I actually get a photo of the CPKC Holiday Train. And that’s the plan this year. I have several “bucket list” shots I want, and I’m going to snag them. Trust me on this.

Every year at around this time, the Canadian Pacific (sorry, now CPKC) Holiday Train travels across North America. It’s a free country music concert and a fantastic fundraiser. And in the past, after I’ve filmed this magnificent show, I’ve sent a check to Feeding America, as the Holiday Train operates to help those in situations of food insecurity.

See, after last week’s surgery, I’m supposed to take it easy. No strenuous travel. Rest and recovery.

Which meant that my original plans for a week-long Holiday Train chase were scuttled. Targets that I wanted to capture this year will have to wait another twelve months, whether I like it or not. I can’t walk long distances to shooting spots. And I can’t go to places where safe vehicle parking might be limited or non-existent.

Heck, I even wanted to capture the train in Montreal this year. That’s another postponement.

So I need to get creative. Only go to areas where I can either photograph the train from a safe location, or within a very short walking distance.

TARGET 1 – THE SUNY ADMIN BUILDING, ALBANY, NEW YORK

The Holiday Train passes between the I-787 highway, and its journey brings it past the SUNY Administration Building, which many years ago operated as the Delaware & Hudson Railroad headquarters. In 2019, I captured the location with one of my film cameras, but I was interrupted by a couple of grumpy “foamer” photographers who weren’t happy that the sunshine was streaming into their cameras. In 2022, I photographed the train at that location; albeit my shot was ruined by raindrops.

This time, the train should arrive earlier in the day – and if the Holiday Train has to stop at Menands, the train most likely will “wait” in front of the D&H/SUNY Admin building until it’s time to arrive at Menands. Or at least I hope it will. Weather forecast says partly cloudy. No rain, no blazing sunshine. Let’s make this work.

I hobbled up to the Tricentennial Bridge. This was one of my scouting locations last year, and I knew there was no way I could shoot through the bars with any of my Nikon camera lenses.

That didn’t stop me from snagging a shot or two with the tiny-lensed Google Pixel 6 Pro, however…

Here’s my vantage point.

Right through the fence bars. It’s a clear shot.

Of course, once you come up with a great angle … it’s only a matter of time before you get some company.

And by “company,” I mean other photographers. At least 20 different people on the bridge. Some of them brought drones to capture shots OVER the bridge. Others went for the old-fashioned method. Climb the bars and try to shoot over the posts.

Yeah, you think I’m going to climb that fence? Does it look like I was bitten by a radioactive spider?

One of the fence-climbers approached me. “Hey, man,” he said, “Do you know when this train is going to arrive at Mee-nards?”

I quickly said, “Menands, and it should be there by 3:45 p.m.” Pfft. Tourists.

With that … I waited in the windy, chilly air for the Holiday Train to pass by.

And by about 3:05 p.m. – here it comes. And it stopped just before reaching the SUNY Admin Building.

Let’s see how powerful the zoom is on this Pixel 6 Pro.

Nice. But it’s still too far away. Move a little closer.

And after about 10 minutes … the train moved forward. Then it stopped again.

I know why this is so. The train arrives at a set point, then it parks so that the train can eventually arrive at the scheduled time – no sooner, no later.

But at least on the second stop … I got a better photo.

Oh, nice. We get 2249 this year. It’s been 2246 that’s graced us at Christmastime the past few seasons. Sorry, just rail-nerding out.

Eventually the train lurched forward some more, and as it passed the SUNY Admin Building …

Here’s the photo I’ve wanted for ages.

Snap.

This I will take. It’s as good as I’ll get from this angle. I’ve got a couple of old D&H Building postcards, maybe if I combine them with this photo, I can send it off to BUILT in 2024.

Now it’s time for my next locale.

TARGET 2 – ST. AGNES CEMETERY, MENANDS, NEW YORK

Sometimes necessity is the mother of invention. And it wasn’t until I looked at the places where I couldn’t shoot, due to my recent surgery – that I found a place where I COULD shoot.

St. Agnes Cemetery is just off Broadway in Menands. It’s a short drive up Cemetery Avenue to a little parking lot. And if I angle my parking just right … I could theoretically photograph the train as it passes through Cemetery Avenue. Simply roll down the window, aim the camera, and snap.

We’ll go Nikon Df camera on this, with the Irix 15mm f/2.4 ultra-wide glass. And as an added treat … I’m flipping the white balance on the camera to fluorescent. That should make the train lights pop nicely.

The Holiday Train should finish its concert in Menands and leave that spot by 4:30 p.m. So between 4:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., it should pass through the target area.

And sure enough … there were at least fifteen other photographers in the vicinity. Drone pilots. Cell phones on tripods. The whole run of railfans and foamers.

Then I realized. The angle I have will give me the Holiday Train under a distant full moon – if I nail the exposure.

I get one shot at this. And the train’s coming right now.

I hit the rapid-fire on the Nikon … and after more than a few shots … this was the best photo of the bunch.

Holy shit. Cars lit up. Full moon. Power pole. The whole nine yards of enchiladas.

Hey, let’s see what the Christmas-themed boxcars look like, shall we?

There’s some new decorations with the new CPKC wordmark … to prove that this photo was taken in 2023.

Now to roll up the driver’s side window in my car and head home. As much as I would absolutely love to take more photos … I can’t push myself. I just finished up with major surgery. I’m taking a big chance with these photos already.

But in the end … I got some great images. It’s not the full-length CPKC Holiday Train run that I wanted …

But even with this … and just coming back from surgery … I still got the shots.

And that’s more than I thought was possible a week ago.