Train Watching

Follow along with Trains editors and staff as we watch beautiful trains around the world in operation.
Southern Railway 2-8-2 No. 4501 steams back to Georgia

Southern Railway 2-8-2 No. 4501 steams back to Georgia

As presented by the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum, the legendary Southern Railway 2-8-2 locomotive, No....

N&W No. 611 dress rehearsal for the Virginia Scenic Railway

N&W No. 611 dress rehearsal for the Virginia Scenic Railway

In late September 2023, Norfolk & Western steam locomotive No. 611 operated on the Buckingham...

Train Life: A Railway Simulator | Product Overview

Train Life: A Railway Simulator | Product Overview

Host Bryson Sleppy takes train watching in a different direction, as he examines the world...

Explore Wisconsin’s Osceola and Saint Croix Valley Railway

Explore Wisconsin’s Osceola and Saint Croix Valley Railway

The scenic town of Osceola, Wisc., recently hosted the inaugural Trains Magazine diesel photo special,...

Discover Paw Paw, W.Va.’s Historic CSX Magnolia Cutoff

Discover Paw Paw, W.Va.’s Historic CSX Magnolia Cutoff

Explore Paw Paw, WV's rich history with the Magnolia Cutoff, an engineering masterpiece from 1913...

Shay-It-Forward and the Silver Creek & Stephenson Charter

Shay-It-Forward and the Silver Creek & Stephenson Charter

On June 25th, 2023, Trains Magazine sponsored their first photo special of the year at...

Norfolk & Western 611 Update

Norfolk & Western 611 Update

After almost twenty years on static display at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke,...

Black Hills Central | Steam in the heart of South Dakota

Black Hills Central | Steam in the heart of South Dakota

In the shadows of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, South Dakota, you can find one of...

Union Pacific No. 4014 | Big Boy trip to the ballpark

Union Pacific No. 4014 | Big Boy trip to the ballpark

In June 2023, Union Pacific's No. 4014 "Big Boy",  a 4-8-8-4 steam locomotive, ventured out...

Aberdeen Carolina & Western E-unit No. 103 | NODA Express

Aberdeen Carolina & Western E-unit No. 103 | NODA Express

It's May 25th, 2023, and a test run of the Aberdeen Carolina & Western Railroad's new...

Southern Railway No. 722 | Return to steam

Southern Railway No. 722 | Return to steam

A ghost from the past is staging to return! In the spring of 2023, the Great...

Cass Scenic Railroad | Return to Durbin, W.Va.

Cass Scenic Railroad | Return to Durbin, W.Va.

Steam trains have been running at Durbin, W.Va., for the past 20 years. But if...

Rocky Mountaineer in the Rockies

Rocky Mountaineer in the Rockies

The Rocky Mountaineer began as a VIA Rail service in Canada in the late 1980s....

Brightline Basecamp Train Wash

Brightline Basecamp Train Wash

While commuters between Miami and West Palm Beach have enjoyed Brightline passenger rail service since...

Norfolk Southern’s Saluda Grade

Norfolk Southern’s Saluda Grade

The famous Saluda grade in western North Carolina has seen its last train. Railbanked in...

Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad Heisler No. 3

Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad Heisler No. 3

In October of 2022, restored former Craig Mountain Lumber Co. 2-truck Heisler steam locomotive No....

Canadian Pacific in the Rocky Mountains

Canadian Pacific in the Rocky Mountains

Even as news of the impending mega-merger of CP and KCS operations continues to break,...

Conrail Retrospective

Conrail Retrospective

Big Blue diesel locomotives were ubiquitous for those living in the Northeast and upper Midwest...

Reading & Northern Santa Trains in Pennsylvania

Reading & Northern Santa Trains in Pennsylvania

In December 2022, near Tamaqua, Pa., it’s no surprise the Reading & Northern Santa Trains...

East Broad Top No. 16 Debut

East Broad Top No. 16 Debut

Leaving Orbisonia, Pa., on a rainy day in February 2023, EBT steam locomotive No. 16...