Western Railroad Discussion > Waco, TX area railfanning

My Wife and I will be in the Waco TX area in May and I hope to get a few hours to check out the local train action. Any recommendations would be appreciated. TIA

Travel west about 15-20 miles on Highway 84 to McGregor to see BNSF action.
If you are willing to go outside of Waco, you can travel about 20 miles north on I-35 to the town of West and go through town to the tracks. All traffic that you will see in Waco will come through West. You will be in a much safer setting than the locations in Waco. Waco has some nice areas and some areas you do not want to be around. Stay away from Bellmead yard. Bellmead is not in a good area of Waco.  If I remember, you can follow the old Katy line through downtown Waco on Waco drive which intersects with Highway 84 which you will follow west to McGregor.

McGregor and West are nicer areas to watch trains. Someone one else may have some other ideas.

If your wife wants to go to the Magnolia silos in Waco, you should go with her, the UP Waco Sub runs right by the fence. Traffic is sparse, usually a couple locals, and the MFWSA/MSAFW, with the occasional other train. The Waco Sub runs right down Jackson St., and there are plenty of places to sit and watch a train - if you know one is coming. 
I'm not nearly as worried about Bellmead as the poster above, I've never felt uncomfortable in Bellmead. The main problem is there isn't really a great place to "sit and watch" in Bellmead.
If you're hunting good photo spots, afternoon is best, and I woud follow the Ft. Worth sub down south out of waco toward Riesel - and the Sandy Creek power plant. Traffic is kinda hit-and-miss, but much heavier than the Waco Sub. There's generally a coal train or two under the public road bridge at Rattlesnake Road, and yes, it has that name for a reason. There are a couple of places to sit around Elm Mott, Lincoln City Road is one, there's a  pull off, and the road doesn't see a whole lot of traffic. West is another good spot, there are parking lots all around the track downtown. 
If orange is more your style, then take the 20 minute drive over to McGregor. I've never had any trouble sitting at the Amtrak station. If you have the time to follow State highway 317 south to moody, or north to Valley Mills, it parallels the BNSF for much of the way between those two towns - 75mph road (except for towns, and if you speed through Moody, McGregor or Crawford, odds are better than not that you will get to visit with the local police officer), good for a chase, and there are a bunch of good photo opportunities along that road. Check out Blue Cut Road north of moody, the road goes over an old wooden overpass over the BNSF which is in a rock cut. 

If you've got any more questions, feel free to PM me.

Bradley Linda
Waco, TX

The Magnolia folks are doing a lot of promotional ads here in FL, so this is useful info.

Thanks to each of you.

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If you go to West make sure to stop by Czech Stop and get a kolache!