Eastern Railroad Discussion > A tree is gone at Cassandra

The 'V tree' at Cassandra has been removed by John Shuniak to improve the view.....John mounted a temporary light for last weekend's All-Nighter in its place.....Some pics....Dave Williams

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And finally....One can stand behind where the tree once stood and shoot pics now.....The pole down along the right of way still is in view however...Dave Williams



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/12/12 04:52 by dwi189.

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How come the tree was removed?

Littlejet Wrote:
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> How come the tree was removed?


It was explained in the original post....

Littlejet Wrote:
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> How come the tree was removed?


To make a sound.

Can't believe he removed that tree. As if there were not enough views at Cassandra, one has to go and cut down the tree. Stupid, no other words come to mind, just stupid. Between the tree and the bridge being washed out (so I was told), Cassandra has lost alot of it's charm as one of the best places to railfan. Little did I know when I took these photos that niether object would remain there today.

Chris Bogley
Bowie, MD

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So, this guy cuts down a healthy tree so he can temporarily put up a light in order to take pictures at night? Is that about right? Oh, I don't know, perhaps selfish would be another adjective that would apply.

Jim

Don't see any improvement

what purpose does the (remaining) pole serve? is that something which might vanish sometime soon?

the little bridge was nice, but the trickle underneath it drained a substantial amount of the highway and the slope above it

That tree was great for shade, and it added a nice element to the foreground of most photos taken on that curve. Shameful that it was removed... this has done nothing but remove a little bit of the charm the place had.

There are a million trees all around. Pick another to be friends with...

Pretty soon a sign with a gate will go up saying you can only visit during these hours!

Any of us who have visited Cassandra over the years
owe a vote of thanks to John for maintaining the place.
Oddly, no one complained when trees were cut north-west of the
bridge to open up the view of the cut.

Have any of the folks who are critical of this ever supported his
efforts by buying a snack at his gift shop, or, better yet, stayed
a night in his motel?

Thanks, John!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/13/12 11:28 by NS1703.

Agreed, I was up there both in June and July with my son, and that tree didn't hinder my photography at all. Oh well, to late now.

Arthur Bloch
Centreville VA

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NS1703 Wrote:
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> Any of us who have visited Cassandra over the
> years
> owe a vote of thanks to John for maintaining the
> place.
> Oddly, no one complained when trees were cut
> north-west of the
> bridge to open up the view of the cut.
>
> Have any of the folks who are critical of this
> ever supported his
> efforts by buying a snack at his gift shop, or,
> better yet, stayed
> a night in his motel?
>
> Thanks, John!


We stayed overnight (two room for our family) on our way to NJ a few days before the Aug 4th all-nighter. Although I only had a couple of hours to spend at the overpass, the few folks who were there didn't seem to miss the tree. And while we were watching the action, John was busy unloading a truckload of mulch to cover the dirt path on the north side of the bridge. Both sides of the bridge looked well maintained, and while I don't know it for a fact, I suspect John's the one who keeps it up with perhaps a volunteer or two.

Ed S/Papillion NE

Can't please everyone.

For those who go there regularly, it is a welcome change...for those who go there rarely, for the natural beauty of the location, its a pity.

If it was my back yard, the tree would have stayed...but for what this location is, it's removal was not in vain.

Kudos to those doing the maintenance of this area.

I love how some people take the "Have you ever stayed at his motel?" approach. Anyone who has visited Cassandra enough has met John. Great guy and we all thank him for all the hard work he has put in to make Cassandra the place it is. And yes, I have stayed at his place before. And no, I'm not a tree hugger. I know this tree inparticular provided little shade as much larger ones loom above, just the point myself and others are trying to make is that it didn't need to come down for the sake of allowing lazy railfans a better view. You could get the same view from, oh I don't know, standing in front of the damn thing. And oh by the way, a pole for a NS box still ruins the shot. As shown above, some of us have actually learned to work the tree into shots. So while we thank him for his hard work maintaining the grounds, and while we thank him for running a railfan motel nearby, it still does not change the fact that what he did in my opinion, as someone who has been there many, many times, was flat out stupid. Everyone is entitled to thier own opinions.

Chris Bogley
Bowie, MD

Is the Sierra Club's Shade Tree Commission aware of this travesty?
Gonut