Eastern Railroad Discussion > Miami railfanning

Help, I am stuck in Miami til Monday. While that may not seem all that bad to everyone up north, I was not prepared to railfan down here (no scanner). What is there here? It appears that the tracks to the Port of Miami are unused, and containers by the thousands are trucked from the port. I have wheels, but can not drive more than 50 miles or so.

The Port of Mimia must still be used from time to time as there are autoracks sometimes there.

Some information on south Florida can be found at
Florida Railfan Page
http://www.geocities.com/Kentucky86.geo/

Local Miami attractions..

1. Tri Rail This commuter train system is worth a look. There are stations all the way to West Palm Beach and you can ride it there and back.

2. Metrorail Miami's transit system. If you like transit, worth a look and a ride.

3. FEC and CSX (Tri Rail) cross at grade at Iris. See my page for directions. In an idustrial area that is kinda questionable but I know of fans who have gone there without any problems.

4. FEC's Yard is in Miami Springs near Hialeah. It is kinda hard to access.

Going north there are locations along Tri Rail stations and the FEC BUT becareful of the neighborhoods. Stay on the main roads. Some of the residential neighborhoods are pretty rough.

Hope all this helps!!

Bob

Poor you! He he he.. :)

Well, those tracks by the port aren't used much, if at all. Not sure who owns the ROW across Biscayne and into the port. Might be FEC, since they have tracks right under I-95 by Miami Arena.

Outside of the Metrorail and Metromover, there is not anything to be seen Downtown. You might like the CSX/Amtrak/Tri-Rail yard. Take I-95 or the Palmetto Expressway North to NW 79th ST. Go West from 95, and East on the Palmetto. The neighborhood gets somewhat bad towards the I-95 end. From the palmetto, keep going east until you pass a Railroad crossing under a Metrorail station. This is the Tri-Rail/Metrorail interchange. You pass a Miami Subs on the right side, you can turn at that light to get to the airport (It's a bit to the airport from that point). Go under the station, and the next, or the second light after that turn left. There will be a sign which says AMTRAK and is pointing left. Go down this road, and you'll see the Miami Amtrak station. Three trains a day out of there, one in the Morning, Noon, and at 5pm. If the southbound Star is on time (ha), you can get the NB palm out of the station, and within 10 or so minutes, a train coming into the station. Meteor comes in at around 9pm, Palm early in the afternoon. Right next to the platforms is a big paved lot with a fence separating it from the parking lot, you can drive in there and sit and watch the train, I've done it and haven't been bothered.

Anyways, once you 'finish the loop', just past the station building, there is what appears to be loading dock. Turn RIGHT into the driveway next to it, and there is another large lot. What I like to do, is park my car at the far end of it, next to the track, and walk to the CSX yard. You have to walk over some tracks, be sure to look both ways because they might be pulling apart an Amtrak, or a Tri-Rail will be coming into their yard.. which uses the track at the end of the lot. BE ALERT, It may look dead, but that MP15 can sometimes sneak up on you. Walk towards the bluish metal building with engine bays and usually some Tri-rail equip within or just outside it. This is the Tri-Rail facility. Used to be the Seaboard engine shop. To the left of that is the CSX power track. It's not a very big yard, but you'll usually see some SD70M's, and perhaps a stray AC unit on that track. There are three or four tracks in this part of the yard. To get to the Amtrak portion of the yard, walk past the Tri-rail building, and past some other buildings. Here is the Amtrak yard. I usually go on a Sunday, as there are usually more things in the yard to gawk at.

The CSX main's are outside the yard, you have to leave the yard to get a decent shot of something on the main line. You can drive around and try to find a spot. Just keep your bearings, and your car in sight.

As for FEC, I like to watch FEC in Ft. Lauderdale.. they run primarily at night in this part of the state. Best time is 11p-2a. You can go to Las Olas Riverwalk (I-95 North to Broward Blvd, then east) and have dinner and a movie there. The tracks are right next to it. There is also a drawbridge over the Intracoastal Waterway. It goes down when a train is about 20 min away. This is a good indicator if you do not have a scanner. You can also look and see if the signals are dark or lit, they light up before a train comes past. There is a pedestrian crossing on the Riverwalk side of the bridge next to the bridge. South of this bridge is the Ft. Lauderdale pig ramp and yard. At about 4pm you can see the yard crew putting together 222 (?). It is by the airport.. don't remember off hand how to get there, but it is a well lit area and a nice spot to watch trains. The perimeter road by Ft. Lauderdale airport is also a nice place. Park your car in the small lot by the street, walk across the street, and you can sit on the embankment by the signal to wait for the train.

FEC's Hialeah yard is pretty well gated, and unless you have a written consent from the offices in St. Aug, you won't be getting in it.

Anyways, have fun, be safe, and be alert!, you can drop me an e-mail at bombard12@aol.com if you want to know more

Regards,

-Justin in Nawth Cuba [Miami]

csx owns those SD70M's now... at least one has been painted into the current CSX scheme...

Consider your self LUCKY! Getting s shot of freight on CSX is a tall order down there!

Bob