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Caption: Flat-switching among the freighters. Throughout the summer of 2019, the GMD-1 siege into Hamilton was followed closely by many. With the help of a fellow Hamiltonian and keen observational skills, I was able to lock down the schedule of the 1600 yard crew. I quickly learned that Tuesday and Fridays were reserved for Eastport. Knowing this, I made it my mission to try and get CN North of Strathern while the days were still long. Not knowing their routine here, there was a lot of guess work that went into this. There are two places to run around cars at Eastport so I wasn’t sure if this angle would even be possible. I parked on the side of Eastport Drive (wide shoulders so not too dangerous…) on a hunch that ended up paying off. I’m glad this area is seemingly more accessible with the CN schedule. It’s one of the few seldom shot areas in Hamilton, which is a shame because it’s one of the most photogenic, as proven here by James Knott.
When I was doing this, a nice surprise came when I saw the background before me, courtesy of Algoma and Dofasco. In many ways I find it just as interesting as the GMD-1 subject matter. On the left side (or should I say “port side”…) is the 730’ self-unloader, the long John D. Leitch. Which is, I believe, the (or one of the) last forward cabin ship in Algoma’s fleet. Built in April 1967 in St. Catherine’s, a mere 33 kilometers from where I was standing when I took this shot. I’d shoot it without the trains to be honest. A complete contrast to this Canadian made classic is the new kid on the dock: the 740’ Algoma Equinox unloading at Dofasco on the right. This ship was built 2013 in China (11,386 km away for comparison) and was sailed half way around the world to begin hauling freight on the Great Lakes. This was the first of a many Equinox Class ships built for Algoma and making this the latest and greatest generation of ships operating in Algoma’s fleet.
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Impressive Mark. Great scene and so many details.
Awesome shot, Mark
Congratulations on number 100!
Very neat photo Mark.
Very nice, great backdrop.
A great shot Mark.Being born and raised in Hamilton this is a very unique photo showing a different view of railfanning in my hometown—well done.
Great work! I’m glad we did this when we did, the aggregates place added a huge pile blocking some of this view not long after.
Eastport has many intriguing possibilites it’s awesome to see them come to fruition.
Also congrats on #100 – a wise choice for a milestone. Here’s to 100 more!
Absolutely spectacular scene, one of my favourite on this site for sure. Well done.
Very Nice Mark. Congrats on the 100!
Thanks for the kind words everyone, glad I could share this!
Really nice photo. Certainly deserving of all the comments.
Canadian made steel, Canadian made locomotives, maybe some Canadian made castings on the locomotives with what was a great Canadian company (DOFASCO..now ARCELOR)… heck, even the ALGOMA ship John D. Leitch was formerly named the CANADIAN CENTURY.. fitting for a ship completed in 1967…now that is a Great Canadian shot !
Great Canadian Indeed!
Well done Mark !