Tagged With "Underground Railroad"
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Re: Wonders of the Modern World
The London Crossrail picture looked amazing, but I wasn't sure just what the project is, so I looked it up on Wikipedia. It's really amazing, it's a railroad project that goes 89 miles from west of London through the city and out the other end to the south. In the center of London it's got 13 miles of the tunnel in the picture! You can see more in Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossrail
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Re: Grand Central Terminal, New York (Where Gumbo Was #164)
Looks like you have a great liking for the good old days of the railroad. Loved the reference to the new complex - It was picking up steam in the 80s and 90s. Fascinating slice of architecture hidden away. But better a market hall than a memory.
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Re: Where in the World is Gumbo (#38)
Here's a view of the other side of the station...economizers once wanted to remove these beautiful fixtures, but after protests, they were restored instead. When the railroad first opened in this town, half the population were on "poor relief;" the railroad enabled its goods to sell over a wider area and made the town prosperous.
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo (#69)
While I do see a certain resemblance to Cappadocia, it doesn't look real to me. More like a model landscape, as you'd have with a model railroad, but seemingly without the railroad. Maybe this is, in fact, what Cappadocia looks like from a hot air balloon, which I understand are popular there. I see no evidence of people in the form of actual people or vehicles, unless that's a person in red in the lower right-hand corner.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Dec 4th, 2014: A Ride to Paradise
A favorite with my kids when they were young (and with me!) Nearby, there is the Pennsylvania state railroad museum and the National Toy Train Museum, as well as all the attractions of Lancaster County "Amish Country." Thanks!
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Re: Underground Art: A Times Square Subway Gallery
The artwork is spectacular! It's a shame that more folks don't take the time to admire its beauty and the talent needed to create such pieces. Great write-up my friend!
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo? (#39)
Right, time to stick my neck out (again...). I'm going for the picture being part of the world's biggest miniature railroad layout located in Nothlandz, Flemington, New Jersey. I have seen write ups for a large German layout but I think it is nowhere near as big or as complete as this! There PH! Shoot me down my friend!!
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Re: Underground Puerto Rico: The Camuy River Caverns
Absolutely fascinating ! I'd love to do this journey. I've been into caves in England,Barbados and Poland but these are HUGE ! Sure beats "It's a small small world" at Disney !!
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Re: Underground Puerto Rico: The Camuy River Caverns
Las Cavernas was one of the first places I went to on my first trip to Puerto Rico. Back then the Autopista (expressway) was not yet complete and it was closer to 3 hours each way. But the caverns were on of the reason I fell in love with isalnd.
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo (#336)
Thursday is here, and double clues start today with a military statue and a large railroad bridge with a graffiti message.
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Re: How do you buy your travel?
Few more thoughts, following HistoryDigger and DrFumblefinger... 1. Definitely check all your affiliations on car rental; after years of getting better price through AAA than any other way I knew, I recently found that going to the same vendors through USAA (my car insurance) gets me even better. 2. Not only does Priceline have good pricing on cars, I've often found I can get 30-40% lower through their blind-bidding (Name Your Own Price) service. 3. RailEurope is something of a red flag for...
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Re: Jan. 31, 2016: Spuyten Duyvil Train Station
Not only a classic railroad picture, but one of those moments when you realize that although there are many 'commonplaces,' there's really no such thing as 'ordinary!'
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Re: Walking across the Ohio: Big Four Bridge, Louisville
No big city involved, but it reminds me of early teen years, walking the old railroad-then-highway bridge across the Missouri River from Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The best part was the birds-eye view of the tugs and barges, and the long views downriver. Sadly, that one is gone, now.
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Re: Weekend getaways. Where's your favorite spot
Haven't gotten into West Coast stuff yet, but back east I had a few favorites I'd suggest to anyone. One is Lancaster County, PA. I know it's overflowing with fake Amish stuff and all, but behind that there's a real local history and culture (and some real Amish culture as well)...and the Strasburg Rail Road, a steam road that's an afternoon's fun...and the Pennsylvania State Railroad museum...and the National Toy Train Museum (which could take up a whole day if your companions share your...
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Re: Sun Studio, Memphis, Tennessee: The house Sam Phillips built
Actually, the importance of Memphis is long-standing and for good reason: it's on a flood-free bluff above the Mississippi. At different times in its history, both French and Spanish armies built forts there to control traffic on the Mississippi, and before the Civil War, it was the terminus of the only east-west railroad to cross the South...so it has always been a big transportation center. The railroad guaranteed its role in shipping cotton, and made it the center of the region.
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Re: Alternative London Tube Maps.
On the subject of "ghost" stations, tours are offered of Aldwych station, used for movies now, including the latest incarnation of 'Sherlock'. Find out how here .
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Re: Alternative London Tube Maps.
And yet another London "map", replacing real place names with book titles. Curiouser and curiouser. Have a look .
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Re: Alternative London Tube Maps.
And map-ish, London from above, beautiful pictures . I could go on and on, and apparently mean to!
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Feb. 20, 2014:Pennsylvania Railroad
One of my favorite trips...and the State Railroad Museum is nearby, as well as a fabulous National Toy Train Museum. Garry's picked a winner!
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Oct. 28, 2013: Northern Pacific Depot Museum, Wallace, Idaho
Wallace is located in Idaho's panhandle near the Montana state line. It sprung to life during a silver mining boom in 1884. Within a few years Wallace was very prosperous and, with 2000 residents, the third largest town in the new...
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Walla, Walla: “So nice they named it twice!”
What’s a Walla Walla? It’s a Indian name meaning “many waters”. It’s also the name of a charming city in southeastern Washington; nestled close to the Columbia and Snake River valleys, and with a river of its...
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Lisbon: Cheap, but Steep!
That’s my short take on Lisbon after two weeks there last summer. A variety of economic factors, not all connected with the Euro crisis of the past few years, have made Portugal incredibly cheap for foreign travelers—but you have to be...
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Silver Plume, Colorado
I love going on leisurely road trips -- the kind where you've several spare hours to pull over somewhere and explore. If a place seems interesting, I like to check it out. So it was this past summer while we were visiting...
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Road Trip, Day 1: City of Ten Thousand Buddhas and The Skunk
Gateway to the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas March 9, 2015 In the late ‘80s, I lived in L.A. for a couple of years. My S.O. knew lots of cool L.A. stuff. One of those was something he’d read that...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, March 26, 2015: Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range 2-8-8-4 "Yellowstone" #229, Two Harbors, Minnesota
This behemoth locomotive is the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range (DM&IR) 2-8-8-4 "Yellowstone" which is now preserved at Two Harbors, Minnesota. Eighteen of these powerful coal burning locomotives were built between 1941 and 1943. The 2-8-8-4s were retired between 1958 and 1963 as diesel locomotives took over. Sadly, only three of the 2-8-8-4s still survive...Number 229 pictured above, Number 227 at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth, Minnesota, and Number...
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Gold Country, California: The Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum
I thought this series about Gold Country was done. But I realize now that may not be true for some time. About 6 months ago, wanting to replace the wood stove in my house that was installed when the house was built in 1978, I called...
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Skedans, Haida Gwaii, British Colombia (Where Gumbo was #106)
Gumbo was visiting the "misty isles", Haida Gwaii, in British Columbia. Specifically, the remnants of the Haida village of Skedans. Sadly, not much remains of the village, captured at its prime in the above image (1878), rich...
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NY to DC in 40 minutes by train? Maybe!
A US rail promoter is trying to get funds and approval to build a maglev (magnetic levitation) train line between NYC and DC. TNEM, the company, has already applied for permits to build on an old right-of-way between DC and Baltimore. Magnetic...
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Route 66 - Pasadena to Needles
Last summer I had the opportunity to do something I had always wanted to do - drive a significant portion of Route 66. Having spent 4 days in LA, I started a drive to Albuquerque to meet up with The Amazing Ms. D. Instead of rushing down the...
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, December 8, 2014: Hudson Bay Blankets, Banff
This past summer I'd spent a day wandering the streets of Banff with my dear friend, LestertheInvestor, and our lovely wives. Sylvia and I stopped by the Hudson Bay Co (HBC) store and spotted this clever display of blankets drapped over a canoe....
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Underground Puerto Rico: The Camuy River Caverns
If Old San Juan and the El Yunque rain forest and the beaches have been drawing visitors for hundreds of years, that's certainly not true for this hidden attraction: a vast, and still-not-fully-explored system of caves, carved out by the world's...
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Gold Country, California: Auburn
Auburn is a town at a crossroads. Interstate 80 passes through from the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the desert of the Great Basin and the nation eastward, and west to San Francisco. It was the main route migrants traveled coming west,...
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Bill Speidel’s Underground Tour of Seattle
Seattle's Pioneer Square is only the icing on the cake of Seattle's early history, preserved below. Samantha takes us along on a tour.
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They've got a ticket to ride—to every station in UK
A British couple, looking for a cheer-me-up is spending 3 months riding to or through every railroad station in Great Britain.
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June 2, 2017: Causey Arch, England
A historic 18th century railway bridge is today's Picture of the Day, with beautiful photos and narrative from Ian Cook.
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Montreal's Queen Elizabeth Hotel re-opens
Montreal's most famous hotel returns to service after a year-long make-over.
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White Pass Railroad, Alaska: On the Trail of '98
From Skagway over the mountain into the Yukon, a railroad built for gold-miners today carries mostly visitors. It's still quite a trip.
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Old Town Sacramento: a trip through California's History
Sacramento's Old Town gives JonathanL insights into California's history and an opportunity to visit a great railroad museum.
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Oro Tairona Museum, Santa Marta, Colombia
In Santa Marta, a fairly small museum navigates the fairly large tasks of the area's history and its prehistory.
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French beauty pageant names 'most beautiful station'
La Plus Belle Gare turns out to be at Metz, in Alsace. Here it is, along with the runners-up.
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A Day in Santa Marta, Colombia
PHeymont spends a day making a nodding acquaintance with Colombia's oldest city, on the Caribbean coast.
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Top Long Distance Hiking Trails in the USA
Like to go for a long distance walk? Then Brian Bradshaw has just the post for you. Check out some of these beautiful (and challenging) hikes!
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Japan's Cat Cafes take to the rails
In a joint venture, a cat rescue organization and a suburban railroad join forces to run a one-day cat cafe on rails, hoping to increase adoptions.
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VanDuzen Botanical Garden, Vancouver
A visit to an unusual botanical garden, and thoughts on why it's hard for PHeymont to write about it.
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Germany tests 'be your own conductor' app
Punch your own ticket? There's an app for that, and Deutsche Bahn is trying it out.
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Alitalia limps on: New deadline is April 30
Italy's government extends loans to keep Alitalia in the air while it continues to seek bids for the airline.
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Burden Iron Works, Troy NY—a trip through industrial history
Jonathan L finds another small museum with a great story: the history of the early industrial revolution along the Erie Canal.
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Sept. 17, 2017: Arctic Brotherhood, Skagway, Alaska
North to Alaska, and an unusual building whose story is less obvious than its amazing facade.
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Working on the Railroad: San Diego's model museum
At one of the largest model railroad museums anywhere, PHeymont enjoyed both the exhibits and the backstage operations.
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Third Swiss tunnel final link in 'Under the Alps' project
A big step on the last link of the new rail link that allows high-speed trains under the Swiss Alps. The new tunnel will see rail service in 2020.