Saturday, December 25, 2010
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Labor Day Weekend Biking and Hiking
The weather was a nice 75F and sunny, just perfect for any kind of outdoor activity. So decided to make full use of it and plan hiking and biking trips for the two days.
Day 1 - North Side Trail at Valley Forge National Historic Park
The Valley Forge National Historic Park is located 25 miles north of Philadelphia near King of Prussia. There are 27 miles of walking and biking trails there. One trail which interested us a lot was the North Side Trail, which follows the Schuylkill River during the entire 6 mile span. Caught bus 125 from 30th Street Stn and reached Valley Forge in an hour. From the Welcome Center, walked towards Rt 422 to cross the river. It was an awesome experience walking on the wooden section high up on the river with the winds tearing down you and the vehicles on the road behind you making growling noises. After crossing the river, we followed the Schuylkill River Trail for half mile to reach the North Side Trail. From there on, it was a six mile walk along the river. The best thing about this trail was that there were continuous access points and you could keep on going to the river bed regularly. It was fun climbing a fallen tree which was overlooking the river. A long walk through deeply wooded section next to the river brought us to the parking lot at the other end of the trail. Here we went down to the river bank and sat on the rocks there and had our lunch. After lunch, had a small session enjoying bouncing rocks on the river water. While returning, we took a diversion midway and found ourselves back on the Schuylkill River Trail. On the way back, spotted several deers along the trail. Once we crossed the river on the same bridge, a short walk got us back to the welcome center from where we caught 125 again back to center city. In all, a wonderful day spent outside hiking. The photos from the trip can be found at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=233885&id=613978677
Day 2 - Schuylkill River Trail Norristown to Philadelphia biking
I have been reading about the Schuylkill River trail from Philadelphia to Valley Forge for a long time and always desired to do the biking trip. This summer, I realized I can get bikes on rent from Drexel and so the desire to do the trail was overwhelming. After doing the 5 miles from Philadelphia to Wissahickon and back for a few weekends, I wanted to do the entire trail. When I realized that the trail passes by the Norristown Transportation Center, I knew I had to do the trail before the winter sets in. The second day of the long weekend was also fabulous. Not hot, not cold, not humid. So I decided this was the day.
The start was really inauspicious as I messed up the tire. Instead of filling air in it using the automatic pump, I ended up blowing it out. However got a manual pump just in time and headed to 30th street station to catch the R6 train to Norristown. This train follows the trail as well as Schuylkill River from Wissahickon and thus I had a preview of things to come. Started the trail from Norristown and then realized that the train tracks were in between the river and the trail, which meant I would not be having access to the river bed for some time. But even if the river is not accessible, the trail is pretty good with lots of trees surrounding it. This trial was earlier a train track section and thus its pretty level. After crossing both I-276 and I-476, we pass through beautiful apartment complexes in Conshohocken. Just north of Manayunk, we cross the tracks and touch the river bed for the first time since Norristown. Here, there is a beautiful dam across the river and the view of the dam and the surrounding scenery is really beautiful. After taking pictures to the heart's content, I proceed on the trail towards Manayunk. This section is a mix of unpaved trail and wooden sections and follows the Manayunk Canal. It is really nice as you are biking next to the canal. As you reach the Southern end of Manayunk, the trail is diverted onto the road and the next section is a mile long path on the road. At Wissahickon, the trail again becomes a paved bicycle/pedestrian trail and follows Kelly Drive into Center City Philadelphia. Near Wissahickon creek, I take a diversion onto the Lincoln Drive Trail. After taking pictures along the trail, I head back to the River Trail and follow Kelly Drive. The turn after Columbia Bridge gives me the first view of Center City. I stop here for some time and take pictures of Amtrak, Septa and NJTransit trains crossing the Schuylkill River. A half an hour ride brings me to Market Street. As I climb up the ramp to the street, I can feel the tiredness of biking 18 miles, but with it comes a feeling of content and happiness as I finish something that I have been wanting to do since the past two summers. My next target is to finish the entire trail from Philadelphia to Valley Forge and back.
The photos of the trail can be found at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=243612&id=613978677
Day 1 - North Side Trail at Valley Forge National Historic Park
The Valley Forge National Historic Park is located 25 miles north of Philadelphia near King of Prussia. There are 27 miles of walking and biking trails there. One trail which interested us a lot was the North Side Trail, which follows the Schuylkill River during the entire 6 mile span. Caught bus 125 from 30th Street Stn and reached Valley Forge in an hour. From the Welcome Center, walked towards Rt 422 to cross the river. It was an awesome experience walking on the wooden section high up on the river with the winds tearing down you and the vehicles on the road behind you making growling noises. After crossing the river, we followed the Schuylkill River Trail for half mile to reach the North Side Trail. From there on, it was a six mile walk along the river. The best thing about this trail was that there were continuous access points and you could keep on going to the river bed regularly. It was fun climbing a fallen tree which was overlooking the river. A long walk through deeply wooded section next to the river brought us to the parking lot at the other end of the trail. Here we went down to the river bank and sat on the rocks there and had our lunch. After lunch, had a small session enjoying bouncing rocks on the river water. While returning, we took a diversion midway and found ourselves back on the Schuylkill River Trail. On the way back, spotted several deers along the trail. Once we crossed the river on the same bridge, a short walk got us back to the welcome center from where we caught 125 again back to center city. In all, a wonderful day spent outside hiking. The photos from the trip can be found at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=233885&id=613978677
Day 2 - Schuylkill River Trail Norristown to Philadelphia biking
I have been reading about the Schuylkill River trail from Philadelphia to Valley Forge for a long time and always desired to do the biking trip. This summer, I realized I can get bikes on rent from Drexel and so the desire to do the trail was overwhelming. After doing the 5 miles from Philadelphia to Wissahickon and back for a few weekends, I wanted to do the entire trail. When I realized that the trail passes by the Norristown Transportation Center, I knew I had to do the trail before the winter sets in. The second day of the long weekend was also fabulous. Not hot, not cold, not humid. So I decided this was the day.
The start was really inauspicious as I messed up the tire. Instead of filling air in it using the automatic pump, I ended up blowing it out. However got a manual pump just in time and headed to 30th street station to catch the R6 train to Norristown. This train follows the trail as well as Schuylkill River from Wissahickon and thus I had a preview of things to come. Started the trail from Norristown and then realized that the train tracks were in between the river and the trail, which meant I would not be having access to the river bed for some time. But even if the river is not accessible, the trail is pretty good with lots of trees surrounding it. This trial was earlier a train track section and thus its pretty level. After crossing both I-276 and I-476, we pass through beautiful apartment complexes in Conshohocken. Just north of Manayunk, we cross the tracks and touch the river bed for the first time since Norristown. Here, there is a beautiful dam across the river and the view of the dam and the surrounding scenery is really beautiful. After taking pictures to the heart's content, I proceed on the trail towards Manayunk. This section is a mix of unpaved trail and wooden sections and follows the Manayunk Canal. It is really nice as you are biking next to the canal. As you reach the Southern end of Manayunk, the trail is diverted onto the road and the next section is a mile long path on the road. At Wissahickon, the trail again becomes a paved bicycle/pedestrian trail and follows Kelly Drive into Center City Philadelphia. Near Wissahickon creek, I take a diversion onto the Lincoln Drive Trail. After taking pictures along the trail, I head back to the River Trail and follow Kelly Drive. The turn after Columbia Bridge gives me the first view of Center City. I stop here for some time and take pictures of Amtrak, Septa and NJTransit trains crossing the Schuylkill River. A half an hour ride brings me to Market Street. As I climb up the ramp to the street, I can feel the tiredness of biking 18 miles, but with it comes a feeling of content and happiness as I finish something that I have been wanting to do since the past two summers. My next target is to finish the entire trail from Philadelphia to Valley Forge and back.
The photos of the trail can be found at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=243612&id=613978677
Thursday, February 11, 2010
After the snow storm
the sky was full of bright shining stars
there was 20 inches snow on the cars
the trees were full of crystals white
such was the beauty of that snowy night
everything has on it, a blanket of snow
oh mother nature, to your beauty i bow
the buildings, roads, cars, trees have been white dressed
enjoying the wonderful sight, i truly feel blessed
it is so still, nothing is at all moving
its so quiet, where is all the sound and chirping
i begin to wonder whether i have lost my hearing
and then i realize its 3 am and all are sleeping
there was 20 inches snow on the cars
the trees were full of crystals white
such was the beauty of that snowy night
everything has on it, a blanket of snow
oh mother nature, to your beauty i bow
the buildings, roads, cars, trees have been white dressed
enjoying the wonderful sight, i truly feel blessed
it is so still, nothing is at all moving
its so quiet, where is all the sound and chirping
i begin to wonder whether i have lost my hearing
and then i realize its 3 am and all are sleeping
Saturday, January 2, 2010
6 train journeys and 6 hours of train spotting at 135 mph
In the last two years, I have been traveling regularly on SEPTA R5 and R7 lines as well as the NJTransit's NEC and Morris and Essex line. But I have never been able to go train spotting as well as travel by Amtrak trains. Karan Desai was in Philadelphia and he informed me about his plan to go to Princeton Junction along with other IRFCA members to spot Amtrak trains including the Acela Express at high speeds. It was decided that we would catch the 9.45 train from Philadelphia to Trenton and then catch the 11.00 NJTransit train to Princeton. We had Karan, Sri Ram and me coming from Philadelphia and John Garcia coming from New York. Jay Balakrishnan would drive down from Atlantic City and we had our small rail fanning group ready.
Over the next few hours, we spotted two Acela Expresses, many Keystone services and North East Regional Services trains to and from New York running at high speed. Also spotted was an Atlantic City Express service running towards NY. This train runs with an Electric loco at one end and Diesel loco at the other. This ensures there is no time spent in reversing at Frankford Junction near Philadelphia. The line from Philadelphia to Atlantic City is a non-electrified section, hence the need for Diesel loco. The tunnel below the Hudson river to enter New York Penn station prohibits entry of Diesel hauled locos, hence the need for Electric loco.
The tracks for 3 miles on either side of Princeton Junction are straight and this station is really a haven for watching trains run at mps of 135 mph. Of course, a 24 coacher hauled by a 5000 hp WAP4 at 110 kmph is more exhilarating to watch than a 8 coach hauled by a 7000 hp AEM7 at 220 kmph due to the sheer length of the train. But it was really great fun to see the Amtrak trains coming and going at 220 kmph. After 6 hours of train spotting, we caught the NJTransit to Trenton and then caught the onwards SEPTA R7 to Philadelphia.
I have never been on an Amtrak here. So when I found Karan was catching the Amtrak Keystone train back to Exton PA, I too decided to join him in this journey. A quick check at the time table to find a return train journey told me that there was a wait over of 15 mins at Exton before heading back to Philadelphia. However on second glance, Karan informed me that this train runs only on weekdays. The return train from Exton to Philadelphia would make me have a halt at Exton for two hours. So I got a ticket from Philadelphia to Paoli from where I would catch the SEPTA R5 back to Philadelphia.
Our SEPTA R7 reached 30th street station 5 minutes before the departure of the Keystone service to Harrisburg. I finally had my first Amtrak journey from Philadelphia to Paoli, a 19 mile journey covered in 25 minutes with a halt at Ardmore. And I couldnt help but compare the Amtrak train with our trains in India as well as the SEPTA/NJTransit trains that I have traveled in the last two years. We were slow till Ardmore and then covered the 11 miles journey from Ardmore to Paoli in 8 minutes. After getting down at Paoli, caught the return R5 to Philadelphia. This was my sixth train journey in the day. A 45 minute journey got me back to 30th street station, happy and satisfied after a long day of rail fanning.
The Amtrak trains are quite comparable to Shatabdi trains. Of course, since this was a passenger service having many halts, we never did that high speeds. But the sitting configuration inside is quite good. The seats are quite wide and the leg space is more than in Chair Car on the Shatabdi. The only down side about these trains is that the windows are quite small. Both Karan and I were wishing for LHB size windows to enjoy breezing through the country side.
A sincere thanks to Karan, Sri Ram, John and Jay (and of course Amtrak) for making today really wonderful. Had a wonderful time today.
Over the next few hours, we spotted two Acela Expresses, many Keystone services and North East Regional Services trains to and from New York running at high speed. Also spotted was an Atlantic City Express service running towards NY. This train runs with an Electric loco at one end and Diesel loco at the other. This ensures there is no time spent in reversing at Frankford Junction near Philadelphia. The line from Philadelphia to Atlantic City is a non-electrified section, hence the need for Diesel loco. The tunnel below the Hudson river to enter New York Penn station prohibits entry of Diesel hauled locos, hence the need for Electric loco.
The tracks for 3 miles on either side of Princeton Junction are straight and this station is really a haven for watching trains run at mps of 135 mph. Of course, a 24 coacher hauled by a 5000 hp WAP4 at 110 kmph is more exhilarating to watch than a 8 coach hauled by a 7000 hp AEM7 at 220 kmph due to the sheer length of the train. But it was really great fun to see the Amtrak trains coming and going at 220 kmph. After 6 hours of train spotting, we caught the NJTransit to Trenton and then caught the onwards SEPTA R7 to Philadelphia.
I have never been on an Amtrak here. So when I found Karan was catching the Amtrak Keystone train back to Exton PA, I too decided to join him in this journey. A quick check at the time table to find a return train journey told me that there was a wait over of 15 mins at Exton before heading back to Philadelphia. However on second glance, Karan informed me that this train runs only on weekdays. The return train from Exton to Philadelphia would make me have a halt at Exton for two hours. So I got a ticket from Philadelphia to Paoli from where I would catch the SEPTA R5 back to Philadelphia.
Our SEPTA R7 reached 30th street station 5 minutes before the departure of the Keystone service to Harrisburg. I finally had my first Amtrak journey from Philadelphia to Paoli, a 19 mile journey covered in 25 minutes with a halt at Ardmore. And I couldnt help but compare the Amtrak train with our trains in India as well as the SEPTA/NJTransit trains that I have traveled in the last two years. We were slow till Ardmore and then covered the 11 miles journey from Ardmore to Paoli in 8 minutes. After getting down at Paoli, caught the return R5 to Philadelphia. This was my sixth train journey in the day. A 45 minute journey got me back to 30th street station, happy and satisfied after a long day of rail fanning.
The Amtrak trains are quite comparable to Shatabdi trains. Of course, since this was a passenger service having many halts, we never did that high speeds. But the sitting configuration inside is quite good. The seats are quite wide and the leg space is more than in Chair Car on the Shatabdi. The only down side about these trains is that the windows are quite small. Both Karan and I were wishing for LHB size windows to enjoy breezing through the country side.
A sincere thanks to Karan, Sri Ram, John and Jay (and of course Amtrak) for making today really wonderful. Had a wonderful time today.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Happy New Year
As 2009 draws to an end and 2010 begins, here's wishing everyone a very Happy and Prosperous New Year where everyone's wishes come true...cheers
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
A Rainy Day in New York
This Saturday, I was going to New York and was planning to meet Tanay, Tanu, Teju, Sriram and Kashmira there. So we were meeting after a long time. And of course, we were planning to do some sight seeing. But as is the usual case when I am in New York, the heavens opened up. So in this cold and damp weather when the best thing to do is to eat Kanda Bhaji and garam chai, we still decided to brave our souls and venture out. Over the next few hours, we ended up visiting Rockefeller Center, Apple Store near Central Park and Times Square.
The weather was bad, but the spirit and the fun of the occasion just more than made it up. It was really fun chatting at the coffee shop near Rockefeller Center as well as the McDonalds at Times Square. And so a wet and horrible day in New York was made wonderful by my cousins. I really had a great time. Thanks a lot...
The weather was bad, but the spirit and the fun of the occasion just more than made it up. It was really fun chatting at the coffee shop near Rockefeller Center as well as the McDonalds at Times Square. And so a wet and horrible day in New York was made wonderful by my cousins. I really had a great time. Thanks a lot...
Monday, December 21, 2009
The snow storm
I returned back from Badminton on Friday and got to know about the snow storm that was supposed to happen on Saturday. Immediately checked weather.com and found the snow storm heading towards South East Pennsylvania. There was prediction of 4-6 inches of snow on Saturday. Well, just stocked up the larder for Saturday and went of to sleep. Got up on Saturday morning to see a nice layer of white snow everywhere. And suddenly, it just started snowing cats and dogs (well, not really cats and dogs, but almost). Went to the front door and was just lost in the amazing spread of snow everywhere. Went out and walked in foot deep snow. It was really amazing to see the foot go deep down into the fresh snow. You actually feel you are walking on desert sand, such soft is the fresh snow. We put a coffee cup onto the snow and it just went six inches inside. Saw the emergency vehicles trying to keep the roads clear of snow for safe driving conditions. But when the snow falls at the rate of 3 inches an hour, its very difficult to make the roads snow free. Finally, the snow fall stopped on Sunday morning. By this time, it had snowed almost two feet. Snow everywhere was a sight to cherish. It literally felt as if the clouds were resting on the earth's surface, such was the mesmerizing effect of it.
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