Suffice it to say, it has been a whirlwind. In just a few months I’ve been to New York, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Wilmington, Baltimore, Los Angeles, San Diego, Indianapolis, Chicago, Lynchburg, Charlotte, Atlanta, Chattanooga, Knoxville, Lexington, Cincinnati, Columbus, Pittsburgh… the list goes on. In April I rode the Cardinal to Indianapolis, got a tour at Amtrak’s Beech Grove shops, before continuing on to Chicago on the Hoosier State. From there I went to Lake Forest to present at the Center for Railroad Photography and Art’s annual conference. After spending a few more days in Chicago – including a tour of the renovations happening in Union Station – I returned home via the Capitol Limited.

May included a trip to Washington DC, and then Atlanta, with various stops to chase 611 on the way down and visits to Lynchburg and Charlotte. On the way home after three weeks I headed north through Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio – including a stop to see the final runs of the Secret City excursion trains in Oak Ridge, a tour of Cincinnati Union Terminal, and time to fly a drone around Pittsburgh and Horseshoe Curve.

June led me to Norfolk, Virginia, and July will bring me back to Washington DC. To make a long story short, I feel like my camera and I are on a never ending journey – a journey that I can finally share with you.

The map indicates some of the larger cities that I’ve visited within the past few months. Red lines denote mileage traveled by train over the Keystone, Northeast Corridor, Pennsylvanian, Capitol Limited, Hoosier State, and Cardinal routes. Grey lines denote mileage traveled by car.

Many of my journeys now begin in Pennsylvania – and one favorite in the area that is hard to miss is the famous Rockville Bridge over the Susquehanna, used by Norfolk Southern and the Amtrak Pennsylvanian.

It took me a while to work up the courage, but this is one of the first times I flew my drone over water. Here I fly over the Susquehanna River to capture five of the six bridges of Harrisburg proper – the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Bridge (now in use by Norfolk Southern), the defunct Cumberland Valley Railroad Bridge, Market Street Bridge, Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge, and the Harvey Taylor Bridge.

An Acela to Washington arrives at Wilmington station, as I wait for a train heading in the opposite direction.

Getting a chance to tour many of Amtrak’s shops and facilities is always a treat – this is the Wilmington shops.

Too many of my work visits to Washington DC are marked by rainstorms – one night I decided to ignore the drizzle and capture the city.

Acela heavy lifting – this remote operated crane at the Ivy City shops just removed an air conditioning unit for repairs.

Touring the Beech Grove shops: Ever wonder how big the decals on the side of the Empire Service locomotives are? Approximately Emily-sized.

Empire Service locomotive #710 is painted at Amtrak’s Beech Grove shops.

Unfortunately I didn’t get much drone flying time at Beech Grove due to stormy weather.

The Great Hall at Chicago Union Station features a new information booth at the center.

Hey, I wonder where the trains are?

Behind the scenes view at Chicago Union Station – the former women’s lounge is set to be restored this year for use as an event space.

Me presenting at the Center for Railroad Photography and Art’s conference in Lake Forest, Illinois. The title of my presentation was “The Harlem Line and Beyond,” featuring my passenger rail photos from Metro-North and my journeys outward. Photo by Hank Koshollek.

Rainy, cold, and foggy. Sometimes that’s Chicago.

The diamond at Blue Island, and chasing 611 through the flowers

Train crosses the James River Trestle near Lynchburg

Amtrak’s Northeast Regional departs Lynchburg station

Freight cars lined up before the skyline of Charlotte

Sunset colors over the tracks in Charlotte, and the Norfolk Southern passes the Chick-Fil-A water tower in Atlanta

Heavy rains can limit photography, or make for nice puddle reflections the next day.

This old switch tower is one of the few remains of what once was Atlanta’s Terminal Station.

Always waiting for a train. Will it get here before it is too dark?

Not really… but hey, we can have a motion blur instead!

The heart of a busy southern city. One of the cliched spots for catching a sunset in Atlanta – this overpass is usually filled up with photographers around sunset.

The other cliched photo spot in Atlanta. Reflection off of Lake Clara Meer.

The Atlanta SkyView ferris wheel spins as a streetcar passes underneath.

Puppy, don’t fall off that kayak! Waiting for trains at Tenbridge in Chattanooga.

Sometimes you wade out into the Tennessee River to get a slightly different shot. Or because it was simply just hot!

Here feels like a good place to break – look for an upcoming Part 2 of the Never Ending Journey soon, featuring photos from Oak Ridge, Lexington, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and more!