Most dangerous places to railfan

[AARR]

That's funny

If you go to Thompsonville watch out for Born To Ride. He will run you over.

I am surprised AARR restrained himself from saying the most dangerous spot to railfan is next to PAT C when he says pull my finger!

Or the runner up, Thompsonville

[J T]

This is a very weird thing to brag about.

Who’s bragging about what?

[David Collins]

This is a very weird thing to brag about.

Who’s bragging about what?

Concealed carry.

Allow me to offer my take while on the subject, I’m going to bounce off of DaveO’s comment:

If you already have your CPL, and carry a gun or other weapons because of it or other reasons, that’s fine.

My girlfriend, for example, always carries pepper spray and a knife with her to protect herself in a dangerous situation. She takes them wherever she goes since she works late at night or very early in the morning depending on her job (she’s an on call CNA). I’ve never seen her leave the house without those two items, she may occasionally forget her purse or her airpods (with my generation, we don’t lose our phones), but never her pepper spray and knife. I’m even debating on getting some pepper spray for myself just in case a situation arises, whether I’m railfanning or not.

If you know me and have railfanned with me before, you’ll know that I (almost always) have my 35 pound tripod (which is made entirely of heavy aluminum) that can easily become a self-defense device. But if you’re taking a weapon with just because you’re going to a railfanning location that maybe sketchy, then that’s saying something.

Watching your surroundings is kinda like a given while you railfan, especially when a train (or trains) is passing, looking for anything that could be flying off the train or anything that could impact your safety while it passes. That does include watching your back for anyone that could…uh…you know. I ALWAYS watch my back, even if I’m railfanning in Bloomfield Hills. Bloomfield Hills is considered one of the safest cities in Southeast Michigan, but you never know in this world.

If you think that I’m an alarmist saying that, do keep in mind that I regularly pull all nighters at Delray and other locations around Detroit, and I feel safe going there as long as I watch my back, have my keys within a hands reach, have my phone, my car locked (while I’m filming trains) with anything important hidden to the best of my ability, and someone (normally my girlfriend) knowing where I am and how to get there in case of an emergency.

All in all: Always stay prepared and aware while railfanning, even in safe areas. Watch your surroundings at all times. You don’t need to carry a weapon for it unless you already do.

[GTW Dude]

when you spend more time concerned about your safety rather than watching trains you're in the wrong spot.
if you have a friend that will watch your back it helps but you're still in the wrong spot.

Not in every case. A lot of the rarer stuff I like to document is usually in some of these spots. For example, the PM signal bridge on the FSUD lead, Delray Tower, the Isbell Street Wig-Wag, The entirety of Milwaukee Junction, etc. Only way these can be photographed is by going down there yourself.

[Jochs]

Arnold St. in South Bend, IN, especially after dark. Someone will be shot and possibly killed this weekend in South Bend. Weekend shootings in SB are routine, unfortunately. This is why I railfan in the country out by New Carlisle.

[cole1020]

Now adding a new location to the list, Gallup, NM. Showed up to our hotel and immediately came across a crime scene where someone had been shot less than an hour before we arrived right around the corner from our hotel. Lots of homeless people and druggies all over wandering the streets. The Home Depot even required a passcode to enter the building, something I've never seen before. Thankfully the hotel was very nice and secure. It's a very beautiful town with great scenery and neat architecture, it's just rampant with crime. Needless to say, we stayed outside of town when we were there and only came back when we went to our hotel for the night.

[Jochs]

Arnold St. in South Bend, IN, especially after dark. Someone will be shot and possibly killed this weekend in South Bend. Weekend shootings in SB are routine, unfortunately. This is why I railfan in the country out by New Carlisle.

Sunday morning.
https://www.wndu.com/2024/07/30/neighbo ... ghborhood/

[GreatLakesRailfan]

I think the most dangerous place I’ve railfanned in was the South Bend, Indiana Amtrak station. Me and my girlfriend were there during Ferris States’ fall break this past year, and we heard someone unload around 20 bullets out of something automatic, and from VERY close (we even saw what we thought to be the gunman running away).

I went to college in the South Bend area about 20 years ago. There are some pretty nice places in the area and a lot that aren't. I don't remember any neighborhoods that were particularly dangerous during the day, but if you're going to do the Amtrak at night thing, go to Elkhart. The west side of SB is pretty rough. I used to go over to the Amtrak station in Elkhart to watch trains after dark because it was a lot less dangerous than going anywhere near the tracks in SB after dark. I doubt that much has changed in the time since.

Arnold St. in South Bend, IN, especially after dark. Someone will be shot and possibly killed this weekend in South Bend. Weekend shootings in SB are routine, unfortunately. This is why I railfan in the country out by New Carlisle.

I never had a problem at Arnold Street, but I only went there when the sun was up. The park just to the west of there was pretty scary the only time I made the mistake of parking there to 'fan at Arnold Street. I never went into that neighborhood after dark to railfan - although I did have to take a kid who lived in that neighborhood home once. I didn't waste any time getting out of there once he was safely home.

...

I can't think of anywhere I've watched trains that struck me as particularly dangerous, although I also tend to keep an eye on my surroundings and move on when it starts feeling really sketchy. There are decent and not-so-decent places in Gary, and they're not that far away from each other. I haven't found anywhere in Gary that I feel safe stopping in any longer than it takes the traffic light to turn green. The same goes for most of the south side of Chicago, although the one time I had car trouble on the south side of Chicago at 1 am, we didn't have a problem, so...

I think the only place I've felt particularly unsafe (and didn't move on) was in Burlington, Iowa, waiting for the WB California Zephyr (or whatever Amtrak train goes to Colorado through Burlington). And I think it was mostly my imagination moreso than actually being unsafe.