Hot Spots

I will be taking a trip to the Keystone State at the end of this month, and am asking if there are any hot spots worth visiting besides Horseshoe Curve. I will be heading for Scranton and then heading back west.

Not sure about areas in Northeast PA, but around the Harrisburg, PA area there are good spots. Rockville Bridge and the road bridge over the throat of Enola Yard (Bella Vista Drive?) are excellent spots. Also just a few miles away is the famous Strasburg Rail Road in Strasburg, PA.

Besides Horseshoe Curve the other spots in the area are:

- Altoona Amtrak Station. The turntable is part of the Museum.
- "The Brickyard".
- Cresson Railfan Platform. Right across the tracks from the Cresson Engine Terminal.
- Cassandra Overlook.

My Video of Altoona and Cassandra Overlook from March of this year.

Enjoy Your Trip and Be Safe.

The entire length of the former Reading Company (later Conrail, now NS) route from Allentown to Harrisburg can be quite busy, especially late at night and early in the morning. Allentown--Reading is the western end of the primary east-west freight route across northern NJ. Radio defect detectors are located at Bethlehem, Emmaus, Topton, and Blandon. Topton is close to halfway between Allentown and Reading. There are some scenic locations along this segment of mainline, even though none are "National Geographic spectacular".

The 50 miles from Reading to Hbg. also picks up westward freight from Philadelphia as well as that from NJ. If you're looking to maximize volume at the expense of scenic appeal, I'd concentrate on the part of the line west of Reading. Radio defect detectors exist at Sinking Spring, Myerstown, Annville and Hummelstown.