Big Boy on its way home

Big Boy

Ths is Union Pacific’s 4014, Big Boy returning from a coast to coast tour celebrating the United States 250th anniversary.

Big Boy is a1.2 million pound steam locomotive that was restored by Union Pacific and now tours mosstly through the mid-west. The “Big Boy” engines were the largest ever made.

Union Pacific (UP) needed a locomotive capable of hauling heavy freight over steep inclines like Sherman Hill and the Wasatch Range without requiring an additional engine to assist. UP president William Jeffers and Vice President Otto Jabelmann worked with ALCO to design a locomotive that expanded on the earlier Challenger design. The result was the 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement, which featured a hinged (articulated) frame to allow the 132-foot engines to navigate sharp curves. Originally designated as the “Wasatch” class, the iconic name originated when an unknown ALCO factory worker chalked “Big Boy” on the smokebox of the very first locomotive being built in Schenectady, New York.
Click on the photo for more information. Clik here to see my set of fantastic Planes, Trains, and And automobiles.

F-15 Fly By

F/A-18 Super Hornet E/F

The Blue Angels made an appearance at the St. Louis Spirit Air Show. We were able to watch from a bluff overlooking the event airport allowing us to look directly at the planes.
Here they are flying their F/A-18E/F Super Hornets. Low flying and precision acrobatics made for a lot of excitement.
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Mallard on the Rocks

Mallard ducks are highly abundant throughout the waterways and lakes of Forest Park in St. Louis. As part of the park’s thriving urban wildlife ecosystem, they are heavily tracked by local researchers via the Forest Park Living Lab. Whether you are looking to photograph them, bird-watch, or simply relax by the water, several primary areas offer consistent mallard sightings.

Forest Park Egrets

Egrets are a common and highly visible sight across Forest Park, serving as a prime destination for local birdwatchers and photographers. While these elegant, white wading birds spend their days foraging throughout the park’s expansive waterways, their presence is closely tied to a fascinating, unique urban phenomenon just outside the park boundaries.

While egrets feed in Forest Park, many actually nest about one to two miles away in the neighboring Central West End (CWE). Since 2017, hundreds of egrets and herons have established a massive, rare inland nesting colony (rookery) in the mature sycamore and catalpa trees of the CWE, notably around the SLU Manresa Center and behind the Reliable Funeral Home. The birds commute daily between their urban treetop nests and the park’s waterways to gather food for their fledglings.

Click on the photo for mire infomration. Click here to see more about St. Louis’ Frorest Park.

Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXc

Spitfire Mk. IXc

The Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXc is an iconic World War II British fighter. Powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin 60 series engine, it was famously designed as an emergency response to counter the Luftwaffe’s Fw 190. The “c” designation indicates its wing armament configuration.

This Spitfire is performing at the 2026 Spirit of St. Louis Air Show at Spirit airport. A spectacular demonstration.

Spitfire Mk. IXc

Click on either photo for mor information. Click here for all photos from the show.

F-22 Raptor

F-22 Raptor

The F-22 Raptor is combination of stealth, supercruise, maneuverability, and integrated avionics, coupled with improved supportability, represents an exponential leap in warfighting capabilities. The Raptor performs both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions allowing full realization of operational concepts vital to the 21st century Air Force.
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The “Warthog”

A-10 Warthog

The A-10C Thunderbolt II is the first Air Force aircraft specially designed for close air support of ground forces. They are simple, effective and survivable twin-engine jet aircraft that can be used against light maritime attack aircraft and all ground targets, including tanks and other armored vehicles.

Click here for the all photos from the air show.

Blue Angels at the Spirit of St. Louis Air Show

F/A-18 Super Hornet E/F

The U.S. Navy Blue Angels currently fly the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet  (specifically the single-seat F/A-18E and the two-seat F/A-18F). They transitioned from the older “Legacy” Hornet to the larger, more powerful Super Hornet to showcase the maximum capabilities of modern naval aviation.

These are spectaculr to watch. Phots were taken at the 2026 Spirit of St. Louis Air Show & STEM Expo. The show included a lot of World War II Warbirds and nice demonstations our latest jets.

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23 Skidoo

Lockheed’s P-38 Lightning is in a league of its own. As one of the most influential fighters during World War II, the “fork-tailed devil” flew more than 130,000 missions in theaters across the globe and was a crucial weapon in the American arsenal.

P-38 Skidoo

 

 

An afternoon on Fishtrap Lake

Fishtrap Lake

Fishtrap Lake is in Northern Wisconsin near the town of Boulder Junction. This is a great place to see Eagles, Loons, ducks and a great place to fish.

Click here to see more of Wisconsin.