Amtrak train, Fort Worth (74K)
On Sunday afternoon 24th October 1999, the Heartland Flyer waits at Forth Worth to make its return journey to Oklahoma City. The train appears to consist of three double-decker cars with a diesel at each end.
Sadly this was the only Amtrak train I saw in my fortnight in the USA.
Cattle run at Fort Worth Stockyards (52K)
The Cowboy Festival weekend was in progress when I visited Fort Worth's Historic Stockyard district. This included a genuine cattle run down the main street, to the cheers of the spectators.
The cowboys were followed by a brigade with mops and buckets to remove any traces of the cattle's passage - not that there were any. They got a bigger cheer than the cowboys!
On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fé (64K)
Not far from the office where I worked in Richardson was a level crossing (grade crossing in US parlance) where the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fé Railroad crosses Campbell Boulevard. On my last full day in Texas, a very wet Saturday, I photographed it and couldn't resist taking this shot of the dead-straight track disappearing to infinity.
I think this pic would make a good CD inlay design. I shall have to compose some appropriate music...
Uptown Dallas (70K)
A glimpse of Dallas City Centre, approaching from the west.
The sky wasn't really as yellow as this. The yellow tint is a by-product of the processing I applied in a vain attempt to remove the bluish cast introduced by the film processing.
Downtown Dallas (74K)
This time an older part of the city, east of the centre. Perhaps not as clean and modern as the uptown area, but wonderfully atmospheric, redolent of all those 1950s' US movies.
Forth Worth Historic Stockyards (37K)
Another atmospheric street scene. You almost expect a posse to come galloping down the hill, firing into the air, and to see the Sherriff come out of the saloon across the street.
Mustang Sculpture, Las Colinas near Irving (40K)
These remarkable sculptures, enhanced by the fountains that make the mustangs appear to be splashing through the stream, are a tribute to the native wild horse of the prairies.
That's Marilyn Coughran giving the last reluctant mustang a push. Marilyn was the principal Technical Writer on the project and I am indebted to her for taking me to see the places of interest in these photos.
Southfork Ranch (48K)
Well, you can't go to Dallas without paying your respects to JR! Southfork Ranch was still a working ranch when the TV soap opera Dallas was made there. Today the cows have gone (the only cows I saw during my stay in Texas were at Forth Worth Stock Yards) and Southfork is a tourist attraction with an adjacent conference centre.
Yes, that's me under the tree. Those of you who know me will know that I am pathologically incapable of looking tidy. Thanks to Marilyn for taking this pic.
Texas State Fair, Dallas (51K)
The imposing buildings of the Texas State Fair, an institution that has no exact equivalent in UK culture; perhaps the nearest is the Royal Agricultural Show with its dedicated showground at Stoneleigh. Note the Union flag and Lone Star flag of Texas in the distance.
Tarantula Steam Loco, Fort Worth (72K)
The Tarantula is a 21-mile steam-operated railroad from Grapevine, near Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) Airport, to the Fort Worth Stock Yards. Although I never saw a moving Amtrak passenger train during my stay, I did see the Tarantula train arrive at Stockyards Station and I watched them turning the loco on this turnable.
The imposing 4-6-0 loco was built in 1896. Whatever is it burning to create such dense smoke?
Water Park, Fort Worth (36K)
This remarkable water feature in the centre of Fort Worth was used, apparently, in the movie Logan's Run.
That's Marilyn coming up the steps.
Union Pacific "Big Boy" Steam Loco, Dallas (40K)
One of the largest steam locomotives ever built, the "Big Boy" was really two locomotives sharing a common boiler. You can see the two sets of cylinders and valve gear in this picture, taken at the Texas Railroad Museum, Dallas.