Tracking Autumn

On a recent, brisk and bright blue fall day in the Berkshires, I headed towards Stockbridge, MA. to take a walk on train tracks over the Housatonic River. With no other function but to allow a train to cross over water makes for a rather harrowing, personal experience on such a narrow bridge. These abandoned tracks simply drew my eyes – and legs forward. Their ultimate destination? A mystery. Perfect for photographing with perspective and angles however, they also include an extra bonus: the inescapable contrast between the natural and the industrial.

This 19th century railroad bridge was built to support tracks that follow the sinuous curves of the river as other roads and train tracks often do. Enveloped by a sense of curiosity and intrigue, I find it tantalizing to explore this abandoned human landscape. Aside from an occasional fly fisherman or a kayaker, I enjoy my solitude. Sadly, though, I can’t escape the knowledge that the river had once been contaminated with PCBs courtesy of General Electric in Pittsfield. Clean-up remains complicated. Today all seems pristine.

While maintaining my balance on the bridge from over 20 feet above, I glimpse at the rushing water all around and take a glimpse through the weathered wood ties below me. Many are rotting. Pointing my camera down to the water doesn’t make for a comfortable sensation. I remind myself: “walk on and focus on something solid ahead.” No railing here to support a foolish visitor like me.

Having made it safely across, I could now follow more leisurely the train tracks’ pathway. I also appreciate the sense of a “tunnel” through the deciduous forest bathed by amber and peach colors There’s only one choice though: walk on the ties or the ballasts’ crushed stone. I switch back and forth. No other path is visible.

Above, we can see a random orange metal guard rail framed by boulders probably left behind during the last ice age. On the opposite side of the tracks and peastone awaits the the ubiquitous painted graffiti often seen on trains. With no train here to paint, a rock, like an urban concrete or brick wall, can also provide for a canvas.

Here is an intriguing thought: train tracks, and their supporting sections such as ties and ballast, are traditionally referred to as “permanent ways”. However, even steel can hint at impermanence as the burnt orange and textured rust reveals. Sadly, the role these tracks once played when people traveled the railroad to experience autumn has vanished. Instead, while “tracking autumn”, I appreciate how the rusted metal mirrors the vibrant color of sugar maple trees. While the leaves continue to fall, the tracks remain.