Down By The River

I headed out one night last week to take a few pictures, and ended up driving through downtown. I was a little surprised at how busy it was, there were lots of people out walking and cars crammed into any parking space available. The answer was soon obvious - the crowds were out to see Hamilton at Robinson Center. I headed across the river to North Little Rock where it was quieter and walked through Riverfront Park.





I set the camera up by the Baring Cross Bridge and hoped to catch a train crossing over the river. The first bridge here was built in 1873, and was the first bridge to span the Arkansas River at Little Rock. That bridge was washed away by floodwaters in 1927, and was rebuilt in 1929. A lift-span was added in the 70s to allow for barge traffic, and the bridge is still used by Union Pacific and Amtrak rail traffic.

I waited and waited for a train to show up. I was tempted to leave but I knew that as soon as I took the tripod down and walked back to the car that a train would show up. I waited about an hour, which was not the most exciting way to spend the evening (the people at Hamilton had much better entertainment). But finally a train did appear and crossed over the bridge, leaving behind these streaks of light from the locomotive.



After that I headed back across the river and drove around some, eventually ending up by the old Albert Pike Hotel. The hotel was built in 1929, but has since been converted into apartments. This is the last shot from the night, only because I forgot to charge the camera battery and it was running on empty.