My trip with my friend on the Illinois side. Part I of 2.

There is so much to cover just going to make a two parter for this one of  the Illinois side and the other of the Iowa side.  We took a trip to the Quad Cities on both sides of the  Mississippi River. We explored Certain areas like of Barstow, Silvis, Princeton, Moline and Rock Island.  We started off  going by Kolbe near Mapleton and seen a TP&W locomotive on one track and a KJRY on the other preparing for their Peoria run I guess.  The lights were on but I wanted to make good time so didn't hang long.  We head up Route 29 hoping to catch an IAIS train of some sort all the way to Bureau Junction then caught 26 and went to Princeton.  While at Princeton took photographs of an old CB&Q caboose and the old CB&Q Princeton depot.  We then go catch I-80 and drove what seemed like forever for me to the Quad Cities.  I think it was 58 miles from Princeton to be exact or something in the 50 ish range.   I believe it or not remembered what routes i planned and didn't really need directions that I wrote down until Iowa. At first went to Barstow to have a look around and it has some BNSF equipment there with multiple tracks.  

After Barstow  went to Silvis and took pictures of an old Rock Island Caboose then drove around areas where there was track.  The only IAIS locomotives I seen were off in the distance with no good spot to shoot pictures unless you wanted to trespass which I did not.  Even down the line an IAIS locomotive was behind cars and a fence not in good view.  I was disappointed but oh well it's not the end of the world.  We checked out Abby Station which is either in   Moline or Rock Island. I think it's Rock Island.  The idiot drivers had my eyes more on the road than on road signs. Over on the Moline end seen the NS power with NS Grain cars IAIS  took up from Peoria yesterday parked.  It's waiting for a trip to Des Moines, Iowa.  In Rock Island we seen two BNSF locomotives.  While in Iowa and the Quad Cities didn't see any moving trains could film.  After hanging around in Iowa we crossed the river back into Illinois at Muscatine then went down to Keithsburg, Illinois.   I specifically wanted to go there because of a bridge I wanted to see for quite some time now.  It was once the bridge that crossed the Mississippi River for the M&STL  Railroad ( later C&NW after 1960).   Chicago & Northwestern abandoned that section in the early to mid 1970's and  later a fireworks incident or something burnt a section of the bridge.

After that we headed down to Monmouth   which had a little peak but seen no trains so went to Galesburg.  I was thinking about Cameron, Illinois but didn't have enough time to do so.  We hung around near the Amtrak Station in Galesburg and watched three trains.  The first one Amtrak rolled in, then a BNSF crew with CN Power with coal cars ( ?) and a track inspection train or so my friend said it was.  I never seen the final one before.  After that wanted to go home I was starting to get beat so uploading and typing this before I crash for the night.  It was fun even if I didnt see what all I wanted too.