"Railfanning is...

[luke]

...80% luck, 15% location, and 5% planning. Out of the 80% luck, 79.995% is dumb luck. Or so it seems."

That's what the photographer says about this shot:

[gedunk]

I think location is probably 80% of the luck. If those had been defunct lines, or the photographer hadn't prepped the camera, then all the luck in the world won't get a good shot. Luck does play a part, but you have to be prepared for it, and not count on it.

As Louis Pasteur said: "Fortune favors the prepared..."