Forgotten Lands, Places and Transit

The Puerto Deseado Railway ran from Puerto Deseado north to Las Heras in Argentina's Santa Cruz Province until 1978. ( Right of way ) It was intended to spur development into the sparsely populated Patagonia region, but was never extended past its western terminus at Las Heras, and thus had little success in this regard. Even 40 years after the railway was built, it served a population of only 7,000 people. ( Railways of the South ) Additionally, the route ran parallel to the coast, meaning that traffic destined for the large city of Comodoro Rivadavia, roughly 80 miles or 125km northeast of Las Heras, would have to travel up to 550 km by rail and steamer, or just a quarter of that distance by truck using the route, thus making the journey nearly obsolete via rail. A steam engine near Las Heras, c.1930. ( Ferrocarriles en el Cono Sur ) [Link and source in Spanish] In 1908, the railway was planned, along with an unbuilt connection that would have either constructed another line nor...

Wolf Road Prairie is located on the northwest corner of Wolf Road and 31st St in Westchester, IL, and like many of the forest preserves in the Chicago area, there is more to this place than initially meets the eye. It is not very large at just over .1 square miles,  but has an extensive mix of prairie, savanna and wetland and is home to more than 360 native plant species.  (Cook County Forest Preserve) Surrounded by development which is obstructed by fog in this photo, this is a hidden gem of the area. It also has sidewalks that enter the woods. Why would the Cook County Forest Preserve destroy prairie land just to make it easier to walk? The answer is they didn't. The sidewalks hold the clue to what this area was supposed to be; another housing development.  I visited this area in December of 2020, and what was initially a very quiet snow year, that somehow managed to snow during my visit. But that made the pictures I took that much better, I think, as it really expresse...

Bachelor's Grove Cemetery is a largely abandoned cemetery located in unincorporated Bremen Twp. of Cook County. Believers in ghosts and ghost stories typically flock to the area in search of the paranormal, and numerous apparitions and ghosts sightings have apparently occurred in the cemetery.  It dates back to when the area was first settled, in the 1820's to 1840's, which is a similar timeline as many areas in what are now Chicago's suburbs. This area began to be open to white settlers in 1804, which was a main conflict of the Black Hawk War. The cemetery is in very poor condition. Many of the graves are either weathered or vandalized beyond recognition. I think the reports of paranormal activity at the site largely derives from its condition. In addition, its location, which is located on an old alignment of Midlothian Turnpike, makes it impossible to access via car toay, however, it is quite easily accessible via a short walk through the forest. This has made it a...