Throughout decades of my exploring as a railroad photographer, I've captured countless photos of scenes without trains that piqued my interest due to the unique atmosphere that railroads create. Whether it's a simple scene of a single track stretching across flatland or a more complex structure like an abandoned engine terminal in Jesenice, Slovenia, I've always aimed to capture more than just a plain record of the scene. My ambition is to present viewers with a glimpse of the special milieu that railroads have created over almost two centuries of existence. While in the past, this aspect of my photography was sporadic and reflexive, in recent years, as the railroad environment has become more sterile, it has become even more important to me to preserve this history and the unique atmosphere through my photography."

One place that is sure to disappear in the near future is the former engine terminal at Jesenice, Slovenia. During the times of former Yugoslavia, Jesenice was the most important border station for Yugoslav exports to the west. Two important lines reach this place: the mainline from Slovenian capital Ljubljana and beyond from the whole east of the country, and the Bohinj line or Transalpina from the southwest and Italy. Both lines are difficult mountain lines, especially the latter one with numerous 2.5% grades, and therefore most powerful Yugoslav Railroads' steam locomotives were employed on both. To service them, a 10-stall roundhouse was built, together with all necessary facilities for coal, water, sand, and a workshop for smaller repairs. When the last steam locomotives were retired in the 70s and the EMD diesels took over, the supporting facilities were eventually torn down while the roundhouse and the turntable remained more or less intact. The roundhouse and the turntable were used for storing some vehicles of Slovenian Railroads' museum and for servicing one of the active steam locomotives which during the summer tourist season hauled the museum train over the Bohinj line from Jesenice to Nova Gorica and Villa Opicina in Italy. Unfortunately, the operating license of the last active steam locomotive expired a few years ago, the museum train ended its runs, and since then, the whole terminal area has been abandoned. Now the young trees grow on the tracks which many years ago hosted the best of the steam which the Yugoslav Railroads owned.

Unfortunately, all the abandoned structures, including those that in the past served the needs of a major border station, will be razed during the planned reconstruction of the Jesenice yard. Investors are already eagerly waiting to snatch up the precious released area in the narrow Jesenice valley