FOLKSTON, Georgia (CNN)  -- Rain or shine, 80-year-old Cookie Williams plops himself on the wooden viewing platform perched over double train tracks.



Cookie Williams, 80, watches a CSX freight train chug by on a typical Tuesday afternoon.



On this warm May afternoon, a patient Williams sits slouched, legs crossed and arms relaxed, donning his vintage CSX railroad company cap littered with miniature train pendants.



He is waiting for a train.



A scanner, listening for oncoming train signals, crackles in the background as it picks up some conductor chatter.



He waits some more.



"A lot of people in this town thought I was on the kooky side," said Williams, who is retired from the paper and pulp industry. "But I love it. I've loved these trains ever since I was a kid."



Folkston, Georgia, where Williams lives, is one of many train hot spots nationwide. Here, the blasting train noises are jokingly called "Folkston music." With up to 60 trains crawling loudly through the quaint town each day, it's become an attraction for fans eager to collect train images and sounds.



In 2001, Williams, who grew up by a train track, pushed town officials to construct a viewing platform with picnic tables, wireless Internet and a scanner to detect oncoming trains. The Southeast Georgia town reports that at least 12,500 visitors from all over the world visit the platform to watch trains each year.   Watch Williams and his friend talk about the joy of train watching »



As the prominence of the iconic American railroad has faded over the past half-century, there remains a devout group of train enthusiasts like Williams and his friends, dubbed railfans, who obsessively chase and watch powerful trains glide along railroad tracks. Trains Magazine, an industry publication, estimates that there are 175,000 U.S. railfans, mostly male baby boomers.



"The word 'enthusiast' doesn't begin to cover their devotion," said Rhonda Del Boccio, head of the Okefenokee Chamber of Commerce, which oversees railfan tourism in Folkston. "Picture [the popular game] 'World of Warcraft' for train people."



On any given day in America, loyal railfans camp out for hours or even days on a platform, a grassy field, a road or a backyard to snap a few photographs or shoot video of the moving trains. Some travel to different cities and countries to capture the right shot.



Last weekend, nearly 20 railfans convened at the Izaak Walton Inn in Essex, Montana, a railroad worker dormitory built in 1939 that was converted into a hotel. The group took pictures of trains set against the backdrop of Glacier National Park during the day and had history lessons about trains at night.



A train festival this summer in Oswego, Michigan, is expected to draw in 30,000 attendees, many of them railfans.



Just like bird watcher keeps an eye out for specific birds, railfans watch for cargo and passenger trains and "critters"-- railfan lingo for small freight trains. On a lucky day, they may spot a historic steam locomotive.



Hardcore railfans spend so much time visually dissecting the trains, they can recite the number of axles in a passing train or recount which years railroad giant Union Pacific Railway Co. changed its logos.



"It's a marvel to see something that weighs hundreds of tons, hauling thousands of tons, moving through rural country," said Bill Taylor, a 62-year-old railfan and former teacher. His Missoula, Montana, home is adorned with antique rail items, such as train silverware and conductor lanterns. "It's an orchestra of motion."



In an age of social media, railfanning has taken a new turn, going viral. On YouTube, there are more than 24,000 railfan videos, ranging from trains chugging through Gary, Indiana, to the subway in New York. Flickr.com touts thousands of pictures uploaded my railfans delighted to share their most prized train spotting moments.



The obsession over railfanning often stems from historical and technological intrigue. Trains not only represent a romanticized era, they have been central to American economic
how many visitors in Folkston What do the visitors do? What is happening with the trains What are trains doing? How many rail fans are there where are there 12,500 visitors to watch trains each year What number of rail fans are there? what did Bill Taylor sAY
12,500 visit the platform to watch trains each year. crawling loudly through the quaint crawling loudly 175,000 U.S. railfans, Folkston, Georgia, 175,000 "It's a marvel to see something that weighs hundreds of tons, hauling thousands of tons, moving through rural country,"
question: how many visitors in Folkston, answer: 12,500 | question: What do the visitors do?, answer: visit the platform to watch trains each year. | question: What is happening with the trains, answer: crawling loudly through the quaint | question: What are trains doing?, answer: crawling loudly | question: How many rail fans are there, answer: 175,000 U.S. railfans, | question: where are there 12,500 visitors to watch trains each year, answer: Folkston, Georgia, | question: What number of rail fans are there?, answer: 175,000 | question: what did Bill Taylor sAY, answer: "It's a marvel to see something that weighs hundreds of tons, hauling thousands of tons, moving through rural country,"