Visiting the Yard

 Visiting one of my daughters in Nashville, Tenn, I happened to discover that CSX had a very large yard-the Radnor Yard-that once belong to the Louisville and Nashville (L&N) railroad.  This is a huge yard.  Before taking photos, I drove 'around' the yard and was amazed at the size. 
  There is an overpass on one end of the yard, and from there I could take some photos. 
  Photo one is a view of the yard showing its size.

  This photo shows how the engineer running his train.  He is standing beside his engines (this view shows the slug) and is watching the train slowly move down the track. Yes, he is not on the train-he is using a remote control!  The engineer ran the train completely pass him and then walked up the hump hill to continue his work.

 Here is the train slowly moving up the hump hill and each car is uncoupled to roll down to its proper track for classification.  The time to do this was amazingly short.  I have never seen a hump operation before this close, and that train was completely disassembled in about fifteen minutes.

 Here is the 'front' of the train as it backs up the hump. 

 Another view of the hump yard.  Look closely and you can see a boxcar moving down the hill to its track. 

At last, just about in fifteen minutes, the last car is let go.  The engineer did it all, ran the train and uncoupled the cars. 
   I find it interesting that there is an approach signal on the track to the hump yard. 


The following link will take you to an overhead view of the yard.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/perspectivephotography/2559314053/in/photostream/

Summer Rail Adventure!

 Took the grandson and wife to see Nickel Plate 765 head into Ashville, Oh (south of Columbus) on the NS line to Portsmouth.  The train stopped in Ashville to take on water, via a fire hydrant, and for some crew going over that all steam engines need. 
  Here you see 765 coming into Ashville.

 The crew was extremely busy oiling, greasing (you could hear the air powered grease gun!), and just checking things out.  There was a large ground crew swarming all over the engine. 
  In the bygone days of steam, not that many people were needed!

 Another view of the engine and crew.

 How much oil do I add?  I dunno, but I guess this crewman knew the right amount.  He kept climbing up his ladder and looking in the reservoir to check.  There was both NS crew and Fort Wayne Railroad crewmembers  working on the engine.

765 is running on NS's rails as part of their celebration of thirty years as a corporation.  Behind 765 is NS's Nickel Plate heritage engine. 
  765 is from Fort Wayne, Indiana and is part of the historical museum located there.

 This is for all you modelers out there. 

 765 is just about ready to leave Ashville. 

 Most of the crew are aboard and just a few more checks. 

 Here is 765 heading south just out of Circleville.  If the lights hadn't been so long, traffic so...well you know... I would have been able to have some great shots in Circleville, but I just managed to get some from an overpass south of town.  I didn't see the power line in the foreground in my haste to get the shot.

 I did get to this overpass just north of Kingston, just north of Chillicothe. 

 Here is a photograph of the steam dome (nearest the bottom of the photo), the sand dome-note all the lines leading down on the right side of the engine. 
  On the steam dome you can see the whistle.  The sand is to provide traction for the driving wheels, of which there are eight (four to a side).
  Behind the sand dome and just before the cab roof you can see the steam driven motors that supply air for the draft of the engine's fire. 

 765 splits the signals heading towards Kingston.  This photo is best viewed by right clicking on it and viewing as a larger image.

765 leaves us as it heads south out of Kingston towards Portsmouth on the Ohio River.  It is just about to cross route 159. 
  It was a great adventure to watch this piece of history come alive! 

In Parkersburg, there is a park that once, during the Civil War, was Fort Boreman that is a good place to view Parkersburg, and of course the railroad in town. In our first view, you can see the bridge over the Little Kanawha River that empties into the Ohio River. Note the steel platforms on both sides of the track just before the bridge. I believe that at one time there were stations on those platforms.

The grade up to this bridge seems rather steep, and must be quite a strain on the engines pulling up to cross the bridge. Running under the bridge is the track to the high line, the yard that is where the old main from Grafton once entered Parkersburg. The wall to the left of the bridge is the flood wall. It is quite cramped in this area!

Here is a view of the track up to the high line. I have read that since the turn table has been removed, it is quite an interesting maneuver to go from the low yard to the high yard.

Up on the hill, you can look down and see the low yard. In the yard is a coal drag waiting to leave. I was thinking maybe it would leave soon, but it never did.

Walking around the hill on Fort Boreman, I notice a line running south along the Little Kanawha River. In this view (below) I noticed a train section down below with a caboose attached!

Following the tracks, I noticed in the distance an industry with a siding. I suspect that is where I heard a horn toot a few minutes earlier. I wonder what goes in/out there? I didn't have time to drive down and investigate, but maybe another day.

Finally here is a shot of the three bridges that cross over the Ohio from Parkersburg to Belpre, Ohio.In the foreground is the old US 50 bridge-a new one is just south that crosses the Ohio south of Belpre-behind it is the old B&O bridge, and in the distance is the RT 7 toll bridge.

A Visit to the B&O in Parkersburg

Its been a few years since I was able to visit the B&O in Parkersburg, and being in town for a

lectureship at a local college, I has some time during the lunch break to drive downtown and take a look around.
Here are some of the things I saw.

This is a view of the "high yard" which the old main line entered Par

kersburg from Grafton to the east. The yard was full of cars, which I have read are mainly storage. There isn't that much industrial shipping left in the area for this many cars!

Here is the local yard engine (I assume) waiting to go to work. #2562 is a GP 38-2 (http://www.thedieselshop.us/CSX.HTML). Last time I was here, the yard engine was in the old CSX "ghost" paint and was showing rust signs. That one was 2660, also a 38-2.

Not much going on here, and time was limited, so I went off to take some more photos.

Here is another view of the high yard along the side of some COHS passenger cars.

When you look to the left side of the car, you see COHS stenciled on hit. This car sits near the site of where the station once was (across the tracks from it). Many windows are busted by rock throwers and it seems that no repair or restoration is underway. I think I shot this car the last time I was here. I don't think much has changed.

I get a kick out of the approach from the old bridge across the Ohio River. While my telephoto exaggerates the curvature, I always wonder why there is a curve? Why not just straight on? Was the street already there when the bridge was built? When that line was laid, that street probably was dirt, so it wasn't that hard to realign the street! Then, there could have been a straight at one time and double tracked just before the bridge? Maybe someone knows.

Last photo shows an inspection car. Unfortunately, I didn't get its number (no pun intended). It was hard to get to, to take a photograph.

Next up, looking down at the B&O in Parkrsburg.

Stopping by Powhatan Point this summer, I took the following shots of NS coal drag not moving anywhere (bummer!). I thought one or the other was going to move somewhere, but maybe it was lunch break or something as neither were moving (neither was the one up at the mine load out). I then started noticing the details of a mine run.


As I stood by the bridge over Captina Creek, I noticed how much coal had been dropped by the trains over time.


Looking at the tracks closer, it is obvious that a lot of coal has spilled from the hoppers over the years as drags crossed the bridge. Something to remember when building a model of a coal mine and its load outs.


Now, if I could only incorporate the smell of that coal in the morning summer heat.!

After getting rained out on my camping/fishing trip over at the AEP Recreation Lands, I was driving home when all of the sudden, I was driving across an old railroad bed! Needless to say, I was quite surprised!

Knowing the direction I was heading, I figured I was looking at the remnants of the B&O from Cambridge. I have to assume that when this area was an active strip mine, this railroad hauled coal out of the mining area.

The last photo is of the track in Cumberland-this looks like the Byesville Scenic Railroad has reached to this small town in their efforts to recover the line. Their goal is to reach the Wilds just a few miles away.

Walking the Old PRR in Lancaster

One sunny day,back in February, I ventured out of doors and took some photos of the remnants of the Pennsylvan

ia Railroad's right of way. This branch line is now a bike trail through Lancaster and is a very pleasant trail to walk, bike or jog on. Here in the first photo is a bridge that was repainted and repaired

along the trail. It is near Cenci Lake

Park.

Our next stop is a mile marker beside Cenci Lake (background) this

marker's T stands for Trinway, a town obviously 60 miles from here (north east).

Now, on our third stop along the trail, is where the trail crosses the still active tracks that the Indiana and Ohio (I&O)use to access Ralston Cereals and I think a couple of other stops. The posts and that you have to weave through them remind me of the tank traps of WWII (only those were much bigger!). If you ride your bike slow enough you can weave through these poles. Unfortunately, the sign on the other side has been vandalized as well as the shelter you see in the background. It once had glass sides, but these have been entirely busted out by someone or somebodies.

I actually don't understand what all the effort is for, what is the point of destroying this material? There a several signs, posts and other things along the trail that have been deliberately destroyed.

Finally, we part with a view of the line running beside the old Anchor Hocking Plant. It is time to part

after our little hike. Thanks for walking with me!

Sunday Afternoon Part I

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon so I decided to do a photo safari and head down to a local park for some nature photography when I spied the I&O coming into town from Logan! Change plans and get some shots of the small six freight. So, off i go.

The first one on the right is of #3888 hauling its ducks into Lancaster. The tracks to the left are the old PRR line from Bremen.

Second photo is a going away shot as it crossed Maple Ave.

I then took off and went to Cenci Park to set up for the next shot.

I was wondering why it was taking it so long to get there, even at the

sedate pace it was taking. .

Photo three, here it comes, under the Rt. 33 overpass, but wait! Something is missing! So, that why it took so long, the crew dropped off the cars! I reminded me of when I am running my

model railroad, and the engine leaves some cars behind "unexpectedly" in that case.

Finally, (photo 4) the train continues to head north. It was

obviously heading up near the Anchor Distribution center where

I&O's "office" is located. Their day was done!

With part II of this post, I will show you some photos of the old

PC line through Lancaster.

What do you do, when heading home and you see the local working off in the distance?

Why, you take a right turn and head out to watch the crew switch some cars.

Yes, you'll sit in line for awhile, but what better way to spend some time on a late fall day?
The I&O is working the Lancaster Anchor Glass plant. It was a very long train!