Now and then you get to see something on a "tourist line" that just works out. While most of us sit around and moan about the good old days when a "real railroad" operated things on a given tourist line, a few of us hold our nose and take pictures anyway. Sometimes the results are surprising given that predilection ("Wheelman" started something) toward "real railroads". The shot above, taken on a spur of the moment trip with the Wheelman when "the junctions" seemed quiet, proved that the year or even the equipment didn't matter. Mt. Washington is still a nice prop for a photo though the Maine Central is long gone. This was Nov. 20, 2005.
And, how about the timelessness of hanging the markers. Where else is it going to happen except on tourist or museum lines. "Real railroads" don't bother with that much anymore, unless you count slapping a F.R.E.D. on the rear coupler of the last car. Somehow that just doesn't seem the same without a caboose or passenger car with crew members on board. This shot is on the Abilene and Smoky Valley in Kansas, an ex-Rock Island line that loads passengers right next to the Eisenhower Presidential Library. It helps to have "friends in the business" too because one visit yielded a cab ride on their Alco switcher. This shot includes a future contributor to this blog, a college buddy from way back in the dark ages.
BC
1 comment:
This is a super shot!
That was a spur-of-the-moment trip on a quiet Sunday in early spring I believe. We also caught what was left of the SLR presence in Berlin later in the afternoon.
I like the word link. We've started a trend :-)
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