December Picture Worth A Few Words

Apparently this is all rail gets nowadays to tell you where it's from. Won't last too long I suspect. I gather the sticker means it's from Steel Dynamics and it weighs 115lbs per yard. The rail train recently dropped this length off at Pan Am Railways District 1, MP 187 in Cumberland, ME when it was photographed on October 9, 2010. As I write this, it has probably been installed. The location is about 2 miles short of Royal Jct. (CPF185) where the Brunswick line splits from the current main. That means this rail will see the bulk of District 1's freight trains as well as expanded Downeaster Service.

Steel Dynamics has a rail plant in Columbia City, IN, part of their Structural and Rail Division. From what I've read in various places, this is a relatively new operation, which coincides with the "welded rail age". Rail lengths are more efficiently installed and maintained in longer sections. The days of the 39 foot rail length went out ages ago, though the stuff still exists. At first plants like Colorado Fuel and Iron in Pueblo, CO made rails in 72 foot lengths to make them more efficient. Apparently that was what the technology allowed and what modern rail cars could haul.

A newer leap in technology appeared in the 1970's. Plants were erected to weld short lengths into quarter mile length. Special trains were constructed to deliver these rails. Those trains had plenty of nicknames like "rail snakes", "ribbon trains" and "spaghetti trains". And now, we see that this rail was delivered from the plant in 1650 foot lengths. Maybe little welding actually happens these days. According to the plant website they make 320 foot lengths, which would be just over 5 pieces to reach the length photographed.

I still lament the loss of a stamping on the rail telling you where it's made. I guess that's part of the efficiency; loss of "identity".

BC

Danville Jct. Snapshot 11-28-10

"Diamonds aren't forever"

It's been almost exactly two months since I last stopped to take pictures at Danville Jct. The changes were startling. Many things in the works last time are now nearly finished. Black Cat Rd. is now a one track crossing with the switch moved west past the road.

Diamonds are not forever. The diamond has been replaced with a straight piece on the PAR main and the SLR's former main now ends behind the sheds at a stop marker, though the track is still in place to the former diamond. I spotted the missing signals first thing. The SLR is supposed to end up with a three track stub yard behind the sheds. They appear to be in place with only the old switch and main track beyond.

The new SLR main now glides through a nice new S-curve and joins up on what is now the PAR siding or former main. The track goes over the crossing where the old GRS shack used to be and joins before the track curved over the diamond. Track is all in place an appears to have been well used already. I haven't checked the usual listservs in a while, so it's my own fault I didn't know this yet.

I can only guess that the other end of the interchange yard is in the same state of finished. It appears that there's just some ballast work and cleanup left to be done at the village end of things. I hear the track is in place at the far end but I haven't ventured (trespassed) to go see it. Mainly, I think I'd just like to know how the layout works. Maybe when the SLR goes down to Deering one day, I'll follow along to see how they do it.

BC

Historic Tamaqua, PA

Tamaqua is quite a neat little place to visit for anyone interested in anthracite coal history in general and "anthracite roads" in particular. It's a bit off the beaten path nowadays but in terms of history, it used to be in the middle of things. Two of my favorite "anthracite roads"; Lehigh and New England, and the Reading served this major coal producing area. Though my first visit was not under the most favorable of conditions in July (see prior post, we were previously soaked to the bone over in Jim Thorpe chasing the LGSR), I was still impressed enough to want to return on a future, hopefully sunny, day.

Here's a little history of the depot brought to you by the current owners. There's a lot of info there and I was able to get the background story for virtually all the features of the area from the time-line.

Among the first things to impress me was the fact that the park and gardens were not actually something new put into a previously blighted part of the downtown. Those gardens were there when the eight track passenger station was a very active part of the city. (see top photo)

On the way over to the depot itself we found plenty of public access and parking in the vicinity. Unfortunately, the single track of the Reading and Northern held little promise for rail action. Historically though, there were plenty of treasures. The R&N office, known locally as the "QA" station was the old yard office where local operations were dispatched. The letters were the old telegraph code for the station. Apparently it became the local operations office in the Conrail days after the passenger depot was discarded. The little tower across the street was the watchman's tower for the eight tracks crossing downtown. Locally it was known as the "little Swiss cottage" according to the prior history site. Looking around you could tell that some heavy duty railroading used to take place here. In the anthracite and passenger days this was a hub for a lot of activity. Passenger trains came up from Philly until 1961.

In terms of present day features, the depot seems to be prospering as a restaurant and retail spot. The local park appears to have expanded to include some of the yard. It looks like the citizens chose to create a nice space to celebrate their history rather than just ignore the potential blight.

A few local artifacts are located near the depot in a public park setting. The two locomotives shown here (a third from the distant Safe Harbor Power Plant was also present) appeared to be from local industry. Atlas Powder had a local plant that needed a "critter" to switch cars around. Atlas was one of two blasting powder companies spun off from DuPont to avoid anti-trust issues. It seemed to be heavily involved in mining applications for it's explosive products.

The larger "steamer" was actually a boilerless locomotive used by a local electric utility company. At first it looks like Thomas the Tank Engine but you will notice the face on the front has a light bulb nose and probably pre-dates Thomas, though I don't know about the blue paint. Apparently it needed to function in a tight place without the smoke and danger of a fire in a boiler and simply charged up on already abundant steam from a power plant. For some reason I didn't get the sign that told me some of this information.

The two former New Haven cabeese next to the depot are the only mystery, though as a New Haven fan I wasn't complaining. These are well maintained examples of Penn Central's lack of money to finish a task. The bay windows are in place but they didn't bother to remove the cupolas. Maybe they made cheap skylights. There is one located at the Danbury Railroad Museum which I posted a bit about in the past.

For the coal history enthusiast you can see that the Molly McGuire Auto Tour goes right through Tamaqua. Apparently I didn't look hard enough to find a free version of the tour. The sign says the depot area is "Tour Site 4". The restaurant in the depot shows up often when searching this stuff. Maybe I'll get the literature before I return.


BC

Finally!!!

I've been driving over this very crossing for going on 19 years and on the several occasions that I've actually seen a train, I did not have a camera. Mostly, I couldn't have used one if I had one for any number of reasons anyway. It's often too dark, or I'm buried in traffic, or it's already past the open spot. This is in the town of Peru, where people traveling down Rt. 108 turn to cross the river to Mexico and Dixfield. The tracks are almost at the foot of the bridge.

Today I had my "throw-down" spare camera with my work stuff and happened to see "RUPO" leaving Rumford on my way home from a workshop day. This gave me plenty of time to go on ahead to the old Peru depot at Dixfield East siding. Now, I was thrown off my game by pouring rain, a battery warning light on the camera, plus not having my SLR, but here's proof if actually happened. Unfortunately that battery light told me my day was done shortly after it started. I could have followed this guy to any number of good spots. The cloudy sky would have negated the back-lighting that would be the norm at 3pm.

Not exciting to anyone else, but I got a kick out of it!

BC

Danville Jct. Snapshot 9-27-10

Here are a couple of shots taken today at Danville Jct. The construction is starting to get very busy lately.



The top left shot is the SLR new main that will join the PAR main past the crossing. It just needs switches installed at either end and some ballast work. This is right through the old road, now blocked off in the middle.








Lower left we see the end of the new SLR main and the future switch off to the far right. The diamond is still active and gives you some reference. I'm standing near the old shack's location at the crossing.

On the left the new PAR main is stretched out. Ballasting was in progress up to the crossing behind the scene to the left. The old track was bulldozed off to the left.


You can see the old main has been spruced up near the crossing and the new main is getting ballasted. Ballast work stopped at the crossing as seen in the prior photo.

The ballasting equipment was parked up past Black Cat Rd. Even though it was a Saturday, work was going on today.

BC

When You Can't Find a Real Locomotive...

I guess I was collecting these assorted photos for something else that never materialized. I know a certain photo of a Trackmobile never came out of hiding, so I've arranged them for something else.

I was inspired to write something every time I saw one of these rigs. Each time it had a different slant because of the differences in each machine. I certainly wanted to see each of these things put through the paces of actually moving a car around. In the one Juniata shot, I guess I was satisfied in this pursuit, but that's the easiest one to find in operation.

I start with exhibit A from the Electric City Trolley Museum, next to Steamtown in Scranton, PA. I could dig up the real orgins of the rig (maybe another day) but I'd just love to see something this small doing it's thing in mill or along a small interurban yard. It appears to have unusual couplers which means it probably worked in a factory setting. Still, it might be fun to watch. I wonder how much it can pull! Electric motors can fool you.

Exhibit B is a simple winch style car puller alongside a grain mill in Sinking Springs, PA. For all of these I've see in Kansas, I never took a photo. This particular one has safety gear all over it. Most I've seen are a motor and a pulley hanging out in the open where you could trip over it. You can't even see the pulley behind all the safety gear on this one. I guess someone is concerned about the cable taking your head off if it snaps. I learned to respect cables driving a logging skidder. A cage or guard isn't a terrible idea.

Anyway, I've been by mills before and after these things have been used. I quite often knew that no locomotive was around to move the cars but the cars moved non-the-less. It was a couple of years before a friend working at a mill told me the secret. But, I have yet to see one in operation. Might be interesting. I guess some places use farm tractors equipped with winches of any size and shape too for the same idea.

Exhibit C was next to a plant in North Kansas City, MO. I think it is a rail car servicing plant, near National Starch. They had a small switcher but they also had this rig set up for moving cars around. Obviously it's a hi-rail MOW tractor of some kind that has been recycled to just moving cars. The couplers may or may not have been original equipment.

The newer CSX truck below appears to be equipped like the previous rig. This particular one was parked next to Hancock tower (Hancock, WV - before it was taken down) and had a trailer behind it. Obviously this would be handy to have if you are moving a gondola of ties or something needed by the track gang. I'm especially curious about the hi-rail gear on this one. It looks heavier and more substantial for the express purpose of moving larger loads. Again, the male genes kick in and want to know how much it can pull. This might be fun to watch in operation. I've watched Burro cranes do what I suspect this does in an MOW gang. Cars on either side pushed and pulled into place by the truck.

The last rig, as I mentioned before, is a full blown Trackmobile. This one is at the Juniata shop and is often visible to anyone who visits the turntable. According to a posting or two from people at the shop, it is used for moving stuff in the shop but especially the larger SD's that need to go on the turntable. Apparently there isn't room enough for a full switcher and an SD70MAC on the turntable. Go figure.

I became interested in these rigs decades ago when I was reading about "street trackage" in big cities and ports like Baltimore, Chicago and Philadelphia. Those railroads used less sophisticated predecessors of this machine in the early 20th Century. The tires allowed them to wander the streets like a truck while still being able to take cars into tight places. They were also cheaper than a full locomotive and didn't tear up the oftentimes ancient track structure too much. They could go where no modern locomotive could anymore.

Well, it's not much, but I wanted to play with those photos.

BC

Train Trip from Thorndale PA to Port Jervis NY and return

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=200984&id=500663994&l=edc45dafa9

See the above link for pictures…I remembered the camera this time!!! You do not have to be a member of Facebook to see this album of pictures.

Here’s the synopsis of the trip I took on Friday 8/27/10, to Port Jervis NY via SEPTA, NJ Transit and Metro North from Thorndale PA.

0330 – I get up….too damn early but need to walk the dogs and station is 45 minutes away. Beautiful moonlight however and very quiet.

0430 – Arrive at Thorndale Wawa – Donuts and tea and go over and eat, then board SEPTA (Folks outside PA may not recognize this chain of convenience stores but it's a great name!!!)

0458 – Train #514 – Local to Philly and Lansdale, arr. At 30th St. Station at 0602 – I went down to use the loo and to possibility get my tickets for the trip via NJT from Trenton to Port Jervis and return. Ticket was working and I didn’t have to worry about the mad dash at Trenton which I’ve done too often going to NYC via SEPTA and NJT.

0637 – Train #705 – Local to Trenton – arr. At Trenton at around 0730

0746 – Train #3928 – Local to New Brunswick, express to Newark Airport, local to NYC Penn Station. – I took it to Secaucus Jct. to transfer to Port Jervis train. Rode in double decker coaches which were very comfortable. A group of college students were just up a few seats and I think they were on the way to do some sort of acting presentation in NYC. Very chatty bunch. Reminded me of when I used to go to NYC to audition for orchestras MANY years ago! Arrived Secaucus Jct. at 0853

Longer wait. This was okay as I HAD to make the next connection here, or the itinerary would fall apart! Headed over to DD for 2nd breakfast and enjoyed this gorgeous station…somewhat reminiscent in architecture of the old Penn Station in NYC. Very light and airy. Always fun to people watch as well.

0957 – Train #45 outbound from Hoboken to Port Jervis via the Bergen County line. Long but very scenic ride thru northern NJ, SE NY via ex Erie main line thru Rutherford NJ, Suffern, Campbell Hall, Middletown and then on thru Otisville tunnel and down the DE river to Port Jervis, NY and just a stone’s throw from Matamoras PA. Arrived nearly 1230

Highlights

Passed NS local working near Rutherford NJ – too close for specifics
Saw railfans at Otisivlle passing siding which is just east of Otisville tunnel. (do I really look like these people when I’m railfanning?)
Had to wait for EB NJT train at Otisville siding, that was late leaving Port Jervis
Beautiful views from trestle near Salibury Mills/Cornwall NY station

Lunch at Burger King – Serious load of rednecks in this part of the world…phew…and they were all going to Burger King for lunch!!!

1328 – Train #64 – Inbound local to Ridgewood NJ then 2 stops and express to Secaucus Jct. I was in lead cab car listening to the banter of the 2 lady conductors and engine crew plus what looked like a management type person riding in the cab. Seems like a relaxed crew on a scenic ride. Beautiful scenery….snoozed a bit as the 0330 wakeup was catching up with me.

1530 arrival at Secaucus Jct. Couldn’t wait long here as NJT Trenton Local was due to arrive at 1540.

1540 – Local to Trenton – Train #3855 Local to Trenton – 14 car single level MU train. I sat in last car. Partial local and partial express. No AC in my car and train had what sounded a grinding noise that rose and fell in pitch with speed of train. Many announcements regarding having to either walk up or walk back from end cars to either platforms being too short or under construction. Fortunately not too hot so ride was okay but I would have preferred the double deckers again! Arrived approximately 1700.

1710 – Train #9756 – Local to Philly - 2 cars – which was funny as I got off a 14 car MU train from NYC to Trenton but fortunately not everyone was going from NYC to Philly on the local!! Unevenful inbound trip to Philly. Arrived at Philly around 1800.

1813 – Train #9571 – Express to Bryn Mawr, then local to Thorndale – “Meatball” engine with coaches. Uneventful trip. Listened to 2 other teachers discussing their assignments across the aisle. One was carrying a bike! Cool. Arrived at 1924 at Thorndale. Should have waited on the platform as WB Amtrak came by as soon as they switched my train out of the way. Went off to an ops session at a friends afterwards.

Great trip!

July In Review - Reading, PA

The Videoman and his wife picked me up for a road trip to Mohnton, PA, in the Reading area, to do some railfanning with the Fiddler. The schedule originally called for a HAPT expedition to the Pocahontas Coal region of West Virginia, but we decided to save that for when the Wheelman could be along as a guide. We found inexpensive accommodations in Mohnton at the Country Inn Motel and used it as our base though Fiddler's house was still quite a ways off through the hills. The low weekly rate got our attention and the "exfoliating towels" were the only real drawback. I'd recommend it to anyone who's cheap like me for Reading railfanning.

The morning of July 23 we started nice and early at the Dosie Dough Bakery, conveniently located next to Wyomissing Jct. near Reading. It also happened to be easy to find from the motel. A train went by as we arrived and another went by as we ate. A WB tried to go by before we finished but we managed to catch it. This morning featured a new bit of technology I've used at home but never on the road: ATCS. The Reading area has a web feed which my iPod could access whenever I could get wifi. Unfortunately, that wasn't much outside of the motel or Fiddler's house. At least we knew what we had going on for a while so Fiddler headed us west to Sinking Springs, Wernersville and Robesonia Park. The Videoman and Fiddler benefited from different locations for their video work since they were filming for "Train Time" television.

When the known trains ran their course, we headed East. The first stop was Fleetwood, home of the Fleetwood Car Company. We caught a westbound at the old factory building. Next was Alburtus and Macungie. We naturally stopped off at Yocco's for hotdogs before retiring to the nice shelter and gardens at Macungie. There we caught three different trains and finished with the eastbound #262 Triple Crown Roadrailer train. A couple of other railfans were also there and we had a fun time shooting the breeze, as usually happens with railfans. We finished the day by meeting Fiddler's wife for dinner at the Railroad House Restaurant in Sinking Spring. Being a hot day, we stayed with the A/C indoors rather than partake of the outdoor porches with a trackside view. A train passed as we were paying the bill, so little was missed.

On Saturday we saw dire forecasts of high heat and humidity. So, we planned on indoor stuff. We started with the massive O gauge layout at Roadside America. This was a fun indoor display filling a dance hall with dioramas from all over the country. A handy guide sheet takes you around the room to all points of interest and along the way you get various buttons that allow you to operate various functional displays like run a trolley, play a calliope or saw fire wood.

The day was young so we moved on to Crystal Caverns. The cold air inside was very welcome on the hot day. Though not a rail site we did meander through the relics of a Reading branch to get there. On the way back we went to one of those stainless steel diners in Kutztown for lunch. There I was introduced to hot bacon dressing on my salad. I'd try it again and I'd definitely go back to that diner. It was right next to the Kutztown airport, where a medical helicopter landed as we arrived.

The day did not end without more model railroading. Once the wives were deposited at the motel, we headed to Newtown Center near Philly for the St. Albans Railroad Fellowship operating session in the basement of St. Albans Episcopal Church. About 18 guys running around with FRS headsets and plug in throttles running a 3+ hour session of operating was fun. I don't think I'd ever seen such an intense operation, live. We didn't leave until around midnight, which interestingly meant we'd have to detour around the PA Pike which closed at midnight for the installation of a new bridge. Fiddler took us through his old stomping grounds near the Paoli station on the old PRR "main line". Not a bad detour. A train was in the station too.

On Sunday we wanted to hit the tourist lines. Temps would be reasonable so we went for the Lehigh Gorge Scenic in Jim Thorpe. We arrived in time for the 11am run, so off we went for tickets to board. I'd been there before with the Wheelman and a few changes had been made. The loco was painted to match and there wasn't another unit on the other end, necessitating a runaround at each end of the run. One thing no one expected was for NS to make an appearance. 13T passed as the train reached it's appointed waiting spot - a short stretch where the two lines are spaced farther apart than usual. As the run nears completion, it was arranged for the Videoman to get a cab ride on the 1pm run. Neat. Fiddler and I would catch it from the ground near the gorge to get that perspective for future shows.

Well, the outbound run went about as we expected. We caught the train as it exited the bridge over the NS and R&N lines. The return would be a while so we walked over the relatively new trail to Nesquehoning Jct. to get a shot of the old tower. It was also a chance to check out the trail that utilizes the old second track space on the bridge. It was all ties the last time I was here. Next we decided to shoot the return run from the bridge. As we waited, rain threatened. Then we heard thunder in the distance. We were about 3/4 of a mile from the van and didn't have any rain gear. We decided to wait it out since we were going to get wet either way. Might as well get the shots. In the process we heard an R&N OCS enter the area. Cool, but where were they? We figured we'd miss both trains if we headed out. Well, the wait paid off - sort of. We got our return shots but then had to trudge through an intense downpour back to the van. Then we were really in no condition to get out in the rain again to catch the OCS, now sitting in Jim Thorpe. Oh well. The cameras survived once they dried out and the content was gathered despite the sacrifice. Actually it was quite warm out so it wasn't bad other than being soaked to the skin.

It was decided to head for home after a drive through lunch. We did go via Tamaqua for the scenic route. Lots of roadbeds for lots of activity. We wandered around the restored former Reading depot and the display items. We then scouted a trail that is utilizing the old L&NE. But, we were pretty much done for the day. I'll do a separate post for Tamaqua.

Monday we headed south for Perryville, MD. Fiddler took us the scenic route, both ways, so we could see various sights along the Susquehanna River and the old "Port Road" line. We actually aimed to arrive at Perryville after MARC was done so we could watch Amtrak. We watched a few trains of all varieties and headed over to Havre de Grace, across the bridge. Here we could see the famous bridge broadside. I took plenty of shots to try different angles. Acelas sounded like a jet when they went across. CSX was active so Fiddler took us back to the Perryville side to check out the old B&O line. We hit the jackpot. We pretty much sat at W. Aiken where the siding before the bridge starts.

The spot we used was interesting. We left the Videoman at the nearby grade crossing and set out for a bridge a short distance up the line. Unfortunately for us, the bridge was being rebuilt so we had to settle for a spot in between. That spot was nearly in front of the CPL signals at the switch for the west end of Aiken siding. It also proved to be next to a local Christmas institution. Apparently the locals set up a lighted Christmas tree on a fenced in staging area behind our spot. The tree used to be set up for riders on the old B&O next to a long gone depot. Anyway, the spot is relatively public. We could also see the bridge construction and the grade crossing where Videoman was stationed from there. The bridge by itself was not as interesting as the fact that a railroad supervisor was there to oversee rail safety and all trains had to contact him for clearance through the zone.

The scanner revealed to us that a larger work zone on the west side of the bridge was winding down for the day and a few trains were stacked up and waiting to proceed. This was why we were here. First a westbound (south to DC) Q439 came by and took the siding. 15 minutes later S439 (wb) came by and pulled in behind Q439 on the siding. It's marker was next to the grade crossing. This signaled a change in the traffic flow. Sure enough 40 minutes later we had 3 trains, 10 minutes apart. Q438, Q174 and local D777. The local was notable for the road slug unit it used. I later caught it's silhouette on it's return voyage over the river.

Well that was "hot action" for these here parts, and it was slowing for a while. We then made an effort to find a good view of the old B&O bridge and a westbound was passing. We failed on both counts. Fiddler was in constant contact with various listservs and friends so he got some newer directions. Meanwhile we sat on the pier at Havre de Grace with dinner and watched action on the various bridges. I managed to get the better silhouettes on this second visit to the pier.

The location of a local picnic ground and shooting range turned out to have a great view of the B&O bridge and we found it with pointers from Fiddler's friend. And, the sun was perfect for the spot. What luck! The scanner was quiet when we arrived, but just as I was about to give up and started to look through the lens for empty bridge photos, I saw a westbound headlight. The radio started to crackle more with this train in the vicinity. We knew another train was behind this one. Aw shucks. Two trains coming at us in ideal light. Hard to take. Even better though, among the radio calls someone gave away that there was an eastbound "juice train" in the area. Though it turned out to be quite a wait, it was worth it to see a bridge filled with white Tropicana cars. This was the first time I'd seen the east coast version of the long running train. Having this breath taking place to watch it was a bonus.

It was getting dark by the time we could do any more local railfanning and it seemed that CSX was done for a while. Time to follow the former PRR "Port Road". Trains on this line cannot enter Amtrak's NEC track until 10pm so we thought we might see a few stack up short of Perryville for the run to Wilmington or Baltimore. No such luck. However, we did take quite a few detours through the fields and hollows along the Susquehanna River to see the tracks. Well into the darkness Fiddler took us to the Safe Harbor power plant area where the "Port Road" line and former PRR "Low Grade" lines (both were electrified) crossed a valley on some pretty spectacular bridges (photo, cited on Flickr).

Tuesday was spent on Amtrak's Harrisburg line. This was my first time on the fabled PRR main line from Harrisburg to Philadelphia so relics of the PRR were fascinating. We started at Parkesburg where the "Low Grade" line once joined up in a great "flyover" junction. Work crews had one of the tracks out of service so all trains had to cross over to the depot track at Park tower for the 15 mile run to Leaman. The one train we stayed around for was a westbound that had to cross over. He even had orders "hooped up" by a tower operator in the process. I photographed him at the depot but I think the video guys may have filmed the ancient process.

Down the line we went to Christiana. The freight house has been restored and had a shaded platform on the back for us to watch passing trains. We caught a couple. They were on the one track in service, which in this case was the far track. This did open the view a bit for us. The passenger depot was still in place and apparently is in the process of a historical restoration.

We moved on to Gap for a different view. The Videoman and I waited on an eastbound at a signal bridge. A husband and wife on motorcycles dropped by for a brief chat since they were railfans and had ridden the Strasburg the day before. Fiddler found a perch closer to the downtown area and we were off to Leaman Place to catch a potential meet between the two diesel powered "Pennsylvanian" trains.

At Leaman Place we arrived at the same time as a Strasburg Railroad train. We had lunch from Wawa's so we ate and watched the runaround maneuver take place. Fiddler and I decided that we'd move west for one of two grade crossings on this high speed electrified line. This is definitely Amish country too. The crossing is the site of a signal bridge featuring new Amtrak style CPL's, so I wanted all of the above in the shot if possible. Well, we didn't catch the meet or a waiting Amish buggy but we did catch the two trains, identifiable by their diesel locomotives. Videoman was luckier. A Strasburg train pulled in as both trains met at Leaman Place. Good timing. On the way back we noted that in the town of Paradise, an orphanage named "Christ's Home for Children" had signs out front pointing to "Christ's Home, Office". Now we know. Naturally the town name is appropriate too. My last shot on the line was by none other than the freight house in Bird in Hand, conveniently past the town of Intercourse.

Wednesday, our final day in the area, took us to Newport on the old PRR Middle Division. This is north of Harrisburg and a short distance up the Juniata River. We stayed around the local park, in the shade, for about 4 hours and caught 13 trains.

A race back to Mohnton and off again with just we three railfans for Ken McCorry's massive Buffalo Line layout. His work models the entire line from Harrisburg to Buffalo with over 3000 feet of mainline track. It took Fiddler and Videoman over an hour to run (and put on video) an office car special over the entire line! It was a work night rather than operating session so only a few guys were around. Ken was a great host and his crew workers were friendly and helpful. Fred, who normally operates the tower at Renovo, was a great tour guide for me and answered a lot of silly questions from this neophyte who doesn't use DCC or model in HO. (I'm a DC guy in N scale). It wouldn't be hard to guess that this is the largest non-club layout in the country. It takes about 30 guys to run a 4+ hours operating session. The signaling and car card system, in addition to the computerized dispatching just blew my mind.

Well that was it. A "haptning time" as usual. Lots of ground covered and lots of trains recorded.

BC