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