Standard Gauge Ops - September 5, 2015

First Ops For September

Once again, fabulous weather allowed us to gather in the train yard for our 18th session of the season.

  Man, are we blessed!  In Colin's absence, I was asked to help out in Nelson Yard.  What a joy it is to get back working with Gordie and Colin's son, Paul.  I snapped this shot of Nelson Yard pre-session.  That's Glen Hammond Yard in behind with Bell further off in the distance.

We're here in the crew lounge assembling for the introductory remarks.  That's Seanna in the ON shirt chatting with Lela.  Mark, in the yellow shirt, has the head table well under control.

The lads and lasses love to socialize and talk trains.
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Bernie and Steve share a story while Moe, Paul, Malcolm and Chris look on.

Pat cracks a smile while Bob readies himself for the long haul ahead as he must traverse the railroad in both directions with the ore train.

Doug, to the right, informs us about some minor amendments to the session before we head to our respective cabs.

The caboose track in Nelson Yard showcases the colourful nature of railroading.

Gord has the Drover Caboose rest on the inside track leading into Glen Hammond to begin the session.  He's aboard the cab of this 44-tonner.

Pat's all smiles as he has some new (old) passenger equipment to run.  We'll check in on his run later.

Paul and I are aboard this beautifully weathered CN RS3 as we switch out the nearby industries located to the east of Nelson Yard.

Moe mutters something under his breath about those pesky railfans.  Hehehe!

Paul and I have drilled the both tracks across the gut as we proceed to pull cars from one of the sidings near the ore facility.

It is not uncommon to "sandwich" your engine between cuts of cars while switching, although the communication between the brakeman and the engineer must be extremely well coordinated.

Colin makes use of a coloured penny system while working Nelson Yard.  This methods makes it quite a bit easier for the switch crews to coordinate traffic.

40' boxcars offer this railfan a splash of colour.

With some cars coming from far afield!

Paul, Doug and Steve are in conversation while Lela and Chris (in the background) have arrived Bell with the 302.  Steve must locate a locomotive before he can begin his work aboard Train 327.

Paul and I continue our shunting of cars to their respective tracks in the big yard at Nelson.  One thing is for sure, with no imminent traffic on the horizon, the main provides us with one heckuva long yard lead!  Our diesel is passing the depot at Belson.

Ahhh....now, ain't that cute...two "husband and wife" tandems working together!  Just kidding, lads and lasses.  We're envious of Steve and Chris who have "better halves" who hold a keen interest in train operations.  We should be so lucky!

I showed Pat earlier with a big smile on his face.  The reason is because he is running some new Canadian Pacific varnish on this day.

Passenger Train #2 has departed Firgrove and is spotted at "The Ledges" downgrade into Bell.

An artsy "going away" shot of Passenger #2.

Back in the yard, Gordie, Paul and I have all the trains assembled and we've placed the cabeese on the appropriate end of each train as per destination.

From my vantage point in Nelson Yard, I spot the Pool Turn 15 arriving the depot in Glen Hammond while Gordie continues his efforts in the main yard.  Moe, out of the picture, is at the helm of the pool train.

Bob's ore train rounds the curve just outside Nelson Yard on his eastbound trajectory.

"We have a meet!  We have a meet!", this ardent railfan repeats to himself as eastbound Passenger Train #2 meets westbound Pool Turn 15 in Glen Hammond.

Shortly following the meet of the two passenger trains, Paul and I, aboard RP&M Transfer 65 meet Passenger Train #2 as we await its departure so that we can then enter the yard in Glen Hammond.  We are running short hood forward heading out and we will return long hood forward from Rat Portage.

The ore train of loads in Nelson Yard.

Train 302 terminates here at Nelson Yard.  Chris and Lela will then pick up Train 312 and continue eastbound to Craig Leigh.

Bill, the yardmaster at Firgrove, enjoys a short hop over to Bell, a new twist in the operations scheme this season.

Steve, aboard RP&M mixed Train 67, climbs out of Pratt's Bottom destined for the Interchange at Bell.  Steve will later return down these same tracks as Train 68.

RP&M Transfer 65 has complted its moves at Rat Portage.  The crew has run around their train and is ready to place their transfer caboose on the far end of their train.

Meanwhile, Moe has his pool train coming downgrade into Rat Portage.  The timing could not have been better as Paul and Mike will depart Rat Portage just before he arrives.

Paul now has the transfer caboose on the far end of the train.  He and Mike will be returning back to Nelson Yard with "2 cars out".

This great "father and son" tandem always keep things in check at Firgrove and the big yard at Ralph.

RP&M Transfer 65 passes the station at Bellamy on its return to Nelson Yard.

Moe's Pool Train follows shortly thereafter and heads into Glen Hammond.

The Pool Turn now eastbound at the depot in Glen Hammond.

Train 312 in the siding at Spruce.

The stockyard at Mount St. Helens seems to be a very busy location on this fine morning.

Train 319 holds the siding at Mount St. Helens awaiting clearance into Ironwood.

A look at 319 from the rear.

Bernie, the yardmaster at Craig Leigh, assembles Passenger #1.

Take a close look at the new bell Bernie has placed atop the short hood end of his TH&B GP7.  What a super match with the paint job.  Looks great, Bernie!

An attractive piece of rolling stock on the Northland siding.

Bob Meldrum visits on this day.  Pat thanks Bob for getting the CP passenger over to him.  They used to belong to our good friend, the late Mike Iveson.

Passenger #1 departs the terminal tracks of Craig Leigh.

Bernie continues to work the industries in Craig Leigh.

The Pool Train is nearing the end of its run as it will soon climb the grade out of Mount St. Helens and enter the yard at Craig Leigh.

301 has been held at several locations en route.  The crew is now happy to continue its switching moves in Spruce.

Steve works the interchange at Bell.aboard mixed 67/68.

Paul and Gord enjoy a much deserved rest.  They are superb yardmen and I must add that it is a great honour to work with them both.

Passenger Train #1 rounds the big curve out of Ironwood.

The sun shines through the clerestory of the dining car "Athlone" creating some rather unique and interesting lighting effects.

A closer examination of this interesting phenomenon.  

A little bit of trivia...the term "clerestory" should be pronounced "clear storey" as this is the origin of the term.  The upper level - upper storey - of the passenger car has windows, thus it is "clear".

301 continues with its moves at Spruce.  It's diesel is also "sandwiched" between cuts of cars.

Passenger #1 has pierced the bridge and will soon enter Glen Hammond.

301 downgrade outside of Spruce while 318 enters Ironwood off in the distance.

Love the colours of this transfer caboose on the IPP&W.

An earlier shot of Bill's transfer job between Firgrove and Bell.

A well-deserved break!

Thanks for coming out, Bob.  It was great seeing you!

Passenger #1 has terminated at Firgrove.

Steve and Seanna also terminate Train 327 at Firgrove.  Seanna has to leave to go to work shortly and Steve has asked me to crew with him on the return run as Train 328.

Firgrove sure looks busy in this picture.

Indeed, there's nothing nicer than the look of a lot of traffic in a yard...unless you're the yardmaster!

We know that Steve loves this "Ontario Northland" girl, and we certainly love having her come out to run trains with us.

I'm conductor/brakeman aboard 328 with Steve, who is pictured above.

Our train orders tell us that we are "7 cars out" of Firgrove.  When we arrive Bell Junction, we will set out four cars, one to Stuart Yard, two to the Interchange track and one to the loco fuel depot.  We will also lift three cars from Stuart Yard leaving us six cars out of Bell.

Here's a cool shot of track between Watkins Siding and Peter's Pond.  This train is running below Mount St. Helens at the moment.

From the cant on the cars in the train, it certainly looks like some further track maintenance must be organized at this location on the railroad.  Yes, the outdoor garden railroad is no different than the real railroad...it must be maintained in order to run smoothly and Fred and the gang certainly take this role very seriously.  (Click on the photo to enlarge the image to see how pronounced the cant in the tracks appears.)

Hehehe!  Here's my "better side".  In fact, I was busy re-railing Pat's passenger cars below Mount St. Helens.  Thanks to Malcolm for snapping this image with his phone!  For sure, the cant in the tracks which I just learned about through studying the two photos above this one showcase an area which the road crew must address before the next session.

An overhead look at Train 328.

Steve and Mike switch out the industries up in Cedar Rock.

It was a joy working with Steve on the 328.

Well, I guess this "going away" shot tells me that we're nearing the end of this posting on the session.

So, we head over to the crew lounge where we spot Moe cooking up the "dogs" and Doug, our illustrious dispatcher, enjoying a soothing refreshment.

Chris listens to Steve as he tells the guys about his aircraft experiences.

Malcolm and Pat, getting a little sun on their backs.

Bernie relaxing!

Looks like a Canada flag...almost.  "Mike in the Middle" enjoying a Bernie/Bill sandwich!

No...that's not Mike's drink either!

Steve and Chris sharing work stories from the high tech field.

Fred's new garden.

With extremely "low maintenance" plants.

As well as some nice garden ornaments.

Offering a nice welcome to visitors as it is the first thing they encounter when they head out back.

Fred, the man himself!

Indeed, our sessions this season have been "fair weather" ones!

Ironwood caboose #25 brings up the rear as we close this chapter of train ops on the IPP&W/RP&M for yet another week.  
Here's to many more great sessions as we head into September!  Mike Hamer - Ottawa, Ontario, Canada