November's Here...Yet September Lingers On From Two Months Ago
Yes, we still have plenty to share from our September runnings two months ago on the railroad.
Indeed, while we may be in the month of November now...
...these photographs arrived here from back in September.
And...what a treat it is...
...to look into the recent past.
Peter's Pond continues to draw trains from the east and the west.
Whenever we find this beauty of a Geep (GP30) in the maroon, grey and gold pinstriping...
...we know that Paul is not far away.
He works around the tail end of my train which is protected on the main...
...in order to deposit some tanker traffic...
...to the siding in Peter's Pond.
Some busy looking activity we have going on here.
Our stealth bomber arrives Bell and meets another train.
Lawrence had brought out this beauty.
I was curious regarding the sloped tender...
...so I did a bit of research on them.
Here is what I found..."Typical switch engines spent as much time waiting as they did switching. They didn't require large tenders. Tenders for such locomotives were designed with a sloping rear - reducing the capacity of water, but allowing better visibility to the rear which was very important during switching operations. The Pennsylvania Railroad (and many others) had many switchers with slopeback tenders."
Back in Ironwood this CP diesel "sans stanchions" arrives town.
Some of the railfans in Bell.
Vintage Image Alert!
Click on this image to enlarge it and study how Bell looked back in 2006...as spotted to the left. Glen Hammond and Nelson Yard are also shown here as is the tall tree in the distance at Bellamy. Note the station semaphore signal attached to the tree.
The tail end tells me the pedestrian crossing should be available momentarily.
How about checking the vintage video footage of the passage of this train.
Ah...success!
The crew is proud of their diminutive locomotive.
Still more moving action from the lens of my camera.
Now...back to this past September. We spot a terrific trio! That would be Moe, Paul and Bill.
Some work going on at the outdoor bench.
For this session, we had set out a handful of cars in each location, not as many as a typical train ops session but a sufficient amount to allow the switching and train orders to be challenging and enjoyable.
They may be a generation or two apart, but they share the same objective...get freight a-movin'!
Shadows in the night...or...early morning!
Hey, I've spotted my own train about to work the Cedar Rock Branch!
She's a-shovin' today...and up the branch she goes!
Our target here is a set-out of the orange and black tankcar which was situated as second car behind the locomotive in our train's consist. In order to save time, we have chosen to keep the stockcar with us as the move up in Cedar Rock entails a facing "push in" for the drop off and, following a quick glance at our switch list, there will be no trailing moves to consider at the end of the branch.
In the distance we spot our gas electric paying a visit to St. Helens.
As mentioned, it appears all of our moves in Cedar Rock are of the facing variety on this morning...as the CP 40 footer came from one of the facing industries.
Having acquired our "pick-up" we pull our train down the branch toward Peter's Pond.
Arrival at the Pond.
A blurry look at our lifted car.
Back on our train, we head east towards Nelson Yard.
It's a sunny fall morning and the grass is still green...not white just yet...and that "is" a good thing!
Arriving the junction.
We can see some of the more recent developments along the line completed in the last couple of years...all of these sidings included.
Hey, a rarely seen mixed train!
And...it's the passengers doing the heavy lifting!
As the passenger train arrives the outskirts of Glen Hammond, we depart Nelson Yard.
The eastern throat of Nelson Yard.
She may not be a busy looking yard at present, but she's...still a yard!
Say, let's head back in time to 2004 and visit Mr. Bill Sn3 Scobie...yes, I know...it's not Christmas time just yet...but I couldn't resist posting this picture of the handsome lad!
Say, check out this video from the invasion of 2009!
The railroad near Nelson Yard circa 2004.
That's all for this entry folks. I hope you have enjoyed these wonderful vintage photos!
All the best, Mike Hamer, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Great stuff, Mr Hamer. Love the archival footage and photos.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Johnny! What a treasure trove they are! It's fun to see how the railroad appeared in the past. Lots of changes over the years, for sure! All the best, Mike!
ReplyDelete