A Look Back at Session #6 Last Season

Session #6 Revisited

On July 20th of last year we were able to run our sixth session of the season.

Usually by this time we would have run nine or ten sessions if Mother Nature had have been more cooperative.

Well, the sun shone and the lads and lasses were able to make it out trackside. 

 Let's have a gander of what transpired on that day, shall we!

TH&B #73 offers up an indication that this day's work was of the standard gauge variety.

It's the 'Bernie Man' who owns that TH&B beauty making an appearance on the scene.  

He is followed in short order by...

...the equally as handsome Garry!

Many of our early arrivers have set out much of the equipment required for the operations.

All that is needed now are the diesel locomotives!

Billy Boy has the umbrellas up and now he is 'up' to the task of running the big Nelson Yard!

But first, more trays of cars must be dealt with!

Len handles the traffic which will start the session in Ralph Yard to the west.

He and his buddy George will handle the main yard as well as all traffic heading into and out from Firgrove.

Out East, Robin will enjoy running the passenger trains.

Paul will act as the Douglas yardmaster on this day.

He still has plenty of traffic to disperse to their various locations in and around Craig Leigh.

One of the many versions of carrying cases for the locomotives which arrive with the various members of the group.

Fred holds our attention with the news of the day!

Dilip has brought out his recently purchased B&O road switcher which originated from the estate of our late friend, Lawrence.

Bob pays us a visit and Father Fred is so delighted to see him...as we all are!

All the best to you, Bob!

Henk's 45-tonner is pressed into action on this day.

Our video showcases how the "little engine that could" required a slight helping hand!

A Pullman car in New York Central livery brings up the rear of Passenger 4 hot out from Firgrove.

Conventional wisdom advises the 'higher ups' at the IPP&W that two opposing passenger trains can be run simultaneously. 

This video effort proves the point as Train #4 reaches Bell in the west at roughly the same time Train #3 reaches St. Helens in the east.

We are past the halfway point in our session as Moe brings Train #3 to a rolling stop in Wellington Lake.

Video review of Passenger #3.

We're nearing the end of the session as the crew of Train 323 ascends the grade into Firgrove where their train will terminate.

This video illustrates how secondary railroad lines serve an important purpose seeing as a significant amount of traffic flows along this bridge route known as the IPP&W Railway.

At an earlier time in the session, Train 312, finishes its run upon arrival in Craig Leigh.

312's arrival at Craig Leigh is found on video.

Earlier, the crew had met the ore train back in Spruce.

They still had Ironwood and St. Helens to deal with before terminating in Craig Leigh.

Their efforts in Spruce are video recorded.

The Pool Train meets an opposing IPP&W crew at Watkins Siding...named after the late Lawrence Watkins.

Meets on regional railroads are typically found where the lines terminate at junctions with other railroads, but this video attests to the fact that the IPP&W is one busy line with a solid future ahead!

This blue specimen is being handled in Ironwood aboard Train 314.

John & Dilip man 314 as they continue with their efforts at Ironwood.

Marcel & Moe relax in the shade of the lounge where the pond used to exist as they await clearance from dispatch to allow both of their trains to move on down the line.

Our affable yard masters at Nelson Yard enjoy a lull in the action!

Sid allows his locomotive to escape from its carrying case as he assists in the set out of freight cars pre-ops.  

Thanks Sid!

The improved signage made of metal.

Here's our sign-up sheet.

Passengers meet the freight crew in St. Helens.

Robin is running the eastbound passenger service as John works an eastbound freight.

John works Train 324 as the passenger consist drives on by.

Mark is spotted over in Nelson Yard having returned with his RP&M train.

The cooperage at Brewer's Barrels is doing a decent business on this day.

An aerial view of the parking lot.

Mark's Alaska unit handles the chores along the RP&M this day.

Sid runs the other RP&M train as he works the Fallentree Mine.

The shorty caboose is suitable for the short line operation known as the Rat Portage & Mattawa.

Arriving back in Nelson Yard in dappled shade.

The passenger train is a maverick as it passes "out of bounds" to the front of Fred's property.

A maverick's video!

No, this is not an optical illusion!  

The crew aboard 302 decide to place their "facing spot" for Bell at the front of their F-unit pairing!

Video proof of this creative move.

The RP&M crew escape Nelson Yard bound for the junction and on into Rat Portage.

They have been granted a limited time period to foul the junction in order to switch out the trailing siding to the west of Nelson Yard.

Junction video views.

Parallel running near the beginning of the session.

304 departs Glen Hammond as the RP&M crew deal with traffic to the east of Nelson Yard as seen in this video.

The radio chatter contains the dialogue between the crew of 301 and dispatch.  

301 is requesting clearance out from Craig Leigh to follow passenger Train #1.  

Clearance has been given and the crew of the freight train has been instructed to take the siding in St. Helens.

We spot a 'meet & greet' at Mercer Siding.

Mercer Siding video tape.

Ore meets wayfreight at Bell.

The short hop from Firgrove arrives the scene.

Bell video moment.

The Nelson switcher keeps occupied throughout the beginning of the session.

Our RP&M train has been cleared out from Glen Hammond.

Dispatch communicates with three crews as heard on this video.

Continued Nelson Yard video segments.

And we thought we had only one Great Northern diesel on the roster!

Great Northern action on video.

A quick glance of the icing platform in Craig Leigh in advance of the session.

The activity is quite light up in Cedar Rock and in Spruce at the moment.

Endcars come in a variety of shapes and colours.

Here's Dilip our narrow gauge train master who makes up the sessions through the RailOps program on computer.

Steve W. does the same for us when we run the standard gauge sessions.

Throw cables allow operators to throw distant turnouts while standing beside the large tree at St. Helens.

Labelling ensures the operator throws the appropriate turnout.

Bell is alive with activity throughout the majority of the session.

We spot the eastbound passenger train running 'geographical west' at Mercer Siding.

A number of crews follow trains that are 'miles' apart yet a 'yard' or so away!

Hey, what about the metric system, Mike!

Chris's CN Geep is at home switching out sidings along the route as evidenced here in Ironwood.

The locomotive represents Train 301 on this day.

Boxcars have taken over the siding track in Cedar Rock!

Early in the day Train 303 reaches Peter's Pond.

The crew clears the mainline for an imminent meet before they handle their switching chores.

We are able to capture the entire consist of 303 in this image.

The meet is in effect.

It's early in the morning and Marcel and Chris have reached Ironwood in good time.

Two other crews are kept busy with their tasks in behind them.

The ore train reaches this same location.

Mark has reached Bell after working Rat Portage with his RP&M train.

Bill & Henk keep the trains-a-moving as they are shuffled through Nelson Yard.

Sid hauls into the Glen with his RP&M consist.

We spot a triple meet up in Bell.

Video of the action in the Glen and at Bell.

The power for our westbound passenger service has reached the big curve at Lilly.

The counterpart passenger train is spotted off in the distance at Mercer.

Passenger video footage.

302 is underway out from Bell bound for Wellington Lake.

302 is the star of the video.

Train 301 assists 304 with their facing moves and vice versa!

The crew begins it moves as captured in this video.

With their mutual assists back in Ironwood, both crews can escape the yard much quicker as seen here with Train 304 departing the scene with aims on St. Helens.

304 digs in to the grade on video as it traverses the countryside.

The passenger run has come out of the hollers between Glen Hammond and Spruce and proceeds east at Clarke Grade.

Robin glides his train into the depot at Spruce.

The approach into Spruce as spotted on video.

302 departs Wellington Lake and is cleared through to Peter's Pond along the Bell Sub.

Meanwhile, ore traffic ascends Clarke Grade on the Spruce Sub.

Video work along two subdivisions.

Mark works the RP&M at the town of Stuart adjacent to Bell with his Alaska unit.

Video activities in and around Stuart and Bell.

Time for bed for our Ironwood Road unit.

Bedtime video.

The Drover caboose tells us that we are nearing the end of this blog entry.

Time for lunch!

And the camaraderie continues!

We take advantage of the shade offered by the large canopy located over the main lounge area.

Thanks for checking in on our blog entry! - Mike

On behalf of Father Fred, we thank you for taking a quick peek back at some of our fun from Session #6 last season.

There are still many more images and videos that were unused last year that can fill in whenever we have a rainout.

Our inaugural session is slated to begin next Saturday, May 24th.

We are the OVGRS of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Workday Wednesday Events

WDWD Events From This Week

Chris and I made it over to Father Fred's for the first official Workday Wednesday session of the season.

This follows the hard work put in by a much larger crew the previous Saturday in cleaning up the railroad and surrounding property where we also set up the main lounge area with canopy.  

Structures were put in place around the layout as well.

Fred wanted us to test out the trackwork so I brought along my CN RS3 diesel to put the railway through its paces.

After I had set out a few cars to make up my train in Craig Leigh I noticed a 'noticeable' gap in the rails on the near track in the passenger terminal area.  

I've snapped this image of Chris performing some track maintenance.

Chris has managed to push the rail joiners back in place!

Train Extra 7831 was the first train of the season to run.

This video was shot before the maintenance work was done.

Take note of a few cars wobbling as they cross that substantial gap in the rails.

We are underway in this video movement.

Another look on video from a different angle.

Here is my power on the train CN RS3 #7831.

The crew can check in on the livestock with the stockcar placed immediately behind the headend power.

Such a lovely livery.

The Delaware & Hudson moves coal along the IPP&W.

A triple dome tankcar.

Love the insignia for British American Oil Company on this chemical car.

No loads on the flatcar today.

Another D&H beauty.

The Ironwood Road van pulls up the rear of our train.

We've cleared Craig Leigh and have come to a stop in St. Helens before getting underway once more as exhibited on video.

Train Extra 7831 rolls by the videographer at Ironwood.

Chris continues with the weeding while I check out the trackwork ahead of my train.

Exiting Spruce on video tape.

Video of my train passing beneath 'The Rockery'.

Of planes & trains on video.

The bridge railings require attention as spotted in this video footage.

Passing by the depot in Glen Hammond, I notice the main window on the station has popped loose since the structure was placed out for the season as evidenced in this video.

Without the window I easily spot our dear friend, Lawrence, working away on yet another project at his work table.

Aha...he is constructing this very station for Glen Hammond as noted at the far end of the table!

That's better!

Love the semaphore.

These next few videos will showcase a couple of issues Chris & I encountered in this area of the railroad.

Chris has noticed in this video effort that most of the spikes on the Lawrence Watkins Trestle have come loose over the winter.

He gets down to work to re-spike the rail in place.

Great effort Chris!

In this video I back my train slowly over to the trestle in question when Chris & I notice something rather alarming.

There certainly is some sort of skirmish between trucks and rail as the freight cars move slowly through the questionable area in this video.

In this continued video the yellow reefer seems to have the greatest difficulty passing through the turnout and has been sent to the RIP Track aka Fred's workbench to have its wheel gauge inspected.  

Fred, Chris & I eventually determine that we will have to lift the track at some point in the near future and relay the timbers as there is a strong 'vertical kink' between two adjacent timbers.  

Perhaps some new wood may be required.

This video shows me continuing west through Bellamy and the junction trackage.

My final video from our morning at Fred's shows just how quickly the grass has grown since Dilip mowed the lawn the previous Saturday - and our workday was on the Wednesday!

This is the video Chris shot of me shooting my preceding video!

Pat arrived as Chris and I were tending the fabled 'Rust Garden'.

Why - it's a 'tug of war' as those danged weeds sure can stick to the soil!

Pat drove Fred to The Colonnade Restaurant for their weekly "History Circle" meet and Chris left for home on his bike while I waited for Lisa to pick me up.  

This gave me about 15 minutes more of 'work time' where I was able to fill an entire garbage can with debris over the area where the pond used to exist.

We have ordered a 10'x10' pop-up canopy for the area where the pond used to exist.  

As an addition to our existing crew lounge canopy, it most certainly will come in handy for shade for the lads and lasses during our post-ops lunch!

I also found time to snap a few images of some of the newly donated standard gauge cars to our fleet.

I love this Ironwood Road 40-footer which I believe Doug C. lettered for Fred.  

(Correct me if I am wrong, Freddie!)

How's about this "Blue Boy"!  

Loverly I say!

Who doesn't love multi-coloured freight cars such as this B&O beauty! 

Oh...those were the days! 😍

In other news, our illustrious dispatcher, Doug Matheson made it over to my place this morning to check in on the developments with our O-scale sawmill project.

That's Doug on the right with fellow project participant, Rob Kazakoff on the left.

I created this retaining wall to hold back the elevated land along a future roadway situated on the second segment of the full diorama.

The longer length of basswood indicates an extension I will build to lengthen the wall toward the farther slope.

Doug regales Rob & me with tales from sawmills past.

Rob himself is a true craftsman modeler and expert on all things sawmills.

He has built a sawmill and a machine shop in HO scale in the past.

An aerial shot (with a figure lying down between the wagon and the Linn half-truck).

Some quick video footage showcasing some of the various human roles in a sawmill.

The 'millwright' (head engineer) is the gentleman with the moustache standing in front of the boiler with the overalls and the red shirt.  He is responsible for all of the machinery. 

The 'block setter' (in the green shirt and red bandana) rides the log carriage while the 'head sawyer' activates the levers to control the upper sawblade and the carriage.

Continued video work of the gentlemen who toil in a sawmill.

The 'off bearer' also acts as the 'saw trimmer' and he positions himself between the live rolls and the feed table for the edger.

This next video remains in focus 'close-up' but loses focus as I move away from the mill.

The 'piler' holding the two boards has the role of stacking the lumber on the deck near the shipping area.

This video shows a general overview of the sawmill as it stands now.

Further to activities in this busy train week, I brought out two of Fred's large scale cars to our OVAR dinner meeting on Tuesday evening for display.

I do this to promote our large scale hobby each month.

The pair joins various other models I showcased across three scales (G, O & HO).

My buddy, Rob Kazakoff (who was sitting with Doug in my crew lounge a few images back) gifted me this lovely HO structure of the Drake Theatre.

His rendition of the Nautilus Diner tucks up beside the theatre.

There's Fred's CPRail "International of Main Division" 40' boxcar with the KLWO radio station and Malcolm's Record store which Chris Lyon gifted me sitting up front.

The theme for the meeting was 'non-Canadian' so the "International of Maine Division" fit the bill nicely.

We see Fred's Carnation Milk reefer...from upstate Washington. 

My research tells me that the name "Carnation" for the milk actually came from "Carnation Cigars".  

The owner of the milk company was passing by a cigar shop and saw the name "Carnation" printed on the sign above the store window - liked it and named his milk company with the same name!  

Whodaknown!

And...finally...where's there's Fred...there's lovely ladies!

That's Donna & Felicity sandwiching him!

Our skipper is one happy camper!

Well, that's it for this WDWD blog entry with plenty of variety for you!

We hope to gather this Saturday for one more run-through of trains before our official ops begin two weeks hence...although Mother Nature may have other thoughts!

Let's hope she changes her mind!

We are the OVGRS of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada