Trackside Log for Monday, November 27, 2006

Today was the last day of Marcus' and my trip around New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. We started off by leaving the Best Western in Henrietta and driving straight to Lakeville, New York to catch the Livonia, Avon and Lakeville running. To date I'd never been able to photograph them operating. We arrived just in time to see them getting ready to take off for the day.

• 0815 Lakeville, NY - LAL northbound - LAL 420-LAL 425

We chased it ahead to Avon where it lifted a hopper from the siding…

• 0845 Avon, NY - LAL northbound - LAL 420-LAL 425

...reversed back onto its train…

• 0859 Avon, NY - LAL northbound - LAL 420-LAL 425

...and headed north again.

• 0905 Avon, NY - LAL northbound - LAL 420-LAL 425

We chased it ahead again where it was switching a grain elevator.

• 0926 North Avon, NY - LAL northbound - LAL 420-LAL 425

Next we chased it one more time. We arrived in North Rush where we discovered a small railroad museum we didn't know was there. It made a nice scene for the LAL train.

• 0941 North Rush, NY - LAL northbound - LAL 420-LAL 425

We then photographed some of the locomotives at the Rochester & Genessee Valley Railroad Museum.

• 0948 North Rush, NY - Rochester & Genessee Valley Railroad Museum power - LV 211, USAX 1843, Rochester & Genessee Valley 1654, Eastman Kodak 6

There were a variety of other engines there as well but they were unfortunately impossible to photograph. We called it quits for the Livonia, Avon and Lakeville and drove to the Finger Lakes Railway in the hopes of finding them running. No sooner had we arrived in Geneva, New York when we were stopped by crossing gates. Nice timing, eh! We waited for the train to pass and drove ahead of it.

• 1112 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway westbound - FGLK 2201-FGLK 1751

As luck would have it we were able to photograph the 2201 in its fresh Lehigh Valley paint. We proceeded to the Finger Lakes Railway shops to see what else we might find.

• 1127 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway power - FGLK 1801
• 1135 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway power - FGLK 2304
• 1151 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway power - FGLK 2301
• 1152 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway plow - FGLK 10

We were just about to leave Geneva for the CSX mainline when we noticed that engine 1751 was returning to the yard. We found an interesting place to photograph it.

• 1205 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway eastbound - FGLK 1751/FGLK 2201
• 1215 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway eastbound - FGLK 1751/FGLK 2201

The train was now operating in push/pull mode and stopped just short of the yard. Marcus asked the Finger Lakes engineer if they were waiting for a train. It turned out they were.

• 1236 Geneva, NY - NS southbound - NS 8452-NS 9438

Following the Norfolk Southern train the Finger Lakes train entered the yard.

• 1239 Geneva, NY - Finger Lakes Railway eastbound - FGLK 1751/FGLK 2201

We then concluded that we were done in Geneva and turned north toward the CSX's former New York Central mainline. After driving along the track we found an interesting location and waited for a while to see what might show up.

• 1341 Palmyra, NY - CSX eastbound - CSXT 4753-CSXT 4801-CSXT 4841
• 1349 Palmyra, NY - CSX eastbound - CSXT 5333-CSXT 5277-CSXT 621
• 1400 Palmyra, NY - CSX westbound - CSXT 5348-CSXT 4721

We decided to start driving west toward home. We followed the tracks but didn't see much else. I'd photographed a location in Fairport, New York in May 1999 during the final days of Conrail. The location was an abandoned road bridge over both the mainline and the Erie Canal. I had previously learned that the bridge was replaced and the road reopened. I was curious to see what it looked like so we searched out the location. Our first train turned out to be the eastbound Maple Leaf.

• 1514 Fairport, NY - Amtrak 64 east - AMTK 187

The eastbound Maple Leaf met its westbound counterpart just west of town. We waited for the westbound to arrive but it had a red signal and stopped. Before long an eastbound autorack train arrived after which Amtrak departed.

• 1525 Fairport, NY - CSX Q268 east - GCFX 3078-CSXT 8532
• 1528 Fairport, NY - Amtrak 63 west - AMTK 90

It was starting to get pretty dark so Marcus and I put away the cameras and moved westward toward home. It had been a rather productive three days.

Trackside Log for Sunday, November 26, 2006

Today Marcus and I started out from Clarks Summit and headed for the Delaware-Lackawanna in Scranton. We headed into town and very quickly discovered two Centuries parked behind a CP grain train.

• 0813 Scranton, PA - DL power - DL 3642-DL 3000
• 0831 Scranton, PA - DL southbound - CP 6043-CP 6045-CP 5697-CP 5930

After shooting the grain train we headed to the Delaware-Lackawanna shops to see what was lying around.

• 0846 Scranton, PA - DL power - MHWA 2045
• 0848 Scranton, PA - DL power - DL 2461
• 0850 Scranton, PA - DL power - MHWA 2453
• 0856 Scranton, PA - DL power - DL 324-DRMX 6763-VLIX 41-DL 2457-DL 2452-DL 4118-DL 327-DL 3643

While shooting around the shops another railfan arrived and alerted me that the grain train was getting ready to depart for Pocono Summit. Off we went to photograph it en route.

• 0930 Elmhurst, PA - DL southbound - CP 6043-CP 6045-CP 5697-CP 5930
• 0938 Moscow, PA - DL southbound - CP 6043-CP 6045-CP 5697-CP 5930

We continued along the line to Cresco where we photographed the station.

• 1036 Cresco, PA - DL&W station

We didn't have any real plans for the remainder of the day so we decided to head to the Norfolk Southern main line around Easton, Pennsylvania. Easton is on the Hudson River across from Phillipsburg, New Jersey. The area is quite fascinating with former Central of New Jersey, Erie-Lackawanna and Lehigh Valley tracks. The Lehigh Valley was quite abandoned. We hunted around and wound up spending the afternoon in Phillipsburg. Chalk up New Jersey as the 38th state I've visited.

• 1348 Phillipsburg, NJ - NS 32A east - NS 9435-NS 9193-NS 5637
• 1617 Phillipsburg, NJ - NS westbound - NS 3413-NS 5295
• 1627 Phillipsburg, NJ - NS 65R west - NS 9613-NS 9501

It was getting truly dark when train 65R surprised us. We decided to call it quits and headed back north. We stopped off at Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania for supper and then found a room at the Best Western in Henrietta, New York. The next morning we were heading down to the Livonia, Avon and Lakeville.

Trackside Log for Saturday, November 25, 2006

Today Marcus and I were headed to New York and Pennsylvania for a little short line railfan trip. Before Marcus arrived in St. Catharines I decided to head to Merritton to see what the Maple Leaf had for a train.

• 1009 Merritton, ON - Via 97 eaast - AMTK 187

I returned home to meet Marcus at 1100. We headed off to New York. Unfortunately it's the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend so the border was a bit nuts. It took about 90 minutes to get through customs at the Whirlpool Bridge. We headed through Lockport where we ran across a snow plow.

• 1347 Lockport, NY - Delaware-Lackawanna snow plow - DLWR 400783

We followed the Falls Road east and found a few stations.

• 1428 Medina, NY - station
• 1446 Albion, NY - station
• 1500 Fancher, NY - station

The line ends at Brookport so we headed down to Shortsville to see the Finger Lakes Christmas Train. Unfortunately it was getting quite dark, but we managed to photograph it anyway.

• 1647 Shortsville, NY - Finger Lakes Christmas Train west - FGLK 1751/FGLK 2201

I used my tripod and long exposures to get some reasonable shots of the train when it stopped to offload passengers.

• 1658 Shortsville, NY - Finger Lakes Christman Train west - FGLK 1751/FGLK 2201

It was getting very dark so Marcus and I got some food and headed to the Comfort Inn in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania for the night.

Trackside Log for Friday, November 24, 2006

Today I spent the first part of the morning working from home dealing with scheduling issues. By the time I was ready to leave for work it was nearly time for the Amtrak through town. I timed it so I could photograph the train on my way to work.

• 1007 Merritton - Via 97 east - AMTK 70

That worked out well. I only waited about five minutes and then I was off to work.

Trackside Log for Saturday, November 18, 2006

Well, it was a pretty cloudy morning, but I felt like getting outside anyway. I headed down to Merritton to catch the Maple Leaf and whatever else Canadian National decided to run around that time. While approaching the tracks I heard the NI dispatcher inform Norfolk Southern train 327 that it would be waiting for about fifteen minutes at Bridge 6. Excellent.

• 0954 Merritton - NS 327 west - NS 8333-NS 9297
• 1004 Merritton - CN 332 west - CN 2639
• 1009 Merritton - Via 97 east - AMTK 70

Train 332 hosed me on the Maple Leaf. The Amtrak emerged from behind 332 right in front of me so I was unable to get a photo. I was planning on visiting Fort Erie so I decided to make my way there via Niagara Falls so I could photograph the Maple Leaf.

• 1027 Niagara Falls - Via 97 east - AMTK 70

Then it was on to Fort Erie where I heard that Canadian National train 339 was working.

• 1109 Fort Erie - CN 339 east - CN 5750-CN 2554-CSXT 8548-CSXT 8530-CSXT 8626
• 1306 Fort Erie - NS 369 west - NS 2588-NS 8311
• 1313 Fort Erie - CP 256 east - CP 9809-CP 9740-CP 8562

I wasn't expecting much else of interest so I got back on the Queen Elizabeth Way headed for home.

Trackside Log for Monday, November 13, 2006

Last night was painful. I developed a headache at around 2100 that persisted until this morning. I stayed home from work but someone was hammering on something. With a sense of irony I drove to the tracks in Merritton for some quiet.

• 0927 Merritton - CN 331 west - CN 2658-CN 5695
• 0941 Merritton - NS 328 east - NS 9358-BNSF 7714

Train 328 was held by bridge 6 while Via train 97 was held at Glenridge.

• 1049 Merritton - Via 97 east - AMTK 187
• 1112 Merritton - CN 567 west - CN 9615

My headache was showing no signs of abating so I returned home with hopes that the hammering would be over.

Trackside Log for Saturday, November 11, 2006

It was a dark, dreary, miserable day but I figured it would be a good chance to try out the D80 in low light conditions. I headed to my usual hunting ground, Merritton. It wasn't long before I heard Norfolk Southern train 327 on the scanner.

• 0933 Merritton - NS 327 west - NS 9358-BNSF 7714
• 1011 Merritton - Via 97 east - AMTK 716
• 1024 Merritton - CN 331 west - CN 2658-CN 5695-BNSF 9351-BNSF 9362

It had been a very long time since I'd been to the Paris and Princeton area. I decided to head that way and catch train 331 again.

• 1218 Princeton - CN 385 west - CN 5669-CN 5705
• 1222 Princeton - Via 72 east - VIA 908
• 1254 Princeton - CN 271 west - CN 5322-CEFX 6015

Wow. It hurt to see ex-Soo 6015 like that.

• 1309 Princeton - CN 331 west - CN 2658-CN 5695-BNSF 9351-BNSF 9362
• 1326 Paris - Via 73 west - VIA 6417

I started to meander my way back home by following the Canadian National Dundas Subdivision but didn't hear much of anything else. I did stop off at Great Western Model Trains in Brantford and Modeller's Choice in Hamilton however to purchase a nice DTSL auto parts car and two TH&B slad side covered hoppers. Although the weather was terrible, I managed to photograph some interesting trains. It wasn't all bad.

Trackside Log for Friday, November 10, 2006

Once again this morning I elected to drop by Canadian National in Merritton to see if anything was due. Upon arrival I discovered that train 339 east was to stop at Glenridge to wait for train 421 east. Train 421 had split its train at Clifton to double into Port Robinson yard. Train 332 west was ahead of 421's power returning to the second half of its train.

• 0903 Merritton - CN 332 west - CN 5672
• 0916 Merritton - CN 339 east - CN 5659-CN 5384

Train 333 west was also on the way but I didn't have time to stick around and departed Merritton for work.

Trackside Log for Thursday, November 9, 2006

Today on my way to work I stopped by Merritton to see if anything was lined through. Sure enough, train 339 had a signal.

• 0807 Merritton - CN 339 east - CN 5766-CN 5660

I took my photo and resumed my drive to work.

Trackside Log for Monday, November 6, 2006

Before work today I wanted to follow the rails to see what I could find.

• 0755 Welland - parked power - EMDX 2004

It was about time for Trillium to start their day so I made my way to Dain City.

• 0820 Dain City - Trillium northbound - TR 110

Then I was off to work.

After work I heard on the scanner that Canadian Pacific job 1 would be entering the Hamilton subdivision at Brookfield ahead of train 255. I drove over to the tracks to catch them both.

• 1528 Welland - CP job 1 north - CP 3096
• 1544 Welland - CP 255 north - CP 8795-CP 9544

I turned north to head back to St. Catharines when I heard Canadian National train 531 leaving Port Robinson. I figured Cooks Mills would be a good place to catch it.

• 1622 Cooks Mills - CN 531 east - CN 5717

It was getting dark so I called it quits. Considering I didn't try very hard that turned out nicely. I managed to photograph all three local railroads.

Trackside Log for Sunday, November 5, 2006

This morning I decided to see what was roaming the rails of Niagara. Shortly after leaving home I heard two Canadian Pacific trains converging on Welland. That sounded like as good a place to start as any.

• 0915 Welland - CP 256 south - CP 9514-CP 9628-CP 8701
• 0945 Welland - CP 255 north - CP 9662-CP 9616

Train 255 was big. It crossed the detector at mile 18.3 with 658 axles. The dispatcher mentioned that the length was 14,000 feet.

• 1006 Welland - parked power - EMDX 2004
• 1028 Welland - CN 331 west - CN 5516-CN 5454

Canadian National train 332 was waiting at Harbour Draw to cross the border so I headed for Fort Erie.

• 1143 Fort Erie - CN 332 west - CN 2605
• 1248 Fort Erie - CP 256 east - CP 9514-CP 9628-CP 8701
• 1338 Fort Erie - NS 369 west - NS 9106-NS 8395-UP 5136

It turned out to be a relatively decent day but I was tired and decided home was where I wanted to be.

Trackside Log for Saturday, November 4, 2006

Wow! It had certainly been a while since I'd been trackside. The previous night I attended the Hamilton Bulldogs game with my father. They defeated Syracuse 5-3. I stayed in Binbrook overnight and decided on Copetown and Lynden to spend some time by the tracks. I pulled into Copetown just as Canadian National train 399 was passing under the Highway 52 bridge. Nice timing.

• 0919 Copetown - CN 399 west - CN 2646-CN 5554
• 0928 Copetown - Via 70 east - VIA 6412
• 1046 Lynden - CN 385 west - CN 5756-CN 2563
• 1152 Lynden - CN 144 east - CN 5371
• 1154 Lynden - CN 271 west - CN 5352-HLCX 8158

Someone began to burn leaves and the smoke swept over the tracks. I determined it to be time for a move back to Copetown.

• 1255 Copetown - Via 72 east - VIA 901
• 1258 Copetown - Via 73 west - VIA 6418
• 1333 Copetown - CN 331 west - CN 5797-WC 6949

Train 392 was experiencing difficulties with an Illinois Central engine. The following train 148 was to donate an engine at Hardy. I didn't fancy the hour wait so I packed up for home.