I had more time again…so here we go! Each picture can be made bigger by clickicking on it. I also have video of each train from Sunday which I’ll link to when they’re done. Thanks for reading.
Saturday January 29, 2011
CN 2453 lead train A415 south from Stevens Point with 147 cars on Saturday 1/29. The aging C40-8M would take the very long train down Dixie Siding where it would cut off the train and rejoin the rear unit, CN 2407, so the train could continue north to Green Bay. Seen here just coming into Neenah.
After following A415 to Dixie I was going to call it a day as there was MoW work going on and nothing much else would be moving during the daylight. I stopped at “The Brigage” lot (typical haunt for local railfans) to read an issue of Trains…when the MP181.1 detector sounded. After a short wait A447 came into town.
That would be it for my Saturday. It got dark and I was bored so home I went.
Sunday January 30, 2011
This day would prove more interesting. I was heading north on US41 about to exit at Breezewood (normal exit) to head near Neenah Yard when I heard “UP 6457 Diverging-Advance Approach” over the scanner. I stayed on 41 and got off at Winchester. Seeing I was ahead of the train (he was still on the Fox River Sub) I pulled in on Blair Ave.&nbs
Wow - impressive story - plot, characters, setting, narration, and neat photos to boot !! A new standard to aspire to ! Thanks for sharing. [bow] You buy a lottery ticket too on the way home ? [swg]
Do you have or know of any ‘broadside’ shots of those new CN ore jennies ? I’d like to see that sometime - the Feb. 1976 Trains article on the DM&IR’s “mini-quads” had a few photos that illustrated the twin air line hoses and the complexity of the couplers vs. the drawbars, as well as the opposing wheels just 13" apart ! It looks like you had excellent lighting for that - lots of reflection off the snow to illuminate their undersides at times.
On DM&IR, 4 cars=1 car
Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range quads four cars drawbarred together
by Morgan, David P.
from Trains February 1976 p. 12
brake DM&IR&
Paul,
Thanks. How do these grab you:
There was a Kershaw brushcutter working somewhere NW of Neenah and several signal maintaners had ‘track and time’ to fix several 529 (a)'s and 529 (b)'s as well. I didn’t have much light left so I decided to linger around Neenah. I will keep your request in mind…but if you look at my MoW pictures on Flickr you can see several of the MoW projects & toys I’ve caught.
WOW^^2 (that’s “WOW” ‘squared’). You sir, are a gentleman, ascholar, a darn good photographer, and a conscientious, thoughtful, and generous railfan. Lots of good stuff to study in the first bunch, and fun things to drool over in the 2nd ! Thanks much !
[:-,] On those CN cars - they might have to go to a bigger car next time, 'cause it sure looks like they’re just about out of blank red surface on which to apply any more stencils, stickers, labels, warnings, data, etc. How many different items do they have on there ? I doubt that they’re all required - perhaps our resident guru of freight cars - Carl - could tell us ?
Thanks again, Dan ! I’m much obliged to ya.
WOW! Thanks again for a great report! Thats really cool you caught loaded ore jennies down here! And the UP power is welcome too, I guess there is a bright side to losing the BNSF WPSX coal trains through Point! Thanks again and keep em’ comin’![Y][:D]
Paul-
Thanks, I was actually entertaining a fellow 'fan from Milwaukee, WI who was up on a mini-vacation when I took these. He had never seen any before, and a friend who’s closer to Stevens Point heard (via scanner) the symbol for an ore train arrive in the wee hours of the morning and gave a heads up to me. I enjoy sharing and am glad you found something useful. I guarantee I’ve found more than one nugget of wisdom in your many posts.
WC3000-
I’m glad you enjoyed them! It’s nice to see more and longer trains than even a year ago.
I don’t know, Paul–which of the labels and stickers would you want to eliminate? Maybe one of the builder decals (I noticed two, which is typical of National Steel Car). But these cars seem to be a bit more sophisticated than the old DMIR ore cars, so I’m sure all the instructions and warnings concerning the discharge gates are necessary. The reflectorized strips, consolidated stencil, and other stuff are required, and the CN logo and web address wouldn’t want to be too much smaller.
What I miss on these cars is the high train line that was on the older cars. Instead of being down by the couplers, the anglecocks were up close to shoulder height. I wonder if the snow-pack in the North Country isn’t going to interfere with the hoses on these.
Am I seeing two hoses? Or is one of them the ECP Brake cable?
Wow, real nice job, Dan. You really did luck out with some beautiful catches. Thanks for sharing and we’ll look forward to more in the future. No mention, though, of your lil navigator; must be he was watching grandma! [swg]
Thanks Nance, and greetings all from Austin, TX. My little navigator was indeed at “Gramma’s” house. He gets antsy if trackside for too long…and horns & prime movers tend to wake him from naps. Maybe I can catch something worth sharing down here.
I thought I’d share a couple more pics from the last few days/weeks. As normal, all pictures are clickable if you want to see it larger and read the little blurb I entered for the picture.
Paul (PDN)-
Per your earlier request I found some MoW stuff going on. A track maintainer & crew were replacing a bolt and lit some long black thing on fire next to the rails to heat it. Then…
Hammer Time
After the bolt went it CN Foreman Bauman had to use a bucket filled with snow to put out the smudge.
A BCOL C40-8M got some new paint:
Remember a while back in the Lounge when I posted two pictures of units in sequential order? Here’s #3 and a pair of the WSOR Mexi-Phoenixes as well (3809 & 3810)!
Some of the trains I see:
CN 2141 (ex-BNSF C40-8W) leading at Neenah