I am planning a trip to Altoona, PA. this summer, I was wondering about Horseshoe Curve and the area around it. Is the volume of traffic the same since the NS took over? I also heard that the brush in the park area is growing up pretty bad. Any info will be appreciated.
Thanks[:D]
I was there in September. stayed for about an hour, and 4 trains came through. they keep the bushes and grass cut in the accessable areas, as well as the “foot” on each end so you can see whats coming. its still a great place to watch from.
…I know there were plans to cut brush / trees on the “ends” of the curve to allow better viewing of trains coming and going…and glad to hear from the post above [trainheartedguy], they may have started to do so…It is a good place to witness units laboring up the grade with long loads and even units on the downgrade with dynamics whining and flanges squealing…maybe brakes smoking too…
I’ve been to Altoona seven times since 1995 so I know a lot about the area. I will give you a guide to the area. First, the Altoona area is packed with cool things, like two amusement parks, one by the tracks, some museums, a mall(not that I’m interested in malls but some people do like them, although this one has a great arcade), and other cool stuff. In fact, one of the amusement parks has a miniature golf course that is dedicated to railroads, it even has a hole for the Gallitzin Tunnels! The area is great for the family. Here is a list to all of the places to railfan, from Altoona westward to Johnstown, as of April to August 2003:
Altoona: There are several places to railfan around here. My favorite is the area across from the Amtrak station. You can get magazine-quality (I’ve made a few sucessful contributions to magazines in this area) shots here. The town is eay to get around, and has several great hotels, plus there is the Railroaders Memorial Museum , which has several great exhibits featuring railroading. The greatest part about railfanning here is that you catch a lot more helper action than Horse Shoe Curve.
Juniata Shops: The shops are just east of the Amtrak station, and are pretty much inacessible to the public. There is an area behind one of the many Sheetz gas stations/fast food restaurants that are everywhere you look on western PA. I have nabbed several good shots here, and this is where most of the good stuff in Juniata is.
Horse Shoe Curve: Yes, the rumors are true. Weeds are building up in the area, wrecking many “almost good” photo ops in the area. It almost looks like Penn Central days, maybe black paint isn’t the only thing NS shares with PC[:(]. Other wise the area hosts some great shots.
Gallitzin: Technically we shouldn’t be calling this area the Gallitzin tunnels because the town’s real name is Tunnelhill, and the real Gallitzin tunnel is the one you will see that has no track heading through it. The double track tunnel is the Alleg
Oh, I also forgot to mention that Cumberland, MD is an hour away and is a relief from all of the NS black.
I was there, and it is one place ever train lover should see. dougal hit everything pretty good.
Adrianspeeder
When I got there in Sept., they had a guy up there finishing up weed cutting.
Thanks for the update!
I thought the NS closed the old Juniata shops there, am I thinking of somewhere else or is this true?
I’ve heard at horeshoe curve there’s a 4-4-2 Atlantic sitting in the park. Is this true?
no 4884bigboy ii was there this summer and it is a conrail high hood gp7
I thought the GP7 was in PRR paint?!?!?!?!? (watch Zach as he scratches his head with wonder)
…Without digging out photos my memory tells me the diesel on horseshoe curve is in Pennsylvania paint. CSX presence in Johnstown is very small anymore. It enters from Rockwood…[main line of CSX], via the Somerset Cambria Branch which used to be a big coal hauler and it did haul steel products out of Johnstown too…still does haul a minimun of products with approx one train each day…The steamer that used to be on display on Horseshoe was a K-4. If memory serves me correctly it was removed about 1986 and taken to Altoona and reastored to working order. Last time I heard it was not running at the present time. I did photograph it at the Railroaders Museum in Altoona some years ago…[Across from the Amtrak station there]. I agree this is a great area of great Pennsylvania RR history and interested railfans should learn what is there and in the summer season…go take a good look. The oldest railroad tunnel is in this general area too…It’s not used on a rail line anymore but I understand they are working on it as part of a Trail…Someone from the area might comment on where they stand on that project now…One more comment…At Southfork one can walk out on a part of the *** of the dam that failed and caused the 1889 disastrous Johnstown flood.
…Sorry, post was entered twice. Just removed it.
It was a K4S It was taken to the Museum, but was then sent to Steamtown and restored to operation. (the city of Altoona wants it back, NS said if they send it back, it’ll never move from the museum again, because they want to remove the turnout to the museum) The GP7 is in Black paint with the keystone logo on each end, and the word Pennsylvania on each side. The old Juniata shops are as active as ever. One building burnt a few years back, but the rest are still in operation. (and thats a lot of buildings).
Cumberland is a good place to stop too. As a Marylander, I am sad to say Ive only been there once. They have the CSX main, and an excelent WM excursion to Frostburg and back–running steam and diesel. If your interested, they have a large museum in the old station hotel for the C&O canal.
You might be thinking of the Hollidaysburg Car Shop – NS did close that within the last couple of years, and that’s just a few miles outside of Altoona.
–Nora
Norfolk Southern did close the Juniata shops. [soapbox]
Amtrak Mark
NS closed to Hollidaysburg car shops, but not Juniata. The shop is still going strong. The GP7 is actually what I call a GP9J, a GP9 overhauled at the Juniata Shops with blanked dynamic brake blisters and a paper air filter. Most people call the engine a GP9, and although it is a GP9, I call it a GP9J
A big thank you to everyone for their reply. [^] I was also curious about the Pittsburgh area, I’ve seen the Pentrex tape and it looks pretty busy. Thanks again.[:D]
Then why were there a couple of locos going in with cars, and a loco being moved on the transfer table, as well as open fence gates when I was there in Sept.?
[alien]TAKE … ME … TO … YOUR … LEADER…STOP … IGNORING … ME[:-^]