Railfaning in Southeast Kansas took an unusual turn…
The Southern Pacific Mikado 475, came down from Kansas City over the KCS on a break-in run, and stayed over the week-end to pull six scheduled fan trips between Pittsburg, and Cherokee Ks. LASTA’s 475 utilized three cars belonging to Watco Corp, and was aided by ‘Bubba’ [an SW10 of the SEKRR] in a push pull mode. 475 pulled the trains westbound over former Frisco tracks [ now SK&O] and Bubba piloted the return back to Pittsburg, with the 475 in push mode on the return. Plenty of families were riding and enjoying a chance to ride on a steam powwered train.
[If you are wondering about Bubba, see page 30 in the June 2006 TRAINS for his photo]
This was the first steam around here in fourty years so it was a rare event that came about because of a series of one time events. Many people in the SEK area got their first look at a steam engine; in a town and area that provided steaming grade coal to many area railroads in times past.
Union Pacific usually runs the former northbound MOPAC line through Coffeyville and on to KC, about 60 miles west of Pittsburg, so the big engines of UP will not get over in the Pittsburg- Joplin area any time soon.