ALC Rail Writer
Engineer
Ohio! Run a train during the day for once, the scenery on the CL route through the Cuyahoga Valley is beautiful… when lit.
:lol:Philadelphia 30th Street Station to Cynwyd and return on rare SEPTA trackage. A test run has already been completed. :lol:
The Wolverine is my home train, so I'm curious: what happened?After last nights Wolverine It just might be an excursion train from Chicago Union Station!
I'd give my left walnut for a daytime trip through the Feather River Route. Seen it in photos since I was a little boy and always wanted to see it in person. Unless I'm mistaken it's not a standard reroute so this would presumably have to be a one off trip operated under special circumstances.One rather nice "loop" trip for an excursion would have to include the Feather River Canyon, including transit over the Keddie Wye. Would be quite the adventure to begin at Sacramento, travel up to through the Feather River Canyon, turn north at the Keddie Wye, run the east side of the Sierra's on BN's mainline to Klammath Falls, then turn south there and follow the UP mainline back to Sacramento on the routing trains 11 and 14 use. But it would be a tall request. I'm not entirely sure that long of a trip could be accommodated in one 12 hour window.
I'd say Big Bend is the best scenery in Texas by far, but I'm not aware of any tracks that go through either the SP or NP.In all Honesty, the Best Scenery in Texas is the Piney Woods in East Texas and the Eagle Route doesnt go through the Best Part of that!Jim, why not AUS - TAY - AUS? Or have you already suggested it?
I guess that kills off the Feather River Route. Oh well. Incidentally much of the national rail network is now accessible by car through service roads requiring nothing more specialized than an Audi sedan.I think ANY future excursion, to be considered by ATK would have to be:
LESS than 8 hours
NEAR a relatively populated area
TRAVERSE both ATK, and SOME "rare mileage"
Non-ATK miles would have to over highly-maintained track
END-POINT to END-POINT
Have EXCESS of locos & Amcans available
Travel over at least a partially SCENIC route. (Preferably, not accessable via automobile)
Hey, and DE too. h34r: :angry2:In the past the NRHS have tried steam runs along the CSX River - between Richmond and Gladstone Virginia. Very scenic stretch too. But that was years ago - in the good ole days of (excursion) steam.
Another option…. Greensboro to Asheville, NC...
Not sure if an area like Richmond has the population to support something like this with Amtrak. Philadelphia seems like a good pick for the origin - with 4 million or so people, and many are looking for day trips from the city. Plus another 10 million living nearby in NY, PA, NJ and Maryland/DC.
I also think that Greensboro is right smack in an area with about 8 million people (NC/SC/VA), so the Asheville run could gain a lot of support.
Hmm, myself, my 2 daughters, my son-in-law, my grandson. Who might be the other 4 people? :lol:True, but there are only like 9 people that live there.
You. Just. Made. My. Day.The Central Coastal Railroad Club in California routinely organizes excursions through the Feather River Canyon. In 2011, I took one to Keddie Wye, then north on the High Line to Klamath Falls, then back South to Emeryville along the Coast Starlight route, but in the daytime. Three days, but what a trip it was!
They called it the Northern California Explorer. June 3-5, 2011. Go to www.traintrips.biz. This is a business that organizes trips in cooperation with the Central Coastal Chapter of . . . I get a regular email from these guys. They don't do everything they float, because sometimes there is not enough interest. But, in 2014, they want to go up the Feather River Canyon twice, take domes over Donner Pass, and tack some private varnish on the Empire Builder and the Southwest Chief. One of the Feather River trips will involve Pullmans. They also provide information about repositioning moves of former California Zephyr cars. Some pretty luxurious stuff, and some of it quite expensive.Wow - This really happened? What a scenic trip...
Even if it could be done, I kinda doubt that any current owners of tenderly restored and maintained steam locomotives would want to risk the consequences of such a severe test of their revered machine.......This may be a bit of a stretch, but would it be feasible to outfit a steam engine with the cab signals needed for running on the Northeast Corridor to see how fast it will go? Say, a steam engine that will soon be restored to operation? I'm just thinking that a steam locomotive hasn't (officially) run at 100 mph for quite while on this continent, so I'd imagine there would be a fair amount of people willing to pay for such an excursion.
It's my understanding that both Strassburg and Wilmington, Delaware, & Western (If I recall the name correctly) have steam locos outfitted with the needed cab signaling for the NEC. I know that Strassburg has run steam excursions on the Keystone line; not sure if they've gone out on the NEC proper. But then getting permission to run anything on the NEC proper can be a real chore.This may be a bit of a stretch, but would it be feasible to outfit a steam engine with the cab signals needed for running on the Northeast Corridor to see how fast it will go? Say, a steam engine that will soon be restored to operation? I'm just thinking that a steam locomotive hasn't (officially) run at 100 mph for quite while on this continent, so I'd imagine there would be a fair amount of people willing to pay for such an excursion.