If one train is good, and two is better, then five must be a riot.
Just 12 minutes after the eastbound coal drag and manifest went down the mountain side by side, we heard the sound of another train descending the grade. At 12:52, C44-9Ws 9237, 9686, 9478, and 9129 led a long consist of UPS, FedEx, and other high-priority intermodal traffic into the Curve on track 2. The tail end of the intermodal was just passing the Curve park when C40-8W 8369 and C40-8 8725 entered the picture, leading a manifest on track 1. The pair slowed their train as they chased the intermodal around the Curve, and finally came to a stop with SD40E helpers 6326 and 6323 sitting in front of the park.
The trains weren't the only thing heading downhill - while the 6326 and 6323 waited with their train, the sky began to take on a foreboding color. Twenty minutes after the manifest rolled to a stop, our attention was drawn back to the tracks as we heard another train coming, and this time - finally - it was a westbound. The manifest continued to wait as SD70M 2633, C44-9W 9688, C40-9 8874, and C44-9W 9313 charged upgrade with an intermodal at 1:19.
A few minutes later we heard another eastbound approaching, but something sounded different this time, more squealy than usual. We soon found out why as SD70M 2612 and SD60 6606 came out from behind the trees, riding their brakes to bring their train to a stop on the grade safely behind the manifest that still waited in the distance on the same track. As the duo brought their train slowly down to a stop, another sound joined the chorus. Pop...pop...pop pop...the clouds were beginning to release their payload, and more and more droplets were breaching the canopy of leaves above us. Still, we remained dry - for the time being.
At 1:42, the rear of the first train finally started to move again. After a brief wait to give him a head start, the 2612 and 6606 slowly got their own train underway as well. The pair had just passed the edge of the park when they were met by another westbound, this time a manifest led by C44-9Ws 9298 and 9889 and SD40E 6333. The westbound was both shorter and faster though, and the eastbound was soon left alone again to continue its careful descent. While I always had a small rain cover for the camera on hand, I had not brought up any protection for myself, and Chip and Jordan were similarly vulnerable. We held out long enough to watch SD40Es 6319, 6300, 6316, and 6305 flexing their dynamic-braking muscles into the distance while holding back the train, after which we came to an easy unanimous decision to pack up and hightail it back down to shelter in our cars.
#trains #railfanning #railroad #train #pennsylvania #travel
24 сен 2014
