In lieu of going to see Pere Marquette #1225 due to possible bad winter weather in the forecast, I opted to join my good buddies, @chendersonrailproductions704 and @DroppedSignal, up in western Maryland. There, we would get to see ex-Chesapeake & Ohio 2-6-6-2 #1309 pulling the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad's Polar Express trips out of and back to Frostburg. They would make a ferry move each day from the WMSR shops in Ridgeley, WV in the latter hours of the morning up to Frostburg station to prepare for the trips to the "North Pole" just west of Brush Tunnel.
For the trip down the mountain, NIWX B32-8 #558 & WMSR GP30 #501 would coax the train down the grade. After letting the passengers view the "North Pole," WMSR #1309 would pull the train back up to Frostburg to let the previous passengers off and the next ones on for the next trip. They would do the trips 4 times per day, allowing my buddies and myself plenty of photo and video opportunities that would have otherwise been impossible had the trips originated from Cumberland. Being that this part of the former Western Maryland and Cumberland & Pennsylvania has the steepest grades on the WMSR, #1309 definitely had plenty of opportunities to strut her stuff. Safe to say, I'll definitely be back to see the WMSR sometime! I hope y'all enjoy!
Special thanks to @chendersonrailproductions704 for having me along for the ride on Saturday and @APSL2018 for the lights in the clip at 18:27.
10 дек 2023
