Category: Photo Section

Westbound #201, exiting tunnel 48, just west of Easton and about to cross the Yakima River.  The river is entering Lake Easton.   The Tunnel is only a hundred feet or so out of the picture to the right.    I once drove my motor home through that tunnel.   The bridges had been removed and I did a spectacular u-turn. Lots of maneuvering.   As I exited the other end leaving I stopped short of the portal, got out and took a pix.   A few weeks later they built a impassable berm, so the fun was over.   The electrics ended here in 1972,  1974 in the Rockies.   That is the former NP mainline leading up to Stampede Pass in the right coming under the Milwaukee. 

All this right-of-way from Seattle to the Columbia River is State Parks trail system now.  Obviously one must detour the bridge scene, but it’s easy because the MILW crossed back to the west side of the river in about another mile.  So all you need to do is trespass on the BNSF.  (I didn’t say that….)   The BNSF (formerly NP) begins the 2.2 percent climb up to Stampede not far to the left out of the picture.    Warren Wing, photographer,  was a close friend of mine, he passed a few years ago.    Enjoy. 

 

Yes, last week’s story of the perils of the early-day brakemen included a “walk-in-the-park” picture.  The brakeman was enjoying the majestic palisades of the Mississippi in SW Wisconsin.    Such relaxing was not always the case.   Just look at the ice and snow this brakeman endured in helping to slow and stop a moving train.  

The drawing by O. V. Schubert appeared in Harper’s Weekly in the 1880s.  Note the lantern, kerosene no doubt, a handle with a hoop large enough to slide up his arm.   No need to set it down, and if you did it would never be seen again.   

Lanterns aren’t used much today, and no one need climb to the top of moving box cars.  Crews doing switching movements are communicating via hand-held radio.  Inventions of Air-Brakes by George Westinghouse, and Knuckle-Couplers by Major Eli Janney were patented in 1869 and 68.  Sadly, the railroads were not mandated by a Federal law to so equip their rolling stock until 1893.  Even so the Railroads were slow to implement these safety features.   Many brakemen never arrived at the destination terminal, and few switchmen had all their fingers, having had to manually couple cars with links and pins. 

On the narrow-gauge lines in Colorado some safety features were not installed until into the 1920s.   You can to this day see Telltales fronting tunnels on the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railway, a mighty fine ride.

 

Some candid shots of our “Holy Train Night” gatherings over the last few weeks at Will Kling’s, Ricky Bivins’, and Keith Kittinger’s layouts.

Just as a reminder folks the chapter’s last photo contest for 2017 is underway!  Below are the dates for upcoming chapter photo contests.  During the months listed all members are invited to shoot pictures and submit no more than two entries to webmaster@westkentuckynrhs.org by the deadline listed next to each contest. You must be a paid member of the chapter to participate in these contests.

Jim Pearson will judge the photos and select 1st through 3rd place and the winners will be presented in the PennyRail and on the chapter website. We’ll also view them at the meeting following each contest.

At least the 1st place winners will be used to produce a chapter calendar for the next year.  All submissions must have a caption that lists at least the railroad, location and date with photographer’s credit and any other relevant information.

November 1-30, 2017
Submission Deadline: December 7, 2017

January 1-31, 2018
Submission Deadline: February 7, 2018

March 1-31, 2018
Submission Deadline: April 7, 2018

May 1-31, 2018
Submission Deadline: June 7, 2018

July 1-31, 2018
Submission Deadline: August 7, 2018

September 1-30, 2018
Submission Deadline: October 7, 2018

November 1-30, 2018
Submission Deadline: December 7, 2018

 

The empty log cars are being returned to the woods for the next load.   The Cowlitz, Chehalis & Cascade train is crossing the Cowlitz River near Mayfield (Washington State) on May 5, 1955.   Because the trestle had been condemned, the train crew was prohibited from being on the engine as it crossed the river.

This required another locomotive on the rear of the train to push it across.  The crew from this engine has already safely walked across.   The pusher will stop the consist when the front engine has safely crossed.   It was never made clear whether the pusher was then pulled across crewless, or disconnected and returned to home base.   Notice the flip-top screened cinder catcher on the stack.

The backpool from Mayfield Dam, just downstream, flooded this picturesque canyon a few years later.    The river’s origin is the Cowlitz Glacier in Mount Rainier National Park, and enters the Columbia River at Kelso.   

 This unusual bridge is built upon a sturdy platform wedged against the side-walls of the canyon.  Not certain there ever was another like it.   Just this week Vancouver Island’s Western Forest Products Corp., announced their last logging railroad in North America is closed for good.    The next to last was Simpson’s Shelton (WA) operation.  Submitted by Gary Ostlund.