Friday, December 2, 2016

Chasing the Dream?


Amtrak 68, Southbound Adirondack at Wickham Marsh with
Amtrak 145 Phase III heritage unit at 2:12 pm
Well one of the treats of railfanning, seeing a special or heritage engine, has been the norm again in upstate New York (hint Northern New York) with the Amtrak 145 running back and forth on the Adirondack. We've had several opportunities to see this heritage engine, painted in Phase III livery for the Amtrak 40th anniversary.

Zooming through the Essex Rd. crossing at 2:56 pm
Yesterday was the first chance I got to chase it though, and another dreary cloudy day it was. However the sun came out for some remarkable views at Wickham Marsh near Port Kent, NY. One bug was that while trying to update the locations for HeritageUnits.com using the Android app, my phones GPS kept going wonky and messed up on of my locations, and after that I pretty much had to put my location in on manual, combine that with the frustrating Internet situation with the mountains, and it was almost better off leaving technology in the past!




We sighted it first at Wickham Marsh, in Port Kent; Essex Rd. (Rt. 22) Crossing in Essex, NY; Port Henry coming out of the station; and Ticonderoga at Montcalm's Landing. As a bonus we saw the local, D13 passing through the Ticonderoga station  with a double head of GP20ECO units.

Amtrak 145 pretending to be an ALCO at 3:31 pm leaving
Port Henry station.
One of my favorite storied spots, Montcalm's Landing with
Fort Ticonderoga in the distance at 3:54 pm.
This was the jumping off point for the Delaware & Hudson's
Ticonderoga branch line, and interchange with the
D&H steamboat lines.
But it was an enjoyable experience none-the-less, and a fun experience railfanning with the family. Railfannig is just one of those interesting hobbies, that most people don't get. One thing I've found with the whole rail-trail debate with the ARTA bozos (edit took out more derogatory language) out on the Adirondack Scenic Railroad and how quickly they jumped to insulting rail enthusiasts, you could almost hear the hissing of the word "railfan" through their clenched teeth every time they typed the word. They liked to use it as the ultimate insult, yet it demonstrates a lack of understanding. We all have hobbies and interests. I like trains, I like history, I like dressing up as a soldier from the past and doing historical demonstrations and battles. I don't understand the desire to travel hundreds of miles to ride a dirt path, but I don't go around insulting them because of it. Yet the
trail zealots gleefully insult and slander train enthusiasts because of our hobby.

Other news coming up is that Toys for Tots train this weekend. Here is the schedule which I am hoping to catch at a number of different locations, and as cell service holds up, look for me to live stream the action at Rouses Point.

2016 Toys for Tots Train
SATURDAY DECEMBER 3RD:
10:15-10:45 Binghamton Yard (N/E crossovers)
12:05-12:40 Bainbridge
1:30-1:50 Oneonta
3:00-3:50 Cobleskill
4:15-4:45 Delanson
Canadian Pacific's Fort Edward local D13 passing the Ticonderoga
station after working at the International Paper mill at 4:30 pm
SUNDAY DECEMBER 4TH:
8:55-09:50 Saratoga Springs
10:10-10:30 Fort Edward
10:55-11:20 Whitehall
12:20-12:45 Port Henry
2:15-2:35 Port Kent
3:25-3:55 Rouses Point

2 comments:

  1. My friend and I have been looking for a map(s) of Adirondack Railroads in the 1800's. Do you know where we could locate any information. I learned about you from my brother Barry who sent me your North Country national anthem video. MY e-mail is: bruce99col@aol.com I do not use the e-mail in your comment section and I can't seem to erase it.

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