Railfanning 1-17-09

Hi, Stan Short and I headed down to Richmond, VA on Saturday to meet up with friends Jack Bruce and Dale Dacont for a day of train photography and conversation. When I headed out it was crystal clear and the temperature display in the car read 4 degrees. By the time I reached Stan's house it read 1 degree and I had come south. We were in for a cold day.


As we passed the eastbound I-64 entrance to I-95 Stan noticed Dale's pickup entering the highway. We headed to Great Shiplock Park where we had agreed to meet; and shortly after both Dale and Jack arrived. Based on radio traffic we figured out there would probably be some trains at the east end of the yard so we headed over there. However, as we were passing Fulton Yard Tower at the west end of the yard N677, a coal train headed for the Wheelwright generating plant, between Bellwood, VA and Hopewell, VA, began to pull. This train, with the road engines on the rear and helpers on the point, would pull up the hill toward Acca Yard and then, after cutting off the helpers, reverse direction onto the former Seaboard Airline bridge heading for the power plant. We turned around and headed for the flood wall on the south side of the James River. The photo below is of the train on that bridge.

Next we went to Coney Island, at the east end of the trestle along the Richmond water front, where we photographed the helpers off of N677 waiting for a signal to enter Fulton Yard. A few minutes later just as the helper set began to move into the yard P067 passed.

Shortly P194 headed west out of the sun at Coney Island. While driving to the SAL bridge to get N677 we observed the NS yard job heading east. Now we could hear the local blowing for crossings to the east as it returned to the NS yard so we returned to the park from Coney Island and shot the local crossing the lock.

Now things seemed to go dead and it was getting close to lunch so we decided to relocate to Doswell stopping at Elmont to check out the lighting there on the new crossover, and to hit the Scheetz in Ashland. An empty coal train was heading out to the former C&O Piedmont Sub (now Buckingham Branch) and the plan was to shoot it at Doswell. As we were approaching Elmont we could here U306 call the signal at Elmont and thought we were too late for a shot. However, we took a wrong turn and arrived at the tracks at Kenwood, VA, ablut 1/2 mile south of Elmont in time for a quick shot.

So we grabbed lunch and headed for Doswell to wait for the coal empties. However, before the train arrived Q641, the empty juice train, came south with its usual block of intermodal on the point. As it was passing P092 went north.

Then the coal empties hit the diamond.

The weather now began to cloud up but we hung in there. There were at least 3 trains headed south towards us. The first to arrive was Q409.

Finally, P080 came north with a couple of private cars on the rear, the one with the large windows being a former Seaboard Airline lounge. Now it really socked in and the sun would soon set so we said goodby to Jack and Dale, and headed for home. We never did see the other 2 southbounds. Hope you enjoy. Bob