Trip to Owosso, MI - 3

Hi, Wednesday, June 19 was spent photographing the Great Lakes Central northbound road train. It ran from Owosso to Calre, MI where it met the southbound road train. At Clare the crews exchanged trains and returned to their starting points.

When we arrived in Owosso we found the northbound crew doing some last minute switching in the yard. 

West of the yard about a mile, where the railroad crosses MI 52, is the old Woodard Furniture building (above and below).  This building maintains its exterior appearance but has been transformed inside into shops, offices and two restaurants, both of which we enjoyed.

We caught the train again at Bannister, MI.

The crew stopped to switch a liquid fertilizer plant, a large customer, at Ashley, MI (above and below).

North of Ithaca, MI the train emerged from a tunnel of trees.

Their are a few grain elevator complexes on the line.  One of them is located at Shepherd, MI (above and below).

Mount Pleasant offered one of the few overhead shots on the route.

On arrival at Clare the train crossed the former C&O.  For the most par the track is abandoned, extending only a few blocks in each direction to serve industries.  Close inspection of the photo just to the left of the lead unit will reveal a gate protecting the crossing.

We heard quite a bit of switching on the radio so went to determine if we could see what was happening.  We found the southbound train.

One objective of the switching was a complete rearrangement of the power.  The southbound had arrived in Clare with two units, back to back.  The northbound had arrived in Clare with two units couple elephant style short hood forward.  As a result of the power rearrangement the two units off the northbound train and the trailing unit from the southbound train went south, all long hood forward, and the leading unit from the southbound train went north, also long hood forward.

Above is the southbound train leaving Clare.

The crew of the southbound train switched north of the depot

before leaving town.

North Star had another grain elevator complex although this one appeared to by out of service.  We would return here a number of times in the next few days as we chased the steam engines running on the rail fest excursions.

We ended our chase with another view of the Woodard Furniture Company building.

After Checking into our motel we stopped by the Durand depot where we were fortunate to catch this eastbound freight.

Thanks for looking.  Bob