Open House action PART 2

Terry Frank's grandson was running Terry's train during the open house and did a terrific job of keeping them running on time.  This is where future modelers come from!

 

Fast disappearing from the railroad scene is the BN colors as units get retired and the Orange units take over the world.

 

GN and NP get into a race for getting into Spokane on time. Both railroads were special to me.

Both used the Bobtail or Canoe design for their tailcars. I rode on these type of tailcars on the New York Central in 1967 along the Hudson River and the other time was in 1976 from New Orleans to Chicago (Amtrak) on the Illinois Central tracks. They were special cars for us railfans.

 Our new shirts were in evidence at the club yesterday so we showed our colors for the event.

 

 

 

Christmas comes early to Jerry Quinn

At the Tuesday gathering at the Evergreen train club Marvin implored me to show up at the Wednesday night guys that run trains during that time. So tonight I showed up to find out if I was facing a firing squad or something else. It turned out that Jim, Marv, John and Steve Welton wanted to thank me for doing a good job as President and e-mail provider to the club members.

 

They all chipped in to buy me an SP&S 700 jacket that celebrates one of the few steam engines in the country that still works for a living. There are 4 guys in the train club that are ardent SP&S modelers and I guess I am now one of them. I so appreciate their thoughtfulness as I try to make the club a special place from all the bad stuff going on in our country and the world. Merry Christmas everyone!

 

A special locomotive is this modern diesel that is in a special paint scheme for the Canadian National.  Jim Bowden is an Alaska modeler and Canada is near Alaska so it makes sense.

 

The MRL and the Canadian National get into something of a drag race as each other tries to take the lead out of Bakersville, which may be near Canada or better yet the CN is making a run through Montana.

 

Steve Welton had 3 big Union Pacific SD70s on the point of his freight train as it departs Blue Yard

and heads for the wide open spaces.

 

Trains tend to get long at these special gatherings as this photo shows. It also shows that our guys have the couplers and truck swing just right to have this kind of performance.

Christmas and model trains! What a combination!

Union Pacific freight train with one of those famous B units ( no cab ) journeys past Beaver Canyon at the front of the layout.

Terry Frank showed up for the club's Christmas Open House and it was terrific to see him there with this train.

 

Marvin surprised everyone with this working rotary plow for the Northern Pacific Railroad. Look at the blades spinning while the train was stopped.

 

3 passenger trains come together as MRL executive train passes 2 of my favorite trains, the NP North Coast Limited and the Empire Builder traveling in different directions.

 

Looking up under the Beaver Canyon bridge we see the brand new Montana Rail Link power scaring the hell out of that idiot fisherman trying to find his dinner in the creek below.

 

Rio Grande also joined in the action as the eras clash with the other passenger trains still working for a living.

 

Another passenger train owned by Don Carnegie is the Milwaukee Road local that is waiting for a green block from the semaphore signal. We had about 15 club members and some 30 visitors show up for our open house the day after Christmas. I thought it was a very good event for everyone.

 

 

Railfanning when the snow flies!

As you get older you find that going out into the weather is not something you look forward too. When I was younger, like 40 years ago, I saw the weather as a photo opportunity to make my shots a little more interesting. We are in the BN era and it would be 1974 or close to it. This train is coming off the new connection to the old GN mainline that connects to the new Latah Bridge and is about to cross the new Indian Canyon Bridge just east of the Greenwood Cemetery where the old SP&S route was 150 feet below this spot and I had the "1000 feet to tunnel" sign warning crews they were about to approach the tunnel entrance on the east end. Ah, the good old days.  Merry Christmas everyone!

 

Not another Open House! 12/26/2015

What better time could there be for an Open House the day after Christmas?  It's Saturday,  Dec. 26th from 1 to 6 pm and folks with family might find it the best place to be after Christmas. Our normal Thursday event has been cancelled as that is Christmas Eve! We are at 18213 East Appleway in the Spokane Valley. Take exit 283 Barker Road and go south 3 blocks to Appleway, then go 3 blocks west (right turn ) to Greenacres Shopping Center. We are right in the middle of the strip mall.

More of what we ran last Thursday and we may luck out and have Thomas The Tank Engine make a cameo appearance!

 

 

 

I told you that we had a SI caboose on the tail of that UP train!

FW: I'm back! I moved! I'm settled in!

It's been about 2 weeks since my last communication with this group after selling my house, moving to an apartment in the valley and looking forward to the next move to our new home in 8 months. This dyslexic collection of locos interested me so I put it together for a few photos. It doesn't make prototype sense so no refunds will be forthcoming.

 

This one can be justified by the caboose that is all Spokane International when the UP took it over in 1959 and ran GP7/9s up this way for a while. Anyway it's a pretty photo.

 

Great Northern Big Sky Blue passenger colors showed up in Spokane around 1967 so our member Janis put together a nice collection  to show it off.

 

Its been a few days since I shot this scene but I think it is Steve Weso's train with Alco and EMD power. I'll hear about it if it isn't.

At one time there was 4 passenger trains in  the yard when I took this shot. GN, Milwaukee, Rio Grande and

Alaska!  Oh yea, some Evergreen cars are in the background as well.

 

Cowboy Bob visited us on Thursday with his fine looking hat. But Cowboy Bob is none other than John Kowsky who we know through our years with the other Spokane train club. John was the host for a TV show on KHQ here in Spokane.  John models the Canadian Pacific Railroad among other things.

Photo follow ups from Thursday night

The port district does not get much attention but these 2 locos caught my eye. The Great Northern and the Spokane International pay some attention as to who gets to push the cars around the dock.

 

Janis's other train last night was a streamlined beauty called Amtrak in two different paint schemes.

 

Tom Kirk was pushing a few cars around the port to get the hang of the system so hopefully operations can happen soon.

 

 

Another view of Steve Weso's (abbreviation) 56 car train getting the rare zebra striped locos a workout passing Lone Pine!  I just made that name up!

 

Finally a photo of the photographer! New member Rod Huffman took it with his phone and sent it to me. I will do a photo of our log bunks when we are ready.

 

Finally a close up photo of our quiet and subdued member Steve Weso taken by Rod in a moment of fear. Is that fear? Maybe it's happiness?  That's Steve train coming and going!

Living The Dream with models.

Capturing a moment in time where 2 completely different technologies pass each other in the night of imagination ( well daytime is more real). Here we have an old 4-4-0 Civil War era steamer burning wood as a fuel and the other being a gas turbine running an aircraft motor to make electricity to run the motors wrapped around the axles for traction. What a choice!

 

The real victor turned out to be neither of the prior choices but diesel engines that generate electricity to turn those pesky traction motors that wrap around those axles. EMD built thousands of these F units that proved the theory that was the most economical way to go. Janis owns this GN passenger train!  

 

You're in Weso Country now! Steve ( grey shirt) shows off with 4 BNSF engines pulling an amazing 40 car train mostly of extra long freight cars. See that green and silver auto rack in the background? That's the tail car!

 

Here is the Weso train again in the front of the layout as it passes a container train waiting his turn. These auto racks and the locos are the same train! Atta boy Steve!

 

Tom Kirk brought out the club Challenger and cars and had a nice passenger train working the line.

 

 

If its Thursday.... then its train time.

Greg had his number two favorite train running on Thursday in the form of Northern Pacific F units pulling a mixed freight near the Champion Mine.

 

Quiet and reserved Steve Weslowski brought in his Santa Fe and Maersk power with his container/ trailer train in tow.

 

New member Mike Conners Great Northern Alco RS-3 has a local freight making the rounds.

So where's the smoke?

 

Speaking of smoke, a Milwaukee Road steam engine seems a perfect candidate for it.

 

Memories of me riding the North Coast Limited several times when it was still a Northern Pacific

adventure comes to me when I see this Marvin train making it around the club.

 

I didn't see any BNSF cops in the area so I shot this freight passing the port district. I think the truck forgot his load?

Playing with trains

Mike Baker's new 2-8-2 Great Northern steamer has a short train in tow on the Evergreen train layout.

 

Marvin's Northern Pacific train has first generation units in the lead as a rival Great Northern passes the other way.

Three of the major railroads gather together as NP, SP&S and GN are all represented on this stretch of the layout.

My Union Pacific steamer waits a call to duty to take another passenger train up to Wallace, Idaho.

 

Greg has a pair of EMD Geeps waiting for a green light on the front part of the layout.