Yesterday, January 1, 2020, I paused at White River Junction, Vermont, a place I first visited to make railroad photographs nearly 35 years ago.
That first visit was a warm sunny summer’s morning. By contrast yesterday’s visit was a wintery, cold and gray afternoon with hints of color in the southern sky.
New England Central local was working with GP40-2 437, a locomotive still wearing Florida East Coast colors.
Nutt Lane, White River Junction, Vermont. January 1, 2020.
Former Boston & Maine bridge over the Connecticut River. Viewed from White River Junction, Vermont. January 1, 2020.
I made these photos using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm zoom lens.
Photo processed digitally to lower contrast, increase saturation, and improve color balance. X-T1 photo Exposed on October 29, 2015 at East Northfield, Massachusetts.
It’s what they call a ‘Hail Mary shot.’ New England Central 611 rolls north at East Northfield, Massachusetts in a fleeting fading glimmer of October sun.
When in doubt, try again. Earlier in the week Mike Gardner and I had missed the New England Central at Millers Falls, Massachusetts. It wasn’t for a lack of trying, but we’d misqued, got caught in traffic, and just not been at the right place at the right time. This happens.
It was a bright morning. From recent experience I knew that New England Central job 611 departs Brattleboro Yard for Palmer sometime after 8 am.
The former Central Vermont Railway Millers Falls high bridge—a pin-connected deck-style Pratt truss built in 1906.
I drove directly to Millers Falls, I did not pass Go, I did not collect $200. I parked and walked (I fought my way through thicket and briars) to a known good spot on a rock near the shore of the Millers River and there I waited.
This was my reward. And yes, I also exposed a color slide.
Exposed with a FujiFilm X-T1 mirror-less digital camera.
The other day, I had a few packages to send out. I’d delayed going to the post office until after the school buses were out, using the logic that if I waited, I wouldn’t get stuck behind one on the way back.
On the way into the PO, I heard a distant whistle. And while at the desk, a train rumbled by.
New England Central’s (NECR) former Central Vermont line runs on a slightly elevated gradient behind the Monson, Massachusetts PO. This is on the climb up State Line hill, and heavy trains make a good racket coming though town. This freight, however, wasn’t very heavy and the engines weren’t working too hard.
I made an expeditious exit after mailing my packages, and started south on Route 32. No sooner than I was south of town, I found myself looking at the back of a school bus!
And this bus then stopped, as required, at the South Monson grade crossing.
I could hear the southward climbing. It had already gone through. Fortunately, once over the tracks, the bus driver kindly pulled in to let traffic around. I sailed southward, and arrived at State Line crossing. Once out of the car, I could hear the train working.
New England Central’s daily freight at the Massachusetts-Connecticut state line. Notice the granite marker to the left of the locomotives. Exposed with a Lumix LX3, set at ISO 200.
Although the light was fading, there was enough to work with. While, I’d left most of my cameras at home, I had my Lumix LX3 in my coat pocket. I set up a shot immediately south of the Massachusetts-Connecticut state line, and included the granite marker at the left of the image.
After the train passed, I followed it to Stafford Springs, where I made a few more photos. As it turns out, these NECR images are my first railway photos for 2014.
New England Central’s GP38s lead a southward freight through downtown Stafford Springs, Connecticut on January 9, 2014.New England Central’s GP38s lead a southward freight through downtown Stafford Springs, Connecticut on the afternoon of January 9, 2014. Lumix LX3 photo.
While several locomotives have been painted in the new corporate colors (or rather, G&W’s traditional paint scheme), many of New England Central’s locomotives remain in various former liveries, including the railroad’s original blue and yellow.
On Monday October 28, 2013, New England Central job 610 (a turn that runs from Willimantic, Connecticut to Palmer, Massachusetts) sported a pair of nicely painted G&W locomotives.
My dad and I made chase of this train on its southward run. I exposed digital still photographs, while Pop made some video clips with his Lumix LX7.
The sun was playing tag with us, but the locomotives were so bright and clean it hardly mattered if the sun was out or not.
The view from Smith’s Bridge on Stafford Hollow Road in Monson, Massachusetts where Bob Buck exposed dramatic photos of Central Vermont steam more than 60 years ago. New England Central job 610 climbs the grade toward State Line. Canon EOS 7D fitted with 20mm lens.Richard J. Solomon (at left) exposes a short video clip as New England Central job 610 passes Stafford Springs, Connecticut. Canon EOS 7D fitted with 20mm lens.New England Central job 610 works south of Stafford, Connecticut on October 28, 2013. Canon EOS 7D fitted with 20mm lens.
On the morning of November 4, 1987, I made a speculative foray to P&L (Pittsburgh & Lehigh) Junction near Caledonia, New York. At the time I was living in nearby Scottsville, and I’d occasionally check P&L to see if anything was moving.
Genesee & Wyoming SW1500 47 crosses the Peanut Line at P&L Junction. Thin autumnal high clouds softened the morning sun. The photo was exposed with a Leica M2 with 50mm Summicron on Kodachrome 25 slide film.
P&L Junction had once been a very busy place. Here the original Genesee & Wyoming had connected with Lehigh Valley, Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh, a branch of the Erie, and New York Central’s so-called ‘Peanut Line.’By 1987, the only railroads left were G&W and its Rochester & Southern affiliate.
I was fortunate to find a southward train and I made this image of a southward G&W salt train heading across the diamond with a vestige of the old Peanut Line (that G&W used to reach a couple of miles into Caledonia). A classic ‘tilt board’ crossing signal protected the diamond.
Today, it seems that G&W railroads are everywhere. I even saw a G&W company freight in Belgium a couple of weeks ago. Back then, I couldn’t have imagined that this New York state short line would reach so far!
