February 17th, 2009
We left Brattleboro on the morning of the 16th and went to NMH, where I caught up with some of my old teachers and classmates for most of the day. In the late afternoon, we cut across Mass. to the Hoosac tunnel in Florida, but the Guilford gods did not love us and no trains were forthcoming, although a local railfan reported a Bow coal empty was supposed to be on its way. We slept in Utica that night and on the 17th we started the day there, shooting the Mohawk, Adirondack, and Western and an NYSW unit from afar that came in by surprise. We chased the MHWA to Rome, where we followed the wrong spur and took a while to find it out in the industrial park on the east side of town. From there we chased CSX Q091, the ultra-high priority vegetable train to Lyons, catching it only once at Syracuse yard, and there only barely. From Lyons, where we missed Q091 by about 7 minutes, we headed up to Geneva to see what we could find on the FGLK, and chased the Lyons job back to Lyons before heading out to the Rochester and Genessee Valley Railroad Museum south of Rochester and finally completing our trip by getting back to Guelph a few minutes past 10pm.
Utica, New York
(map) Utica is the home of the New York, Susquehanna, and Western Railway shops, a scenic railway, the CSX, and at least one more shortline operator, situated about an hour West of Albany.
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MHWA 805 switches Utica yard as an NYSW unit briefly sticks its head out and CSXT Q135 passes through. We chased it to Stanwix, where it met Q626, and into Rome where, after losing track of it by following the wrong spur, we found it switching an industrial park on the east side of town.
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CSXT Q135 passes through Utica Amtrak station followed immediately by MHWA 805's departure from its yard.
Stanwix, New York
Stanwix is the home of Reber Rd, a decent spot to sit and watch the CSX line between Utica and Rome. The Mohawk, Adirondack, and Northern runs over the CSX from Utica to Rome by this point.
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MHWA 805 crosses Reber Rd on its way into Rome.
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CSXT Q626 crosses Reber Rd with a Conrail trailing.
Rome, New York
Rome is between Oneida and Utica on the CSX. Its industrial tracks are serviced by the Mohawk, Adirondack, and Northern.
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is between Rochester and Utica on the CSX Buffalo line, and is also the connection point for the CSX Montreal sub which goes to Coteau near Montreal.
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CSXT Q091 Vegetable train with 3 UP GEVOs pulls to a stop at the west end of Syracuse yard to get around Q157.
Lyons, New York
(map) Lyons is a few miles South of Geneva, New York, linked by an NS track from the town's ex-Conrail CSX main line to the Finger Lakes Railway.
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CSXT Q157 heads through Lyons.
Geneva, New York
Geneva is the home of the Finger Lakes Railway, due south of Lyons.
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FGLK's Lyons job leaves Geneva for Lyons, and crosses a field just north of I-90.
Lyons, New York
(map) Lyons is a few miles South of Geneva, New York, linked by an NS track from the town's ex-Conrail CSX main line to the Finger Lakes Railway.
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FGLK's Lyons job passes through a field on its way to Lyons a mile or so north of I-90.
Industry, New York
Industry is the home of the Rochester and Genesee Valley Railroad Museum along the LAL.
