I got my face sandblasted -- and loved it!!!

[Big_Boy_4005]

The long awaited day finally arrived, Big Girl's first train ride!! We got up bright and early, and grabbed the gear we had laid out last night. Only the essentials for rail travel. Radio, camera and food!

Twenty minutes later, we were standing in line, listening to the radio and waiting to get a glimpse of 261. A cloud of smoke on the horizon. Nope, it was only 2816 out for her morning jog. What a tease, the lighting and the chain link fence made picture taking worthless. A few minutes later another cloud of smoke, and 261 backed into the track along the fence. No pictures please, and we climbed aboard, along with about 400 other people.

All aboard! And we chose our seats in the second car, which was really about 400' back from the engine because of all of the other equipment that made up the train.

As we waited for traffic to clear, the rails were incredibly busy this Friday morning, the car attendant came into our car and told us a little about the train. He advised that, if we wanted to stand in the vestibules, and look out the dutch doors, we should have eye protection, as 261 being coal fired, throws off a lot of cinders. He also said thet there were still a few sets of safety goggles for sale in the consession car.

I got lucky and managed to get the last ones available. Eye protection had never crossed my mind for this trip, but boy was I glad to have them. By the time I returned to our seats with the goggles, the train had managed to get into the traffic pattern, and we were slowly working our way out to the main. I sat there with Big Girl for a few minutes, and had a sandwich, as in our excitement we had run out of the house without even thinking about breakfast. As the train picked up speed, I figured it was time to try out the new goggles, and politely excused myself, leaving Big Girl with the radio. Here is a photo of Big Girl enjoying her first train ride.



The vestibules were crowded, and I waited for my turn to look out and get some pictures. When my chance came, I lowered my goggles, and leaned out, camera in hand. I was instantly greeted with what felt like a continuous pelting of grains of sand. The goggles helped a lot, but cinders were still getting in my eyes, though it was tolerable.[|)][^]

There's one slight problem trying to take pictures of a train that you are riding. The only time you can see it is when it goes around a curve, and then only if the curve is toward the side you are standing on. I ended up spending the better part of the trip hanging out the window, cranking off photos whenever the train went around a curve on my side, and getting sandblasted as it clipped along at speeds sometimes in excess of 60 MPH. [:0][:p][8D]

On the curve you can see how far up the front of the train is. 261, her tender, her spare water tender, 2 Amtrak Genesis engines, 2 crew cars in Milwaukee Road paint, the first coach and our coach. The Amtrak units look very much out of place, but they were a part of the deal. Amtrak was providing the insurance coverage for all of 261's tour. Also as part of the package a regular Amtrak conductor was in charge of the train.



Behind us were 5 more coaches, the the consession car, a diner for the first class section and the first and premier class cars. BIG TRAIN!



A quick stop along the BNSF to pick up a pilot for the run into Lacross.



Over the river and through the woods, back to the Minnesota side of the Mississippi.



Opposing traffic waits to head east into Wisconsin, as we cross back into Minnesota for the return run on the CP.



It looks like a tornado coming out of the stack, as 261 cruises north along the Ex Milwaukee main on the return leg of the trip.



Yes, that's me hanging out the window, getting cinders in my eyes, ears, nose , mouth and hair, and loving every minute of it!!![:D][:p][:0][B)][;)][8][|)][^][:I]



Time for bed, gotta get up early to chase the double header. I hope I'm up to the task!!![|)][swg]

[ChiefEagles]

Glad you all had fun. [:D][:D] Been a while since I "dodged" cinders.

[spankybird]

Great pics and story, thanks for sharing with us Big Boy.

tom

[Anonymous]

You think you got dirty in the vestibule? Try being in the cab. Tle Last time I ran a steam engine I was cleaning coal dust out of my ears for weeks. Enjoy your trip.

[Anonymous]

You think you know cinders? Just try sitting in an open air gondola on a northbound Durango-Silverton narrow gauge. It'll cure you of riding in open cars on a coal fired steam powered train. We had cinders in our hair (that was back when I had hair), cinders down our collars, around our waistbands....and who knows where else? As a long time free pass rider on the old Illinois Central electrics I learned to enjoy riding in the vestibule as the trains banged, clattered and hummed at speed. The dutch doors of a vestibule are the best place for watching the countryside go past on a train ride. Try watching the sun come up over the Mississippi and Louisiana lowlands on the old Panama Ltd. Oh well, memories are the driving force behind model railroading. Odd-d

[Big_Boy_4005]

Yes Odd-d and Notch, riding steam trains is a dirty business, but somebody has to do it!!![swg]

I've taken some low speed trips before, even rode in an open car on the Georgetown Loop, but this was wild!!! Almost 300 miles, and most of it at speeds well over 30 MPH. Some at 60 MPH or better. Not many rides like it these days. Most of that was gone 50 years ago in this country, though I suppose there are a few places elsewhere in the world where one could get a similar experience. Thanks for making me realize how truely unique this experience was.

The thing I find most shocking is that some people were actually asleep in their seats for parts of this trip. They had no grasp of what they had bought a ticket for. All I know is that Big Girl and I got our money's worth!!!!![:D][8D]