Did you go thru Gladstone/Escanaba, the operations center for CN/ex-Soo, ex-C&NW, and Escanaba & Lake Superior?
Did you see both the ore docks in Marquette? There's the abandoned one near downtown and then the LS&I one three miles to the northwest at Presque Isle. The first time (in the 80s) that I visited, I didn't know where the LS&I one was.
just returned back to Bay City, Mi with my son after several days in the UP. Interesting area.
Returned back thru Manistique...CN depot is used by MOW. The rail looks to be in very good condition. Need to return back home, pull out an old Official Guide and piece together all of these lines and heritage.
The ore dock in Marquette was interesting, but no operation at the time we were there (Saturday PM). Not too many trains in the UP but the scenery is great.
Thanks for all the help.
Ed
The present route to Munising was cobbled together from the ex-DSS&A route to Marquette, and the LS&I route from Munising to Gwinn and Marquette. The LS&I used the route to forward iron ore to the C&NW at Little Lake, the Soo at Eben Jct, and even tried the Manistique & Lake Superior and their carferry to parent Ann Arbor RR. Eventually both routes between Munising Jct and Marquette were abandoned, leaving the present route to Trout Lake as the only connection for Munising.
Thanks for reports.
HLCX 3885 was in Newberry yesterday when I went thru town. Not much business between Newberry and Munising that I could see, but there was a spur into a plant in Munising. Just curious...the plant must generate considerable traffic to warrent running daily (which is what the manager indicated).
I just checked the Google Map for Munising...that is quite a route into town. Quite an entrance.
In Forest Center, just east of Munising, there is an industry called Timber Products Company, that Google Maps satellite view shows as being rail served, with some log rack flats on a siding.
An interesting segment of the line is the 40 mile tangent thru the Seney swamp. There are sidings along that part of the line where in the past I have seen pulpwood loading. I rode the line in 1992 on a fan trip from Marquette to Newberry. I think the Marquette-Munising Jct segment was abandoned not long after that.
I just got back from three days in Munising. There was an ex-NS GP38-2 #5551 in Newberry. I didn't stop so I don't know if it was a new acquisition by Watco.
Two of the LS&I's AC4400CWs, 1004-1005, were on the ore dock in Marquette, loading the Hon James L. Oberstar.
(46.4072714, -86.6436608)
Neenah Paper has a mill in Munising that is the primary traffic generator.
Check out how the line to Munising gets there from the south.
What are operations of CN across UP from The Soo west? Passed thru Trout Lake and saw a small yard.
Also stopped at Newberry and talked to railroad personnel there. The line from Trout Lake to Munising is now a Watco shortline and they operate daily to Munising. Track speed is 10mph...line didnt look very good. Curious if there is any on line traffic generated or if it is all inbound.
Thanks,
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