Rode the GSMR yesterday, always a pleasant event. When we passed the yard I saw two steam locomotive boilers just resting (rusting?) out in the weather along with other parts. At a glance it appears little or no work has been done toward getting the old gal up on her feet again. Do any of you have any information on this project?
1702 has been out of service since 2004, and 722 has never operated on this RR....Returning them to operation seems unlikely at this time.....Mike
The GSMR has purchased a new (to them) steam locomotive and trainset. These were formerly part of the now defunct Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad Preservation Society in Unity, Maine. Locomotive #149 is a Swedish locomotive built in 1913 and exported to the U.S. in 1994. It is a coal-burning locomotive with a 4-6-0 wheel configuration and a 5,000-gallon coal tender. The locomotive was rebuilt and re-tubed in 1998 under Federal Railroad Administration standards. The locomotive and passenger coaches have a Swiss coupling system and will operate together as a train set.
Here is a link to a news story:
http://www.smokymountainnews.com/news/item/2946-%E2%80%9Cnew%E2%80%9D-steam-powered-train-service-planned-for-railroad
There are also news stories out there about the railroad asking Jackson County, NC for funding to move the equipment to NC. The railroad is dangling the option of basing the steam train in Jackson County (as a tourism draw) in exchange for the moving funding. The tracks are aleady there, but regular trips do not currently run on that portion of GSMR.
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