Texas State Railroad

2016 Photographer's Special

July 2-4, 2016

In the spring of 2016, the TSR contacted me about running the Photographer's Special again. I had a great time in 2015, so I jumped at the chance. After a series of requests, changes, and approvals, the new GM (Greg Udolph) agreed to the following:

-Night Photo Shoot in Rusk with Magma Arizona 7 and Southern Pine Lumber Company 28.

-Mixed freight with Magma Arizona 7, TSR Caboose 129, and ATSF Cafe Obs 1511

The photo stops included:

EAST

Video from Saturday Excursion

Day 1

July 2, 2016

In what has become a rare event due to having a wonderful 2-year-old in my life, I packed up and headed out for a railfan weekend with the guys.  Unlike trips to Narrow Gauge Country, I slept in and left about noon. Whoo hoo! 

Brian Janksy rode up with me and we caught MA 7 at Gibson Road (near Crystal Lake) taking the afternoon train back to Rusk. Cody, Casey, and Mark met us there shortly after the train passed. Our mission was to hike out to an "Ess Curve" at Crystal Lake to see if the spot could be used for a run-by the following day.

The spot turned out to be great, better than I hoped. However, we couldn't fit more than 10 people in the small space near the track. So, we had to scrub the stop.

MA 7 East storms across Gibson Road.

RGX II at Gibson Road

Hiking out to Crystal lake in the sweltering heat of July in east Texas.

Looking west through the Ess Curve. This will be a great spot in the future, but only for a small group.

To my surprise, we found the remnants of a siding at Crystal Lake. I didn't know there had been one here.

One of the three original water tanks on the TSR was located here.

Mission Accomplished. Heading back to the trucks.

After dinner, we caught the arrival of a special evening train in Rusk while we were setting up for the night shoot.

I invited my brother, Ben, to come help out with the night shoot. He's a much better photographer than I'll ever be and I have great respect for his eye and experience. He agreed and arrived in Rusk during dinner. This was his first railroad photography excursion and I was excited to have him there.

By the way, All Star BBQ in Rusk is fantastic! Best pork ribs in Texas!!

MA 7 heads to the Depot for the night shoot.

SPL 28 joins the fun.

The fireworks were being shot over Cherokee Lake, just northwest of the Depot.

All in all, the night shoot was quite successful.

Day 2

July 3, 2016

2016 Handout for Guests

Day 2 dawned early... and it got hot real fast. Being drenched in sweat at 0800 in the morning is never a good sign. But, such is life in East Texas.

We left on time and without any drama. It was nice.

To try something new, we sold cab rides between photo stops. There were about 20 separate segments that we sold individually for $20. Within minutes, all were sold. This brought in a bit of extra revenue for the TSR, but it was also a special treat for the guests.

Special thanks to Brian Jansky for assisting with the sale and management of the cab rides. That was EXTREMELY helpful.

These photos can never do justice to how insanely hot it was that day. I drank at least 2 gallons of water and never made a head call. Not once!  In my after-action report to the GM, I strongly recommended that the railroad NEVER do this in the summer again. Late fall or early spring would be far better!

Fairchild Hill

MP 5.1

500'

Maydelle, Texas

MP 7.3

411'

Mewshaw Siding

MP 11.6

374'

Just east of the Neches River crossing

MP 13.6

~280'

Run #1

Run #2

It might be time to mow the flatcar

"Rare Mileage" 

MA 7 backed the entire consist through the Palestine Wye.

Those that rode got a rare treat.

Casey Akin

Departing Palestine

Dean Wright

MP 23.3

364'

Wasp nest under the Neches River bridge. The photo line kept its distance!

Neches River Crossing

MP 13.77

280'

Heading east from the Neches aboard TSR Caboose 129

Java

MP 9

348'

Hooping up Train Orders at Maydelle

MP 7.3

411'

Everett Lueck couldn't attend the excursion this day, but he was kind enough to construct the

Train Order Hoops from scratch so that we could re-enact what was once a very common occurrence.

He even wrote out accurate train orders on authentic paper! No detail was left out.

THANK YOU, EVERETT

"Station Agent" Mark Huckaby looks on as Freight Extra MA 7 East arrives in Maydelle

Mark hoops up orders to Fireman Chaz Robitaille while Engineer Bill Drotar keeps his eyes down the track.

Brakeman John Johnson

Shortly after the last photo stop at MP 5.4, I sat down in the Caboose, slammed down a bottle of ice-cold water, and promptly fell asleep. The rocking of the car, the intense heat, and the exertions of the day all combined to knock me out.

That was the first time I ever slept on a train.

The Crew

Left-to-Right

Brakeman John Johnson - Road Foreman Scott Rohal - Conductor Clay Argenbright

General Manager Greg Udolph - Engineer Bill Drotar - Fireman Chaz Robitaille

Day 3

July 4, 2016

Day 3 (Monday) dawned far too early. The heat from the previous day had taken its toll and I was SORE and very tired. To make matters worse, I was missing my son. It's a rare thing these days to not see him. So, despite the fatigue, I was anxious to get back to Rusk, chase the train, and hit the road for home.

Video of Double Header: Rusk to Maydelle and back

To celebrate Independence Day, the railroad ran a couple of double-headers from Rusk to Maydelle.

Brian and I joined Cody, Casey, and Mark to chase the first train.

The first double header prepares to depart Rusk

Oakland Crossing, looking east.

MP 2.2

440'

"Peek-a-boo"

East crossing at Fairchild Hill,  westbound.

MP 5.1

500' - 2% grade

Maydelle Yard Limits

MP 7.3

411'

My buddy Chris from Spring Baptist Church.

Yes, it is indeed a small world...

Backing SPL 28 onto the turntable lead.

Run, Cody. Run.

Backing MA 7 down the turntable lead.

GM Greg confers with Fireman John and Engineer Bill.

Backing SPL 28 onto the turntable.

Engineer Dan Volker

#28 takes a spin

#7's turn

No pun intended.

Because of their lack of proper Texas headwear, the guys had to seek shelter from the rain under their tailgate.

Conductor Clay Argenbright

East Yard Lead.

Preparing to couple up and back down to the coaches.

My truck (RGX II) at the east Fairchild Hill Crossing.

Sort of artistic, ain't it?

The guys were late and had to run.

With seconds to spare, Mark works feverishly to move a few errant branches from our line of sight.

THANKS MARK!

Mark (running) barely cleared the frame when SPL 28 rounded the bend at the summit of Fairchild Hill.

Parting shot, looking east at Fairchild Hill.

SPL 28 approaching Oakland Crossing heading east.

MP 2.2

440'

Final shot of the train heading back to Rusk.

It was a darn good trip and I'm sure looking forward to doing it again someday soon.

Ridin' Through the Piney Woods

Here's the final video from the trip. This is 45 minutes of "Ridin' Through the Piney Woods" and is largely unedited footage from my GoPro that was mounted on Caboose 129 and Magma Arizona 7. All of the notable locations are notated with name, Mile Post, and elevation (haha). 

00:35 - The first segment starts at the east end of the Neches and runs through somewhere near Jarvis Road. The camera is mounted on 129.

07:45 - The second segment starts at Dean Wright and goes to Palestine Depot. The camera is mounted under the cab steps of MA 7, facing the running gear. 

15:45 - The last segment starts at Dean Wright again, this time heading east, and goes all the way through the Neches crossing where we started (about 10 miles). The camera is back on 129 for this run.

It's a neat trip. Makes great background music while you're working.