I was up at 5:30 AM and checked the Internet then departed the Drake Inn at 6:10 AM and walked in the pre-dawn light to a Shell petrol station where I purchased two packs of chocolate doughnuts for breakfast. I walked down to the Tennessee Central Railway Museum and inside the gate was Randy Jackson, my good friend from Albuquerque, who would be riding with me. After we talked for a few minutes, he offered to drive me back to the hotel afterwards, which solved one problem. I picked up my ticket at the will-call table before we went inside the baggage room and I had my doughnuts and a Coca-Cola to get me going. Randy and I then walked out and joined the queue with a few other passengers.
Passengers waiting to board the first train to Monterey in forty-five years.
The train consisted of Tennessee Central E9A 6902, F7Bs 719B and 715B, F40PH 375, power cars 1240 and 514, coaches 4711, 4719 and 4717, dome-coach 9400, lounge 3113, concession car 1266, lounge 3119, voaches 4733, 7602, 4739, 7628 and 4734, lounge 4067 and business car 9012, which was the longest train that the Museum had operated.
Randy Jackson with an orange baggage tag on his backpack. At 7:30 AM, the gate was opened and passengers boarded their cars. I boarded dome-coach 9400 and was assigned the rear seat on the right side.
My seat mate for this trip was Rob who works for CSX, is a reader of my website and could not believe he was sitting beside me. We talked and Rob offered to drive me out to the airport tomorrow morning. Problem two solved and now I could really enjoy this trip. At 7:59 AM, we started to reverse out of the Museum onto the mainline of the Nashville Eastern Railroad.
Reversing underneath the Interstate 40 bridge.
Once the whole train was on the mainline, we started the journey to Monterey, Tennessee.
We left downtown Nashville behind.
Passing the Museum and yard of the Nashville Eastern with plenty of motive power laying over on the Sunday morning. The train was making good time on the tracks the Nashville Star commuter trains use as far of Lebanon.
We travelled under the CSX Rador Cutoff on the Shelby Park bridge.
Crossing Mill Creek.
Rounding a curve with a splash of autumn colours on a few trees here.
Most major roads are crossed by bridges.
The train curved by the Donelson commuter train station.
Crossing Stone River.
Passing through Hermitage commuter train station.
Rolling through the forest.
Beautiful Tennessee countryside.
Rounding a curve.
Passing a cement plant.
We next sped through Mt. Juliet commuter train station.
Some trees with autumn colours.
Traversing through the penultimate commuter station at Martha. Rob and I then walked back through the train.
Rounding the large curve after the Martha station.
We crossed a little creek as we paralleled a road.
A large sand and gravel plant was passed before we reached Lebanon.
This big bowling pin stands in front of the Pro Bowl West.
The Lebanon commuter train station, the final station on the Nashville Star route.
The former Lebanon Tennessee Central station still stands.
Crossing a road on the curve.
My dome car on the curve.
A former CSX locomotive used on the Nashville Eastern sand trains at the Lebanon Shops where the Music City Star lays over.
Nashville Eastern C30-7 7025, ex. CSX 7025, exx. Seaboard System 7025, nee Seaboard Coast Line 7025 built by General Electric in 1979.
Music City Star F40PH-2 120, nee Amtrak F40 332 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1980.
A former Amtrak diner-hounge high-level car of Santa Fe vintage.
Also many former Chicago Metra and Amtrak cars are here; the Music City Star uses Chicago and North Western gallery cars that used to be on Metra.
Virginia Rail Express bi-level commuter coaches.
The green hoppers were bought for the sand trains that come from a branch from Monterey.
One of the Music City Star F40PH-2s peeks out from behind the new sand cars.
We ran through the Tennessee countryside on our way to Watertown.
From my vantage point in the dome, I could look back on one of the big curves.
The trees were showing glimpses of autumn colors.
We passed the platform at Watertown used by the Museum on some of their trips.
Trees to the north.
A red barn on the top of a hill.
We ran by a nice farm up the hill a few minutes later.
Rounding another curve.
Nearing the hills that we will climb over 900 feet of elevation between Nashville and Monterey. Rob then took me back to the rear platform where we rode the most scenic portion.
