It was time to plan the Winterail tTrip for this year. I decided since rail traffic would be way down due to the economy, that it would be a good time to start photographing old train stations in the San Joaquin Valley. Chris Parker would reserve the rental car and I would reserve the hotels. The Best Western in Stockton closed so I picked the new one in Manteca. Chris invited Dave Abbott to join us and with a list of Southern Pacific stations, I was ready to take yet another unique trip to Winterail.
Metrolink 681 3/13/2009
I was up early and after breakfast, finished packing then drove to the Santa Ana station and parked in the northeast parking lot. I walked to Track 1 via the Santa Ana Boulevard crossing, left my luggage on the handicapped ramp and walked to the Metrolink ticketing machine to buy my ticket to Los Angeles. The train arrivd on time and I boarded the cab car and relaxed as the train went through the morning darkness to LAUPT, where it arrived ten minutes early. I walked over to the Garden Tracks and noticed that my Metrolink engine was in their new modified green paint scheme.
The drive to Stockton 3/13/2009I waited by the gate for Chris Parker and Dave Abbott to arrive. Chris pulled up in the rented hybrid Nissan and after I loaded my luggage in the back, Dave arrived, parked his car inside the fenced area and soon his car was locked inside until Sunday evening. We soon were driving north on Interstate 5 and stopped at the Roxford exit where we met Larry Boerio and his friend Donm and I discussed the day's plan as they would drive in one car and the three of us in the other. We drove north over Tejon Pass and through Bakersfield to our first stop of the day in Earlimart.
There we found the freight portion of the former Southern Pacific station, built in 1916, which was now part of a hardware store. We stopped to get petrol before continuing north to Pixley.
In Pixley we found the streamlined modern-style depot moved across Highway 99 at 1575 North Park Drive. From here we drove to Porterville for my first time and we found the former Southern Pacific station.
The Porterville Museum is located at 257 North D Street in the former Southern Pacific station, built in 1913.
Behind the museum were out-of-service former Southern Pacific tracks. We then drove over to the Santa Fe station.
The former Porterville Santa Fe Station, built in 1917 and now a Senior Citizens Center.
A crossing signal along the former Santa Fe route through Porterville, is now a trail.
The former Santa Fe right-of-way.
On the way out of town, trees in bloom before we made our way north to Exeter.
A railroad mural in Exeter.
Esquimalt and Nanaimo GP38 3809, ex. Minnesota Northern 3809, exx. Kiamichi Railroad 3809, exxx. Pittsburgh and Lake Erie 2031, exxxx. Conorail 7778, nee Penn Central 7778 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1969.
San Joaquin Valley Railroad GP20R 2042, ex. Kyle 2042, exx. St. Louis-Southwestern 4139, exxx. St. Louis-Southwestern 4039, nee St. Louis-Southwestern 809 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1961.
San Joaquin Valley Railroad GP20R 2038, ex. Southwest Kansas Railway 2038, exx. Kyle 2038, exxx. Southern Pacific 4116, exxxx. Southern Pacific 4069, nee Southern Pacific 7219 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1962.
San Joaquin Valley Railroad GP28 1826, ex. Kyle 1826, exx. Iowa Railroad 9431, exxx. Illinois Central Gulf 9431, nee Illinois Central 9431 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1964.
San Joaquin Valley Railroad GP20R 2037, ex. Kyle 2037, exx. Southern Pacific 4111, exxx. Southern Pacific 4062, nee Southern Pacific 7212 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1962.
The San Joaquin Valley Railroad/Raiil America shop here in Exeter.
San Joaquin Valley Railroad GP38-3 3829, ex. Central Oregon and Pacific 3829, exx. Central Oregon and Pacific 5528, exxx. Chicago Rail Link 335, exxxx. Conrail 7759, exxxxx. Pittsburgh and Lake Erie 2028, nee Penn Central GP38 7759 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1969.
We drove to Visalia were we found the station.
The former Southern Pacific Visalia station built in 1916 and now The Depot Restaurant and Square.
We decided to have lunch and I enjoyed a French Dip sandwich.
Above the door to the 612 Lounge is the headlight from Southern Pacific 612.
In the window is this steam engine.
Fantastic stained glass of a steam engine. After an excellent lunch, we proceeded to Dinuba but missed the road and ended up in Goshen, where I spotted a moving train.
The San Joaquin Valley Railroad at work in Goshen before we drove to Dinuba.
The Dinuba Southern Pacific station, built in 1916, was moved and is now the Alta District Historical Society Museum. We made our way to Selma.
The Selma Southern Pacific station, built in 1917, is now the Selma Police Station. We next drove to Clovis Avenue in Fowler.
The Southern Pacific Fowler station, built in 1883, has been a church and whorehouse over the years since it had been moved.
Driving north on California 99, wildflowers were in bloom as we made our way to Merced to pick up Ken Ruben at the Amtrak station and before leaving town, we stopped at the station.
The former Southern Pacific Merced station built in 1927.
A Union Pacific freight passed through while we there, after which we continued on to Manteca and checked into the Best Western. My non-smoking room was turned into a smoking room and when I objected, we received a suite with a king size bed and a roll-away. I gave Chris the bed and took the roll away then after we settled in, Chris drove us over to the Altamont Commuter Express station in Manteca and dropped Ken, Dave and I off; he would meet us at Stockton.
Ken and Dave at the ACE station in Manteca.
Altamont Commuter Express Train 04 3/13/2009This service connects Stockton and San Jose during peak hours only and is named for the Altamont Pass, through which it runs. Service is managed by the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission and operations are contracted to Herzog Transit Services. The 86 mile route includes ten stops, with travel time about 2 hours and 12 minutes end-to-end. ACE uses Bombardier bi-level coaches and MPI F40PH-3C locomotives. Service began on October 19, 1998, with two weekday round trips and a third round trip was added in May 2001.
The tracks are owned by Union Pacific Railroad, previously built along the Western Pacific Railroad main line. Under the ACEforward program, a number of improvements to the service are being considered. These include a rerouted line through Tracy, an extension to Modesto and Merced, and connections to BART at Union City and Tri-Valley.
The train arrived for my first trip on this service.
Me riding the ACE to Stockton. I hoped it would go on the former Western Pacific all the way but at the junction to the former Southern Pacific, we diverted onto that route. A few people going to Winterail were aboard this afternoon and once on the Southern Pacific mainline, the train made its way into Stockton, stopping at the ACE station which is the former Southern Pacific. Chris met us and we drove to the Friday Night Pizza Party and Slide Show at the Winterail venue.
Railfan Magazine and NRHS Slide and Pizza Party 3/13/2009This event starts off the Winterail weekend experience. Pizza and sodas are consumed before one enters the Winterail Hall. A great series of presentations are shown over the next three-and-a-half hours with a large variety of subjects. This year's shows were: California Passenger Trains from the early 70's by Drew Jacksich, Trains from New Zealand, Fiji, Jamaica & South America, Cinematic Steam in the 21st Century by Ben Kletzer, Tribute to Donald Duke by Steve Crise, Steam and Snow by Mike Masse, Friends of 4449 part of a DVD "Legends of Steam Volume II" by Marcam Productions, Norden Experience by Mike Pechner, Contemporary Railroading in Mexico by Nate Mulhlenthaler and Bart Jennings' Rare Mileage Trips by yours truly. After a great night of railroading, we returned to the Best Western in Manteca for the night.
3/14/2009Chris and I arose and drove over to Perko's for a good breakfast then later picked up Dave and Ken and we drove to Stockton and parked at the Scottish Rite Masonic Temple for another great day of railroading.
Winterail 2009 3/14/2009We joined the line to enter the swap meet that lasts until the late afternoon,. I first went to the Stanley Room before going into the main hall and purchased an April 29, 1951 Wabash passenger timetable, Arkansas and Missouri Railroad Company Timetable No. 2 January 24, 1988, "The Amazing Journey of Santa Fe's RDC Cars" and the DVD "Legends of Steam Volume II" by Marcam Productions. At about 10:00 AM, I bought a tri-tip sandwich and started the line to get inside the Theater then at 11:00 AM, the doors were opened and I found us four seats.
At noon, the pre-show announcements were made and the first program was "Oliver Brothers Salt Revisited" by Wayne Monger and Vic Neves, then part of "America and the Passenger Train" DVD by Richard Luckin. That was followed by "Steam Charters" by Gary Hunter. "The Bill Darrough Story, Part Deux" by Steve and Ken Sloan was the next presentation, a continuation of a show from 2007. The last afternoon show was "Railroads of Hong Kong" by Gordon Glattenburg. Next were the Winterail Shorts, the first one being "25th Anniversary of the Feather River Rail Society" by Wayne Monger, then "Cal-P at Night" by Alex Ramos and the "Mt. Lowe Railway" film by the Mount Lowe Preservation Society.
We always leave before the "Three Favorites" and we went to the Black Angus for dinner where I had a sirloin steak and ice cream with hot fudge. Afterwards, we went to Stockton Crossing, missing three freight trains, but saw some old friends. Back at Winterail, the Photo Contest winners were announced followed by Mel Patrick receiving the Winterail Hall of Fame Award. I had always admired Mel's photographic skills over the years and was very happy that he won. The first of the evening's programs was "Jim Shaughnessy" by Jeff Brouws, then for me, a repeat, but as good as ever, "Surf and the Southern Pacific" by John Roskoski. "Route 66 Rails" by Elrond Lawrence was next, followed by the final program of the evening, "72-82 Western Pacific's Final Decade" by Ted Benson, Dick Dorn, Dale Sanders and Dave Stanley.
It had been another great Winterail event and with that, we returned to the Best Western for the night.
