I awoke early at the Bentonville Best Western and put the corrections in the first part of the Fort Smith Trolley Museum story then after another cold shower, went to the front desk complained before having breakfast. I met Randy Jackson and we decided to drive to the Arkansas & Missouri Railroad station in Springdale this morning and we would go out to dinner this evening. We arrived and I started my picture-taking.
Arkansas and Missouri C-420 68, ex. Indiana Hi-Rail 311, exx. Arkansas and Missouri 411, exxx. Delaware and Hudson 411, nee Lehigh Valley 411 built by American Locomotive Company in 1964, would power our train today.
Our train waiting to depart.
Arkansas and Missouri parlor car "Explorer" built by Pullman Standard in 1955 as Long Island P72 coach 2927. This car went to the Northern Central Railway in Pennsylvania before being moved to the Arkansas and Missouri Railroad in December 2004.
I walked across the street to see what was on the east side of the engine shop.
Arkansa and Missouri T-6 15, ex. Avtex Fibers 415, exx. Maryland and Delaware 15, exxx. North County Railroad 100, exxxx. Conrail 9849, exxxxx. Penn Central 9849, nee Pennsylvania Railroad 8429 built by American Locomotive Company in 1958.
Arkansas and Missouri HR412 76, ex. Ohio Central 3588, exx. Canadian National 3588, nee Canadian National 2588 built by Montreal Locomotive Works in 1981.
Arkansas and Missouri T-6 12, ex. Maryland and Delaware 12, nee Norfolk and Western 46 built by American Locomotive Company in 1959.
Arkansas and Missouri C-424 604, ex. Hudson Bay Railway 604, nee Belt Railroad of Chicago 604 built by American Locomotive Company in 1966, and used as a parts source.
Arkansas and Missouri 3554, ex. Ohio Central 3554, exx. Canadian National 3554, nee Canadian National 2554 built by Montreal Locomotive Works in 1974.
I walked back over to the station and boarded the train. Our TripOur train departed Springdale on time and stopped to pick up the caboose. From here, we proceeded south with a consist of Arkansas and Missouri C-420 68, coach 105 "Golden Age", coach 106 "Mountain View", parlor 102 "Explorer" and the un-numbered caboose. As I covered this railroad with so many pictures on my previous trip in April 2009, I would limit my picture-taking to what is new today. A small creek was crossed once we left Springdale.
The train ran by the Fayetteville station then passed the airport and Air Museum before we left that town. Our route started to follow the West Fork of the White River and we passed a road with the bridge at the end before going through Winslow. We were then on the approach to the Winslow Tunnel, a 1,702 foot bore at an elevation of 1,735 feet, the highest mountain rail crossing between the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains. After exiting the south portal, we stopped for a set of static photos done in steps.
Our passengers coming to the first photo line.
Static photograph location one.
Static photograph location two.
Static photograph location three at the Winslow Tunnel. Once everyone had their pictures, the train was moved forward and we all reboarded but only went a short distance and crossed Trestle 1, which is 780 feet long and 125 feet high, for the next set of photographs.
Our train reversed onto Trestle 1 to be posed.
Static photograph location four at Trestle 1.
The train then came forward to be re-spotted.
Static photograph location five at Trestle 1. When that was completed, we reboarded again and continued south, taking a few more curves before crossing the 421 foot long and 110 foot high Trestle 2. A few minutes later, our train crossed Trestle 3, which is 451 long and 110 feet high. We were then following Clear Creek and slowed for a section of track that had been repaired from flooding two days ago. After passing a waterfall under our first crossing of Interstate 540, we rolled down a 3.4 mile stretch of straight track and went through Chester, where an Arkansas and Missouri ballast train was in the siding waiting to go back to work with the flood repairs along our route.
We went by another flood damage area along our route then went underneath Interstate 540 before crossing Clear Creek again; the creek changes into Frog Bayou near the town of Mountainburg, then underneath Interstate 540 for the last time on this trip. Straight track is hard to find on this railroad.
We traversed Frog Bayou on one of the many crossings. After Lancaster, we crossed the bayou and stopped for a photo runby at the bridge at MP 396.4.
Our group made photo lines on both sides of Frog Bayou and here came Bart Jennings across to our photo line.
Reverse move 1.
Photo runby 1 at the MP 396.4 Frog Bayou bridge. Most people switched sides for the next photo runby.
Reverse move 2.
Photo runby 2. We all reboarded the train and continued sout, going through Stewart before running along the bluffs with interesting rock strata then on into Van Buren, but unlike my last trip here, did not stop at the station.
