Everyone detrained at Jim Thorpe and I went for lunch at Molly Maguire's Pub and Steakhouse with Yoshitaka Matsuo, our NRHS member from Tokyo, Japan. I had a hamburger and enjoyed his company then took him for a railfan tour of Jim Thorpe.
Central of New Jersey Jim Thorpe station built in 1888.
Reading and Northern SW8 800, ex. Conrail 8698, nee Delaware, Lackawanna and Western 509 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1952.
All the cabooses were still there from my last visit in May.
Reading and Northern 425.
Reading and Northern 425 coming back out onto the mainline.
Reading and Northern 425 reversing to get water before we continued our trip to Port Clinton.
The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railroad train returning to Jim Thorpe.
Reading and Northern SD38 2000, ex. Conrail 6941, nee Penn Central 6941 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1970.
The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railroad train on its way to the Jim Thorpe station.
Reading and Northern 4-6-2 425 and Reading and Northern SW8 800.
The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railroad train waiting for its 1:00 PM departure. I walked over to my favorite tree here and called Let's Talk Trains.
Jim Thorpe station from afar.
The author under the tree. At 1:45 PM, they allowed us to reboard for the trip to Port Clinton. During the layover, the open air car had moved to the other end of the train, and the first class cars were switched to our end which caused passengers nothing but confusion. Once everyone was back aboard, we departed on time at 2:15 PM.
Leaving Jim Thorpe.
Going under the main road bridge.
We went by the turntable which turned our steam engine then the train took us to Nesquehoning Junction and we went up the line toward Port Clinton for a pair of photo runbys. The first would be on the bridge we came on this morning over the Lehigh River.
Photo runby three. We all moved to our new route for the next photo runby.
Photo runby four. After that we all reboarded the train for the rest of the trip to Port Clinton and we travelled west through the town of Nesquehoning.
The train passed Lake Hauto and Greenwood Lake before running through Hometown.
View on the way to the Hometown Trestle.
Our crossing of Hometown Trestle, a 981 foot long span which was constructed in 1931 and crosses the Little Schuylkill River.
The countryside on the way to Haucks, where our route would start a 180 degree turn, from going west to east in a short distance.
An interesting building along our route.
Making our way to Tamaqua Tunnel.
Entering Tamaqua Tunnel.
Exiting the tunnel before we approached Tamaqua.
An interesting crossing protection signal.
A railroad display here.
Atlas Powder Company 24" gauge BCL 8 ton switcher 20 built by Brookville in 1965.
New York, New Haven and Hartford caboose C582, ex. Conrail 23570, nee Penn Central 23570, builder and year unknown.
The former Philadelphia & Reading Railroad station built in 1874. Saved from the brink of demolition, the building now serves as a heritage center.
In 1960, the Reading Railroad built a cinder block crossing tower at the Broad Street crossing to house the operator who controlled the gates on all five railroad crossings.
Curving out of the Tamaqua yard as we headed to Port Clinton.
The train chasers were out in force along Pennsylvania 343. I relaxed the rest of the way to Port Clinton.
Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad 4-8-4 614 built by Lima in 1948. Although usually known as Northern type locomotives, the Chesapeake & Ohio decided to give its 4-8-4s a different name. The railroad's Greenbrier Hotel in White Sulphur Springs, which was then known for its luxury and prestige, thus formed the basis for the name "Greenbrier" that was applied to them. In all, the Chesapeake & Ohio would roster twelve 4-8-4s. They were designed to haul long, heavy high-speed express passenger trains such as the George Washington and the Fast Flying Virginian.
Like most steam locomotives built after WWII, the J-3s had a comparatively short life. All twelve were retired in 1955, although a number were briefly reactivated in 1956, including 614. Shortly after, all, except 614, were scrapped and the locomotive went into storage in Russell, Kentucky, until 1975, when it was donated to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum in Baltimore by the Chessie System, successor to the C&O. In 1979, the museum traded 614 with Ross Rowland for Reading 2101, which had been damaged in fire.
The following year, the restored locomotive hauled the Chessie Safety Express, working through 1981. The locomotive was then kept in Hagerstown, Maryland until 1985 when it began a short-lived experiment as an alternative to rising oil costs by burning a type of coal known as ACE 3000. It then returned to Baltimore. In 1998, 614 was moved into storage on the Reading & Northern Railroad in Port Clinton, Pennsylvania. In 1992, 614 steamed again to demonstrate Rowland's vision of his proposed 21st Century Express. One side of the locomotive was shrouded in blue streamlining and the headlight was centered.
Three years later, 614 was pulled to the New Hope & Ivyland Railroad in Pennsylvania for a complete overhaul. The overhaul was completed in 1996 and the locomotive was moved to Hoboken, New Jersey, from where it hauled a series of very successful excursions to Port Jervis, New York and return. In 1998, 614 went into storage on the Reading & Northern Railroad in Port Clinton.
Reading 4-8-4 2102 built by Baldwin in 1925.
The train arrived into Port Clinton and I was on the first bus back to Scranton. Once we were full, we departed travelling on US 19, then east on Interstate 78, north on Pennsylvania Turnpike 475 then north to Interstate 81, which took us back to Scranton. Once off the bus, the NRHS 2010 Convention was complete. I retrieved my rental car out of the parking structure for free then drove Interstate 81 south through Harrisburg and filled up Shippensburg. Back on Interstate 81, I had to cross the panhandles of Maryland and West Virginia to reach Virginia, where I exited in Winchester and stayed the night at the Best Western Lee Jackson Inn.
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