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The Rare Mileage Trip at North Judson 5/11/2013



by Chris Guenzler



Interlake Steel 11 ran around the train on the siding.





Our train was waiting for the engine to be put on the front of the train.





25 years of the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum.





Our engine was reversing onto our train.





Two pre-departure views of our train.





Erie Lackawanna S-1 310 was brought out of the engine house.





The train crossed the Kankakee River.





Our train crossed the Indiana farmlands.





Pennsylvania Railroad display along our route.





A line of trees off in the distance.





A canal for the farmers to use.





The clouds were finally parting.





That Pennsylvania Railroad grade again.





Approaching La Crosse.





We arrived at La Crosse where our passengers could use the bathroom at the La Crosse Public Library.









We did a photo halt here.





Signals in front of the La Crosse Public Library.





One last view of our train at La Crosse.





Interlake 11 before we all reboarded the train.





The south leg of the La Crosse wye.







We ran around the east leg.





The northwest leg of the wye.





Indiana Box Car Corporation SD-M 811, ex. Elgin, Joliet and Eastern 811, nee Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range SD18 811 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1960. It was scrapped in 2021.





Chesapeake & Indiana GP20 2008, ex. Indiana Box Car Corporation 2003, exx. Wisconsin Southern 2003, nee Southern Pacific 7210 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1962.





Indiana Box Car Corporation SD40-2 6009, ex. Illinois Central Gulf 6009, nee Illinois Central 6009 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1969.





Indiana Box Car Corporation GP16 1706, ex. Cambria and Indiana 1706, exx. CSX GP16 1706, exxx. Conrail 4606, exxxx. Southwest Pennsylvania Railroad 1706, nee Atlantic Coast Line GP7 236 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1951.





We passed by a girls softball game.





Milepost 1.





Another canal.





We went by a small lake.





Our route took us by many different types of fields.





The cows were out in this field.





The front had passed through but the wind kicked up even more this May afternoon.





A deer ran away from the train.







Views on our way to Thomaston.





A red Indiana barn.





Our train stopped just short of the Norfolk Southern crossing at Thomaston as across the crossing, was another engine, so this would be our turn-back point. I enjoyed the views and relaxed on the trip back.





Indiana Box Car Corporation GP16 1706.





Indiana Box Car Corporation SD-M 811.





The southeast corner of the wye at La Crosse.





We detrained to watch the engine reverse around the wye.





We waited for the engine to reverse.













The reverse move of Interlake 11.















The locomotive reversed to our train and we all reboarded.





There was a nest of very young birds in the vestibule of our Long Island coach. They rode for free!





Our train took the curve east of La Crosse.





Interesting Indiana sky this late afternoon.





We passed the railroad display again.





Big cloud country.





Crossing the Kankakee River.





We soon returned to North Judson but continued east.





Passing Grasselli Tower.





Going by the signal bridge.





The North Judson station was passed.





Crossing Main Street.





The west end of the Erie Trail starts in North Judson.





The east signal in North Judson.





The foundation of an old factory along the Erie Trail.





The old Pennsylvania Railroad takes off but stops at the next highway crossing.





Looking back at the junction of that line.





Calumet Steel EMC Model 40 is a billboard for the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum.





The view looking back.





Tires serving a different purpose than what they were made for.





This was as far east as we came.





We headed back west to North Judson.





The open car was almost empty as we neared North Judson and after we arrived, Elizabeth and I drove back north to the KFC in Michigan City for dinner. After that we drove north into Michigan, arriving at the Best Western Beacon Inn well after dark and checked in for the night.


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