Coatesville railfanning

Yesterday I spent the day raifanning the steel mill and its environs. I'm sure many readers have seen the photos from way back of Reading switchers working the mills. I was surprised at how busy the place seemed. I thought the recession might have killed rail activity but the mill seemed quite busy as well as the ancillary scrap metal firms. Because of the fencing it's hard to get good shots but if you move about you can find decent locations to get the orange and blue switching units. I also lucked out and got the NS train that comes into the plant about once a week. I got pictures of the two NS units and the switchers both handling gondolas and what looked like ore jennies. At the end of the day I got the NS train returning to the Harrisburg Line crossing the Brandywine with a brilliant setting sun onto a woods that looked ablaze with red and yellow folliage. I most earnestly entreat any Pa railfans who can go to this spot to do so and I hope your visit will be as much fun as mine.

I went there two years ago to look for the RDG FP7's that were at Mittal Steel briefly. I walked down a path from the parking lot up on the hill and went as far as I could go without tresspassing. A security person drove up in a golf cart and asked me what I was doing there. When I told him, he gave me a ride on their property so I could get good photo locations from in the golf cart.

kevikens wrote:... gondolas and what looked like ore jennies. ....

I was at a car wash on Lancaster Ave (business Rt 30) just east of Coatesville a few days ago, and a train made up entirely of BVRY equipment rolled by. The cars were mostly these "ore jennies", but some standard gondolas also. All carried the BVRY markings. The ore jennies all also had (obviously older) lettering of what seemed like a French name (although I can't remember what it was now - #$%^$#!). The train was capped off by a plain white caboose with no markings.

(I missed the locos, since I was inside the building.)