Saratoga & North Creek Railway (ex-UHRR) - 2011

I would have to think that: 1) That type of road power would be a bit overkill for freight for a short line, and 2) I am not sure what type of rail is laid down there, but a large engine like that would only be well supported by very heavy rail.

I'm really sure we won't see a SD90 on those rails.

Charlie

There was an article in railpace saying that the 6070 is there only temporarilly and it will be sent back to the railroad it is lettered for, the Arizona Eastern this winter. One of the main reasons they are using it, is the fact that it has a head end power generator. Supposedly, SNC is getting its own E8 the is identical to the 6070, ut it will be in SNC paint and numbered 518.

They goofed up on the dome car. If you don't use a passenger car for 30 days, it needs a fairly involved FRA inspection by a certified inspector. Someone forgot to switch the dome cars out fast enough. I haven't heard if they had the inspection done or not.

If you use the car a few days out of the month, then the inspection doesn't become due for a much longer period, I forget how long.

So it could be that they can't use it right now, or given it's just a spare you may be seeing it there the times it's not being used.

I kinda like the Arizona Eastern E unit here, it adds a paint scheme you wouldn't normally see and it stands out against the scenery. Also, I rode from North Creek to Thurman and return and it was a fantastic trip. I got into a discussion with one of the conductors and he couldn't say enough good things about Iowa Pacific, apparently it is an extremely employee centered company! Now if they could just get the rest of those Alcos running, they would easily become one of my (and hopefully many others) favorite RR's.
C.J.V.

I don't know if anyone else has noticed, but a mars light has been added to the E unit. It also sports a new 5 chime RS5T horn.

My wife and I tried to purchase dome tickets for the weekend of 10/1 and 10/2 but they were sold out, so we got coach tickets instead. We talked to a ticket agent in Colorado who seemed somewhat clueless to the railroad's operations, suggesting I purchase tickets for the open-air car. Apparently, their ticket agent does several railroad's bookings.

However, it is nice to see that they are booking up solid for the folliage trips.

Benjamin Maggi wrote:We talked to a ticket agent in Colorado who seemed somewhat clueless to the railroad's operations, suggesting I purchase tickets for the open-air car. Apparently, their ticket agent does several railroad's bookings.

This is truth. Same agent told me operations were starting in June. Oh well, she seemed nice.

-otto-

Hi everyone, I read all 22 pages and registered to inquire about the SNRCC. I'm a railfan and am looking forward to taking a round trip for the fall foliage.

From the timetable on the website it appears there's only one consist running at a time:
The NY Express runs from NC to Saratoga and back to NC in the morning, then it's called the Merganser from NC to Thurman and back and finally it's called the Hudson Explorer from NC to Saratoga and back again. The last time I was at the Saratoga station I saw the E8 and B39-8 running at each end. Railpictures.net mostly has pictures of these two running so are these are the engines they plan to use for the rest of the season? Not sure what the BL2s are for if they have the Dash8 and E8 and are only running one consist - maybe future expansion, ski trains, etc.

We'll be traveling with 2 small kids and I'm trying to determine what the seating arrangements are on the dome and coach cars. I read there are tables of 4 and 5-6 in the upper level dome, what is the arrangement on the lower level of the dome? Also, is the lower level of the dome considered coach price? Why would anyone want to pay for a dome seat and sit on the lower level. I didn't see it discussed in this thread but the SNRCC website shows a 2-2 seating arrangement for the "Golden Sands and Bryce Canyon" coaches that are on lease and are now running. For a family of 4 it is nice that the seats face each other. I read the LIRR C-1 coaches are a 3-2 seating arrangement, do they face each other as well?

Based on the reviews here it sounds like coach might be the way to go based on the price and the cleanliness of the domes. I assume all of the seats are unassigned and it is first board, first sit? I imagine we'd want to sit on the river side if possible.

Thanks!

Oops, just noticed there's probably no lower level on the dome car

The word out of Saratoga is that the second Dome car will be added to the consist. I guess that the demand for tickets in the Dome car has spiked big time. I rode by the Depot (Saratoga) today. The parking lot was full. They must have had a full train today.

I drove by the Saratoga Depot again today (Friday 9/30 ) at 9:20 am . The North Creek train leaves Saratoga at 10:am. I saw both Dome cars in the consist plus at least one of the bi-level cars. Also there were at least two coach cars hooked on also. The parking lot was very close to capacity at 9:20. There were a string of passenger cars parked on a sideing south of the station with no lettering. These were not part of the North Creek train which sets up a little north of the station. I am curious as to who owned these. I think they looked like Amtrak colors but no lettering what so ever. With the coach cars parked on the south, the North Creek on the north , and the regular Amtrak out on the main. The depot looked like the golden era of passenger trains . Its been a long time since I ever saw a scene like this in Saratoga.

So i stumbled upon an aritcle saying that the Arizona Eastern Railroad, which the E8 on property belongs to, has been purchased by Gennssee and Wyoming Corp. and therefore, the excursion service which the E8 was purchased for, will no longer operate. So to me that would make it seem that the 6070 is here to stay. Anyone heard anything about that? Saw some pics online of one of the trains at the Sartoga Station, 6070, 2 domes, 2 coaches, 2 bilevels and the B39-8 8524. Nice big train!

I drove past the station in North Creek today. The trip definatley left me with more questions than answers. 6070 and 8524 (?) were not on the property, I'm asuming they were on a train to Saratoga.

Where is the BL2? I drove past the entire thing and never saw it.

Are there multiple BL2s yet?

What are the MARC coaches doing there? They look pretty beat up.

UHRR #5 appeared to be attached to a short string of cars, so was the blue Alco, I thought SNC was only using the Blue switcher from the UHRR?

Why are there so many coaches in the yard? I know some of it is UHRR equipment, but there has got to be 20+ coaches in the yard.

Im really hoping to see some freight on this line. Thanks for all of the help with my other questions. The SD90 was more of a dream than a suggestion lol. What else does Iowa Pacific use for freight power? I know that tailings are commonly mentioned, does this mean that standard hopper cars would be the predominant car for a freight operation?

Littlefoot14 wrote:What are the MARC coaches doing there? They look pretty beat up.

Which ones are the MARC cars?

The consist for the Saturday trip was from North to South: (double-decker commuter car)-(double-decker commuter car)-(single level coach)-(single level coach)-(dome)-(dome)-("Cinitas" private observation car for the 16 county executives). There was the E-unit facing south but it didn't go on the trips. The blue/silver GE did the train alone.

In North Creek there were the old heavyweight coaches and caboose from the previous years (in green with red trim) and the old green Alco #5 was fired up but I didn't see it moving. The blue/silver GE did all the switching of the train including cutting out the private car once we got in North Creek. It was tacked on for the full return trip to Saratoga. Personally, what I saw accounts for 7 coaches on our train, 3 more old green ones on the siding, and 1 extra dome being worked on in North creek for a total of 11 coaches. We passed three more really old ones (including one that might have been a MARC one) just north of Corinth if I remember correctly on a siding. Perhaps they cleaned up the North Creek yard for the 16 dignitaries that were riding on Saturday. The train didn't sell out but I heard it was the most they ever left Saratoga with. Despite the rain! Still, it is hard to imagine 20+ coaches in the North Creek yard. I don't know if it could hold that many!

Lots of fun despite the rain and annoying family sitting next to us for part of the trip south. And hot cocoa was only $1. Next time we will have to reserve extra early to try the dome cars.