first trip to the Curve

While on weather.com earlier, the forecast for Friday is calling for a 60% chance on rain/snow showers with a low of 32 degrees F and a high of 39 degrees F. It will be a chilly one! Saturday and Sunday are supposed to be partly cloudy with highs at/above 50 degrees F.

Will probably hit Sheetz at some point for hot chocolate and some soup.

I will probably head to the curve Saturday, as the hours are slightly longer than Sunday. Looking forward to the trip.

dwil89 wrote:If you are interested in hikes, there are a couple of interesting walking/biking trails that parallel the NS Mainline on the West Slope...One runs between Ehrenfeld and Mineral Point on a former trolley line roadbed and another runs from Mineral Point and the Staple Bend Tunnel, along what was once the rightofway of the old Portage Railroad.....The third leg of this trail to be completed will run from Staple Bend West to Franklin, near Conemaugh....so eventually, one will be able to hike or bicycle from South Fork to near Conemaugh....a distance of 7 miles.....I have hiked all three sections....having done the Franklin-Staple Bend and Ehrenfeld to Mineral Point segments when they were unrestored muddy paths.....I just hiked the Ehrenfeld to Mineral Point segment again this past Friday for the first time since it was improved.

I think I know where you are talking about with the Ehrenfeld location. If you are in South Fork, by the old bridge abutments, looking east, there is a bridge that crosses over the tracks and the river. If you head that way, you'll come across the trail, correct?

Hey all,
OC- Yeah I did see that forecast...hopefully it holds up for you Sat. & for me on Sun. ! Either way, I'm preparing for rain.
Candy is the last thing I need, but might be interesting to visit, Scooter.
dwil-Sounds like it's hit or miss when it's "closed" Either way I wanna hike the steps on Sunday...
I'm planning:
early Sun.-Curve, then museum
Mon.- pedestrian bridges, hike up the line to Juniata, and catch action wherever....
• Scooter I have to re-check that NS train list...I notice some of the trains or at least some of the cars originate here at Croxton....pretty cool...If I had more time tho, I would love to hike the Slope. All these locations ya'll mention are on the DVD I got (Beyond Horsheshoe) To me it represents what classic Americana railroading is !
Peace,
Phil
bktrainz31

bktrainz31:

Have a great time... I know there is a ATV Trail that runs behind the Curve. With the foliage down, that might be worth checking out. I think Dave W. could provide hiking directions from the Curve to get on this trail. I think it is on State Forest Land.

Be sure to bring your scanner and timetable!

Brooks

parker,
ok cool, that sounds good...
i'll bring the scanner too !
peace,
phil

OCtrainguy wrote:

dwil89 wrote:If you are interested in hikes, there are a couple of interesting walking/biking trails that parallel the NS Mainline on the West Slope...One runs between Ehrenfeld and Mineral Point on a former trolley line roadbed and another runs from Mineral Point and the Staple Bend Tunnel, along what was once the rightofway of the old Portage Railroad.....The third leg of this trail to be completed will run from Staple Bend West to Franklin, near Conemaugh....so eventually, one will be able to hike or bicycle from South Fork to near Conemaugh....a distance of 7 miles.....I have hiked all three sections....having done the Franklin-Staple Bend and Ehrenfeld to Mineral Point segments when they were unrestored muddy paths.....I just hiked the Ehrenfeld to Mineral Point segment again this past Friday for the first time since it was improved.

I think I know where you are talking about with the Ehrenfeld location. If you are in South Fork, by the old bridge abutments, looking east, there is a bridge that crosses over the tracks and the river. If you head that way, you'll come across the trail, correct?

Yes....drive over the Bridge to the Ehrenfeld side..then turn left and drive back as far as you can go....You will need to turn around at the trail entrance and then park perhaps 50 yards back from the trail entrance alongside the road as they don't want vehicles parking right against the entranceway....no parking signs are posted at that spot.....

bwparker1 wrote:bktrainz31:

Have a great time... I know there is a ATV Trail that runs behind the Curve. With the foliage down, that might be worth checking out. I think Dave W. could provide hiking directions from the Curve to get on this trail. I think it is on State Forest Land.

Be sure to bring your scanner and timetable!

Brooks

There is a Jeep trail that runs up along the railroad all the way from the Coburn area to the Curve......the hike is strenous as the trail runs up and down some steep slopes that the railroad runs through on massive fills......I haven't hiked it in a year or more but access to the trail is via a trailhead that branches off a dirt road that passes under the Railroad via an underpass near MP 239 leading to the Altoona Hunting club....The trail goes West from there and eventually brings you out at an overlook looking down at the East side of the Curve.....Railpace had a cover shot a month or so ago of the E units leading one of the Railfest excursions around the Curve as taken from that trail which overlooks the East side of the curve. David J. Williams http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nsaltoonajohnstown

bigkidtrainz31 wrote:I notice some of the trains or at least some of the cars originate here at Croxton

There are a good number of the pig trains that come out of there. I believe that they use the old EL intermodal yard there, but I'm not 100% on that. As for the scanner, definetly have it, and also extra batteries if isn't a rechargable one. Other than that I would also bring along a pair of binoculars as well. These are a great tool if you are trying to get an engine number, check out a distant signal, or just cheking out the scenery. I always through a pair in the bag when I go out, and they almost always come in handy.

Also speaking of signals another handy thing to have would be a chart like this

http://broadway.pennsyrr.com/Rail/Signa ... norac.html

giving you a list of the different signal aspects and their associated meaning. This is very helpful for getting an idea of the movements that are going to take place, and will also help you to understand some of the radio chatter. The nice thing about the chart on the link is that it gives you the aspects for a bunch of different signal designs, which is perfect for the Altoona area considering that there are both position and colored lights in use now.

Scooter

thanks again everyone,
just saw snow expected for tomorrow ! good luck OC !
that's ok for me since it'll be dark by the time i get out there anyway. hoping for better weather on sun. hitting the curve and museum. monday calls for a few showers,but i don't mind, that is until i get all muddy from walking around
im packed with all i need except the binocs. i printed what i needed since i don't have a laptop. just looking forward to the days off away from everyhting.....except trains ! will post it all when i get back and hopefully with some cool pics and vids as well......thanks again everyone ! and i f ya looking for me i'll be the short, stocky guy, goatee and yankee cap, freezing his butt off on a pedestrian bridge waiting for a train !
peace,
phil

ALTO tower in '07 or BUST !

Have a great time Phil, let us know what you see!

Brooks

It did snow late Friday into Saturday morning...mainly from Cresson on Eastward through Gallitzin and down the East Slope a bit....I got some snowshots at Cresson this morning and met OCTrainguy up near MO...Sunday is forecast to be partly sunny..and then the next several days after that are forecast to be unsettled..damp with chance of showers for much of next week. Spending a couple of nights at John Shuniak's motel at Cassandra....he has wireless internet access so his place and The Station Inn both offer wireless internet.

Dave, it was nice meeting you in Cresson. I remember we were two ships passing in the night at Cassandra back in July. The snow was great Saturday morning. My wife and two kids really enjoyed playing in it. I was happy getting some snow photos this early in the season.

A quick recap from my four days. (I'm almost done with my trip report.) We got to Cresson Thursday afternoon and spent a couple of hours there before heading to the Juniata Shops. That is definetely worth a visit as you never know what you'll see there. The highlight, for me and my son, was seeing a NS SD70 being turned on the turntable followed by a Virginia Rail engine, VRE 09, if my memory serves me correctly. While the engines did not get a full spin on the turntable, it was still very cool to see the turntable in use and the engines on it. We then spent some time on the 8th Street overpass where CP Rose is.

Friday morning was started at the pedestrian overpass before heading out to Lilly for an hour-and-a-half. We then took a ride out to South Fork. The signals were all red for westbounds and the only thing in the yard was a string of loaded coal cars. So we headed back to Cresson to finish the day.

Saturday morning, with the fresh fallen snow, we headed back to Cresson. We then headed to Portage for a while before heading to the curve. There were probably about a dozen people there, though it was very damp. After the curve, we headed down to the Brickyard Crossing so we could stay warm in the vehicle. That's where we finished the day.

On Sunday, it was very foggy, and my son and I spent an hour at the pedestrian overpass in Altoona. After checking out of the hotel, we headed to South Fork and saw the westbound roadrailer train. After a drive to Conemaugh (and only seeing one train in 90 minutes), we stopped at Cassandra to eat lunch. After that it was back to Cresson to finish the trip. Our final train was a great train to see as four of the SD80MACs brought a string of ACFs, one gondola and one boxcar east, stopped at CP MO, reversed into the Cresson engine facility and headed up the secondary there, two on each end, in pull-pull fashion. The engines were 7212, 7209, 7213 & 7215.

hey everyone,

dwil-OC that's cool that you were able to meet up and enjoy the sites !
Well,here's my wrap-up:

Sat. Rutherford,NJ- As I approached the crossing by my home station to catch NJ Transit out to Newark, the gates went down,lights flashing, bells ringing. Had a feeling it might be a buddy of mine who usually works a local Sat. run. Sure enough he rumbled by with 2 GP-38-2's complete with exchanged waves and extra hornblasts ! Great start !
Newark,NJ- Boarded a soldout Pennsylvanian and settled in for the long journey.
Phila-Harrisburg-after a 40 min layover cellphone calls to loved ones and 2 quick smokes we headed out to Harrisburg. What was this ? A huge intermodal yard & NS fueling station??? ...Wow, what a surprise ! As we crossed the bridge over the Susquehanna, I caught my first sight of a mixed freight awaiting green and for us to pass. Freights continued to whizz by ever so often afterwards....that was it. I was in train country !
Altoona-Too dark to make out Juniata shops but I kinda"felt" where it was as we slowed down.
We arrived in Altoona late, who cared? I was finally here ! Caught a cab out to the Super 8, had a "real " philly cheesesteak (which I was craving) and called it a night.

Sun. -hopped a cab out to the Curve. Got there a few mins. before opening. but was that ....??? Yes it was, a sprinking of snow and ice all around ! I climbed the stairs to the top, was the first one there, luckily bought a 36 pack of AA batteries for the trip and started snapping away. I took it all in......finally I was here ! It was absolutely beautiful and so serene. And then...there it was....an eastbound coming around the curve. If heaven is like the time I had at the Curve, I hope God lets me in ! lol
After about almost 5 hours of SD40's (caught a UP in there too) horn blasts, squealing wheels and trucks, meeting other fans, taking vids clips and numerous pics with my digital camera, up and down the steps to warm up in the giftshop, I wanted to make the museum. I caught one more set of helpers and hopped in the cab.
I made the museum but I was the only one there. I had the place to myself...kinda spooky actually, cloudy,damp out there with all the old classics, but then again this was mid-Nov. I caught one last eastbound coal drag (under the ATC's pedestrian bridge) that seemed to last until darkness finally fell !

Mon.-had cabbie drop me off at 17th St. to get a few shots of ALTO. After a few mins, a eastbound came rolling by. Got a great vid clip of it. 2 westbound helpers stood at the signal just east, snapped off a few pics.
Basically hung out under the ATC pedestrain bridge for the most part of the morning. more pics/vids. Was tempted to make the hike to Juniata, but it started to look like rain and got cold. I hung around for a long eastbound that went slowly by due to track maintnance vehicles around ALTO.Good vid, and surprsingly caught yet another westbound in the shot...Said "How ya doin'? to a police officer on bike (NS or Altoona police ? ) didn't notice. Back to Super 8.

Tues. (this morning)- time to go home. took cab to ATC. got there early. but elevator/stairs locked. Went outside to the pedi-bridge by Steel & Pipe. Got another westbound vid. and more pics. 9:35am. As I waited for the tsin home, of course here came 2 more helpers ! Great vid from platform.
As we headed east, finally got a glimpse of Juniata works. I will definitely visit it next time ! I plan on going to Altoona every year from now on until God allows me to.

I will post up links here as soon as I get everything downloaded.

Thanks all for your help, answers to my questions, advice,etc. since starting this thread. See you again soon ! Peace,

Phil
bkt31

Here is my railfan report from my visit.

Train # Time Direction Train ID# Engine numbers/types Notes

Thursday, November 8th - Cresson
1 1:45 WB C90 7214, 7213, D9-40CW, D9-40DC & 7215
2 1:51 EB cofc 2 D9-40CWs
3 1:58 WB cofc GEVO, 8449, D9-40C helpers 33xx & 3427
4 2:04 EB cofc 7611 & 8417
5 2:09 WB tofc D9-40CW & GEVO
6 2:14 EB ballast 2625 & 54xx
7 2:22 WB 21J 3 D9-40CWs
8 2:24 EB 64J D9-40CW & 6766
9 2:25 EB helpers 3353 & 3362

CP-Rose
10 3:25 EB 64J D9-40CW & 6766
11 3:29 WB mixed 2 D9-40CWs
12 3:35 WB empty coal GEVO & D9-40CW

Friday, November 9th - Altoona
1 8:27 WB helpers 3368 & 3363
2 8:38 EB 64R GEVO & C39-8
3 8:39 WB helpers 3346 & 3372
4 8:48 WB mixed SD60M & D9-40CW
5 9:03 WB cofc D9-40CW & 5435
6 9:16 WB mixed D9-40CW & C39-8
7 9:30 WB PPLX (empty) 2 SD60Ms
8 9:42 EB loaded coal D8-40CW & D9-40CW helpers in front
9 9:44 EB helpers 3335 & 3350
10 9:50 EB cofc 3 SD70M-2s
11 9:56 EB Amtk 42 Amtk 91

Lilly
12 12:00 EB helpers
13 12:45 EB mixed D8-40CW & SD70 helpers in front
14 12:45 WB empty coal D9-40CW & D8-40CW
15 12:54 WB cofc D9-40CW & D9-40C
16 1:10 EB cofc/tofc D9-40CW & SD70M-2

Cresson (3-3:30)
17 EB 18G GEVO, D9-40CW, 5294, 5295 & 2106
18 EB cofc D8-40CW & D9-40CW
19 EB helpers
20 WB 21J SD70M-2, D9-40CW & SD70
21 EB 64J 9181 & 2541
22 EB helpers 3359 & 3345
23 WB tofc SD70M-2, 9358 & 2506
24 4:05 EB mixed SD70M & 6718
25 4:11 WB mixed 2723 & 9677 helpers 3362 & 3353
26 4:24 WB cofc D9-40CW & SD70M-2 helpers 3368 & 3363

Saturday, November 10th - Cresson (9-10:45)
1 WB mixed 2 D9-40CWs
2 EB Amtk 42 Amtk 199 - Kitchi Gammi Club on the rear
3 EB 26T SD70M-2
4 WB 11A 2 D9-40CWs
5 EB 500 D9-40CW & GEVO 2 front & 4 rear helpers
6 WB 65R D9-40CW & 2541

Portage
7 11:20 EB mixed unknown (only saw helpers)
8 12:12 EB tofc GEVO & D9-40CW
9 12:20 WB ballast SD70M, SD50 & D9-40CW
10 12:43 EB mixed D9-40CW, D8-40CW & 5064 (2 front & 2 rear helpers)

Horseshoe Curve
11 1:40 EB cofc 3 SD70M-2s
12 1:42 EB mixed D9-40CW, D8-40CW & 5064 (2 front & 2 rear helpers)
13 1:48 WB cofc D9-40CW, SD60 & D9-40CW
14 2:07 EB cofc D9-40CW & D8-40CW
15 2:11 WB cofc 2 D9-40CWs
16 2:30 WB tofc 2 D9-40CWs

Brickyard Crossing
17 3:18 WB cofc 9159, D9-40CW & D9-40CW
18 3:18 EB cofc 9386 & 2624
19 3:45 EB 64R D8-40CW & C39-8 2 front helpers
20 3:47 WB mixed unknown (only saw helpers)

Sunday, November 11th - Altoona
1 7:57 WB mixed SD60M & C39-8
2 8:14 WB helpers
3 8:20 WB cofc SD70M & SD70M-2

South Fork
4 10:30 WB 261 D9-40CW & SD70

Conemaugh
5 12:43 WB cofc SD70 & D9-40CW

Cassandra
6 1:48 WB auto 9747 & 2631 3345 & 3359
7 1:57 WB mixed 9630 & 6662
8 2:04 EB cofc 9853 & D9-40CW

Cresson
9 2:25 WB tofc 9282, 2558 & UP 9684
10 2:30 EB C90 7219, 7209, 7213 & 7215 2 MACs on each end

The C90 would stop at CP MO and change tracks to head into the Cresson engine facility. The train would pull in and then proceed up the secondary track there, though I forget what it's called. The train consisted mostly of ACF cars, many of which were showing some rust on them, one gondola and one boxcar. At that point, it was time to head home after a very enjoyable four days. Photos to come soon.

Noted the purchase of a 36 pack of AA's in the reporta couple of posts up...I assume it was for digital photography....Standard AA's don't last long in a digital....I have been using a 30 minute rechargable AA setup now for 3 years....I bought 8 AA rechargables and use 4 for my scanner and 2 for my digital at a time....My digital used to go perhaps a dozen pics with standard AA's before killing the batteries...I can get upwards of 100 pics out of a charge on the rechargables....I finally had to replace my original rechargable batteries after over 2 years of use and several thousand pictures as they finally would not accept a charge any more...I also bought a power inverter at Radio Shack, so I can plug my AA charger in to my power adapter port in the car and recharge in 30 minutes in the car, so will have charged batteries readily at hand in case I run low on battery power while railfanning out in the boondocks somewhere.