M&E 110th Anniversary Excursion

The horn on the Alcos is actually a K3LA I found out. I made reskins of the M&E Alcos #18 and #19 in Trainz a while ago and changed the default horn sound to a K3LA. Nice to see a passenger train in the Steel City again (Bethlehem) the last regular service to Philly was on June 30, 1981 and the last service toward NJ on the Lehigh Valley Railroad was in Feb. 1961. Wish that another mainline excursion would happen again, even if the routing was slightly changed. How about originating/boarding in Bethlehem next time? Would be a lot closer for me than traveling 80 miles out to Hoboken, NJ.

I was told there *MIGHT** be an excursion next year in 2015 ,but nothing is etched in stone at this point, and I have no details on where they might go either.

I have been pushing for a Hoboken to Randolph(Chester Branch) or Bartley (High Bridge) trip and then east to the Whippany Museum for their 50th Anniversary, but it is up to M&E where they will or will not go.

if they hold one, they can definitely count me in!

It would be nice to have one in 2015. When I went to the train show in Clark last spring, I was told that there would have been an excursion in 2014. Obviously, there was nothing.

Just keep in mind that for there to be an excursion, there need to be people to ride it. It seems like my generation of railfans are far more obsessed with "getting the shot" than enjoying a train ride. The Lehigh Limited was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that a lot of people missed out on because they were too obsessed with having their camera glued to their face.

Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not complaining about the excellent turnout that we got and the flawless operation of the trip. I just wish all of the people that we passed trackside over and over again en route could have joined us for experience instead of watching from the outside.

therudycometh wrote:Just keep in mind that for there to be an excursion, there need to be people to ride it. It seems like my generation of railfans are far more obsessed with "getting the shot" than enjoying a train ride. The Lehigh Limited was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that a lot of people missed out on because they were too obsessed with having their camera glued to their face.

Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not complaining about the excellent turnout that we got and the flawless operation of the trip. I just wish all of the people that we passed trackside over and over again en route could have joined us for experience instead of watching from the outside.

I agree, and I was one that rode the Lehigh Limited and enjoyed it immensely...... I do hope more people who read or post in here would ride any future trips they have rather then just chasing!

That is very true about ridership. I agree that while it's nice to photograph the excursion, it's also good to support it by riding it.

Look at Amtrak's Autumn Express; the excursion is primarily toward riders wanting to enjoy "scenic backroads." There weren't even photo stops because of arrangements with host railroads. The plus was that the Autumn Express ran on Sunday too giving railfans an opportunity to photograph the train itself.

Back to the M&E, there are probably a lot of its rail lines that pass through scenic areas in which people would enjoy.

I hope there is a rare mileage trip somewhere in PA or NJ this year. Whether it be an NS steam excursion, M&E excursion, or Amtrak excursion. I missed out on the Lehigh Limited and last year's Amtrak trip.

I hope there is a rare mileage trip somewhere in PA or NJ this year. Whether it be an NS steam excursion, M&E excursion, or Amtrak excursion. I missed out on the Lehigh Limited and last year's Amtrak trip.

Agreed... These kinds of trips are rare and very special. Would love for something new in 2015. Last year's was amazing.

This August 8 and 9 NKP 765 is running with NS on excursions from Allentown to Pittston, PA over NS and RBMN tracks. For those of you living in the Lehigh Valley like me, this is a rare opportunity to board a steam excursion in Allentown. I wish they were taking the Lehigh to NJ though, or to Harrisburg. But, the Lehigh Gorge route is a scenic route. Prices vary for the NS excursions but they are expensive like the Lehigh Limited was. 611 runs in Virginia next month. First time since Dec. 1994. No open windows on NS excursions, but the Lehigh Gorge in Jim Thorpe uses open window coaches.

rwk wrote:This August 8 and 9 NKP 765 is running with NS on excursions from Allentown to Pittston, PA over NS and RBMN tracks. For those of you living in the Lehigh Valley like me, this is a rare opportunity to board a steam excursion in Allentown. I wish they were taking the Lehigh to NJ though, or to Harrisburg. But, the Lehigh Gorge route is a scenic route. Prices vary for the NS excursions but they are expensive like the Lehigh Limited was. 611 runs in Virginia next month. First time since Dec. 1994. No open windows on NS excursions, but the Lehigh Gorge in Jim Thorpe uses open window coaches.

Any link to this excursion?

Fort Wayne Railroad is handling ticket sales for 765 trips, and it seems the Lehigh Valley trip is boarding in Bethlehem and going to Pittston and return with a stop in Jim Thorpe. Rich Melvin 765's engineer stated that he never wants to go back to Bound Brook, NJ where 765 originated trips in July, 1988, they ran to Reading, PA. The 1988 convention was the worst they say. So, that means we will never see 765 on the Lehigh Line in NJ ever again. Same route as the Lehigh Limited. The 765 trips from Bethlehem were moved to Aug 22-23 because of Musikfest tying up the town the two previous weekends.