New Hampshire Northcoast Railroad (NHN) Discussion

I always thought the DOBO/BODO stayed on the Western Route.
Has the Wildcat always been the preferred routing or can it change routes at any given time?

The gravel train doesn't use the Western Route because there is a long stretch of single track and a lot of jointed rail. Not the best for a heavy freight train. LA1/ NA2 uses the Wildcat, too, as does the Downeaster.

b&m 1566 wrote:I always thought the DOBO/BODO stayed on the Western Route.
Has the Wildcat always been the preferred routing or can it change routes at any given time?

It is my understanding (based on a post from several years ago) that the tunnel under the Medford branch creates a lot of really bad slack action on a train of gravel hoppers. So DOBO/BODO have generally used the Wildcat since that tunnel was created.
I am not sure what route they used prior to that.

- Stephen

What time do their trains usually arrive in Boston? All the years I have lived here and never once have I seen the engines or train arrive. Just the hoppers at Boston Sand and Gravel.

Around midnight-1am.

Has anyone heard anything about BSG being sold to a Dutch Company?

There is a report that there will be no gravel going to Boston from
January 14th through February 11th. The NHN will continue to
serve the Rochester Terminal facility at Tri-City and handle LPG
between Dover and Eastern Propane at Tri-City.

I cannot provide the specific years, but the NHN has ceased hauling
gravel to Boston for a varying number of weeks in the middle of the
winter in the past. So, this is not anything that has not happened in
the past.

I have that same information. About a 1-month shutdown for gravel trains to Boston.

NHN arrived in Dover Friday at 0900 with one stretcher car and 14 empty LPG.
Dover yard is full of cars, so PAR had the DO-1 crew take the train to
Rockingham to set off the empty LPG and back to Dover. NHN crew
went north with their power and one stretcher at 1250hrs.

Dick H wrote:NHN arrived in Dover Friday at 0900 with one stretcher car and 14 empty LPG.
Dover yard is full of cars, so PAR had the DO-1 crew take the train to
Rockingham to set off the empty LPG and back to Dover. NHN crew
went north with their power and one stretcher at 1250hrs.

You got it backwards. They dropped the empty gas in the yard in Dover, and went to Rockingham with one spacer to retreive 15ish loads that were left there the previous Saturday.

DOBO made it's first run to Boston tonight (2/23)
since January 14th. 15 loads. Prior to 1/14, they
had been running twice a week on Wednesday and
Thursday nights. Hopefully, gravel business to
Boston will pick up as Spring arrives.

NHN should be busy this week. Last week they were unable to keep up with sand demanded from both Boston and Ossipee Agg. in Rochester. For the month of January they shipped approx 105 gas cars. The 400 series all must be rebuilt this year or they are not allowed for interchange service with outside railroads. They have subcontracted the work out, and they are in the process now of upgrading the cars now in Ossipee.

Cory

Is DOBO back on any sort of semi-fixed schedule yet? I see it was noted that before the break in service they were running every Wednesday and Thursday night, has this resumed? Are they running more/less?

It appears they ran weds/thurs this week, so I suspect that will continue for the near future. If demand increases as the building season heats up then the train will run more often.

NHN will now be running on a wednesday thursday night schedule for DOBO trains. The demand for sand in Boston and Tricity has already started to take off... as the 400 series cars are completed they will return to service, as for now I believe they are only running the 300 series which they only have 44 of. This means there is enough for about two 16 car trains and probably 8 cars for tricity I believe there are still some frozen loads left up on the hill last time I saw.

Cory