Official Maine Eastern Thread

[sean3f]

In early November, I was in the Rockland Maine area and had a chance to railfan the Maine Eastern. On this day the equipment was EMD FL9 # ME 488 and 3 M&E passenger cars. With nice weather outside and a GPS on the dash, I set out to chase the Rockland to Brunswick afternoon run.

What I remember most about the line are the bridges, many and varied. It could be a problem if one of them would go out.The one that was most interesting to me was a small bascule bridge outside Thomason. I had never seen a bridge of that type that was so small. ItThe fall scenery was really breathtaking.

At the end you can see them turing the engine at the wye. The station at Brunswick says "park and ride" and they have plans to connect the ME line to the Downeaster but this is several years away.

Check out the video! ---> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYWhVL8GTac

[GP9railfan]

489 is still down there, & probably going to be getting a new prime mover due to oil leaks, & rough running at the end of the 2008 season.

[ns3010]

From recent reports and photos, it's still here. They're taking their time with this...

Also, semi-related. 487 has been tucked way back on track 4 alongside the shops for quite a while, anyone know what's going on with that unit? Parts maybe?

[Sid Farkus]

I would think 487 is a parts unit, but it could be sitting around until a buyer emerges similar with what they did with 484.

[ns3010]

Thanks. It would make sense if it were a parts unit, because, IIRC, it was moved about the same time 489 came down last year.

[Sid Farkus]

I believe they still have 485 and 486 laying around somewhere, but I have no absolute idea. I would love to see them use two of them and paint them into the Morristown & Erie C&O inspired scheme like on the 488 and 489 originally. Of course, that would be a waste of time and money and will never be a reality.

[RS115]

The others (don't remember numbers) are on the Vornado spur. One of the units is pushed pretty close to the crossing of the spur over Ridgedale Ave in East Hanover.

[ns3010]

Yeah, 487 used to be there as well (not mine)

[Sid Farkus]

That would be 485 and 486 still sitting in storage on the spur if they are still there. ME purchased six and three have been put into operational use. I'm not sure if 485, 486, and 487 are operable.

[CJPat]

My wife and I are planning a run up to Maine and would enjoy the opportunity to ride the Maine Eastern on Saturday, 13 August but have not been able to make contact with the M&E. Their website, http://maineeasternrailroad.com, is down and non responsive and I have left a message on their voicemail but have received no reply.

Does anyone know if they are operating this year? What is their schedule for August? Should I have a reservation? I assume they originate out of Brunswick and turn around at Rockland?

Any information would be helpful.
Thanks,
CJPat

[gokeefe]

They are operating this year.

As of 10:07am today the website was operational.

They are running Wed through Saturday with a special train for the Maine Boats and Harbors show on August 12th and 13th departing Rockland at 5:30pm in addition to whatever other trains they're running those days.

They originate out of Rockland and finish the day in Rockland but since they run more than one roundtrip per day you could ride train #2 from Brunswick departing at 10:20am (arr. Rockland 12:15pm) and take train #3 departing Rockland at 3:55pm (arr. Brunswick 5:50pm).

Since they might have a little more ridership than usual that weekend it would probably be a good idea to call, check the schedule and order tickets ahead of time.

For reservations call 1-866-MERAILS (I'm assuming this may not have been the number you called originally).

[CJPat]

Thank You Gokeefe for your response.

I must be having bad luck with their website because when I checked at 3:05PM, I still could not connect to their web site.

The good news is that Debbie from their office returned my call this morning and helped me set up my trip.

I advised them about their website this morning, so they must have got it up and running only to have it crash again a little later?

[gokeefe]

Thank You Gokeefe for your response.

I must be having bad luck with their website because when I checked at 3:05PM, I still could not connect to their web site.

The good news is that Debbie from their office returned my call this morning and helped me set up my trip.

I advised them about their website this morning, so they must have got it up and running only to have it crash again a little later?

No problem. At 3:16PM EDT it was fine. Sounds like a browser issue, especially if you're able to see Google or elsewhere on the Internet. I dumped Internet Explorer in the last few months after being loyal to Microsoft for years (reliable, consistent, everything works on it etc.). I have found Google Chrome to be an excellent replacement with only very occasional compatibility issues. It also restored some functions on this website that IE had lost.

[GP40MC 1116]

Does anyone have a fairly complete listing of the Maine Eastern passenger fleet that is assigned to the ME operation in Maine?

[therudycometh]

Does anyone have a fairly complete listing of the Maine Eastern passenger fleet that is assigned to the ME operation in Maine?

This is a complete list. There are six cars total:

Magnolia
Elm
Ash
Pine
Penobscot Bay
Alexander Hamilton