C&NW line near Camp Douglas, WI back in limited use?

[milwrdman]

Passing through Camp Douglas, WI, nearly everyday, I observed something highly unusual a couple of days ago:

A string of parked boxcars on the former C&NW line northwest of Camp Douglas, WI!
I had to do several double-takes, but the equipment is definitely there.

This trackage originally ran from Elroy, WI, to Wyeville, WI, and was truncated to a 5-mile branch between Camp and Wyeville circa 1986. Since then, it has received neither track-work or traffic, outside of an annual MOW inspection and the CP's occasional use of the connecting track switch at Camp (bad-order set outs).

If memory serves, the UP received permission to abandon this track within the last 5 years or so, but chose not to. The USAF has a base at Camp Douglas, Volk Field, which might have something to do with the line's survival. The last trains I can remember seeing through there were ballast trains heading north from Rock Springs.

[Nukengineer]

In early November, that track was empty, but looked like it had seen some recent use at the Camp Douglas end. In 2007, I saw some active MOW equipment at the Wyeville end. The state of Wisconsin lists this segment as 'out of service' on the state railmap in 2004 (and 2008). I dont have maps earlier than 2004. The line between Camp Douglas and Elroy is now a bike trail as is the line from Elroy to Reedsburg. UP still owns the line from Reedsburg south to Madison and the WSOR leases it. The only use UP has on that sub is a ballast train from Rock Springs (Pink Lady Mine), but they havent had a ballast train go through since fall 2007.

[milwrdman]

CP does indeed park MOW equipment on the connecting track from time to time. The most recent was a tie gang that parked there overnight before travelling to Tomah for the winter. That was about a week before I noticed to stored cars, so this might've been the MOW equipment seen in late November. Interestingly, there is still a very short strip of double track from the connecting track northwards to the Volk Field connecting switch, with a crossover located between the Hwy 16 and I90-94 overpasses.

As a side-note,the Omaha Trail, like many rails-to-trails projects in WI, is actually railbanked. If the UP and/or WSOR chose, it could notify the DNR of its intent to relay the ties and rail and run trains, and such an undertaking could commence without fear of reprisal.
Given Bill Gardner's desire to restore the Milwaukee's Monroe-Mineral Point branch and the C&NW's Plymouth-Sheboygan branch, perhaps there may come a day when a Reedsburg-Wyeville connection is also desired.

[Scoring Guy]

Yesterday, August 14th, I was driving south on I-90/94 and once again noticed that there were RR cars parked on the C&NW line north from Camp Douglas. I pulled off to investigate and shoot some photos. North of the junction into the Camp yard, there must have been a mile of tattered rolling stock, mostly box cars, parked on the line toward Wyeville. The line is lined with trees and hard to get a good view. The string of equipment extended well beyond the point where parallel road Co. H makes a turn to the east. These cars weren't there a couple weeks ago.