IN THE YARDS PT43

A leased FURX SD40-2 sits in the yard one afternoon. Note the loaded woodchip hoppers, awaiting delivery to the paper mill in Dale City.

At the other end of the yard, sit several gondolas loaded with pipes and steel slabs. Note the shop door is closed, despite the apparently nice weather.

On another day, a number of bulkhead flatcars tote bundles of ties from the removal of an old branch line in Somerset County that once served a produce warehouse for local peach and apple farmers, but hasn't been used since the mid-90's. The warehouse has been torn down, hence the branch line's abandonment and removal.

Another car, this one a newly repainted PS4750 covered hopper. However, it is no longer in grain service; it is now a buffer car for use in unit oil train service, and will soon receive the markings for such.

This 80's shot shows a pair of Mack R semi tractors; one for the APRR's regular MOW fleet and the other for APMT -APpalachian Motor Transport, the APRR's trucking arm. The APRR truck has the railroad's logo on the doors. While the APMT truck only has the basic lettering, it also has a lot more chrome! The AP&W still operates the APMT today, providing local delivery for its intermodal customers to and from the numerous hubs the AP&W serves. And they still use Mack trucks!

DCL9 PT2

From last week...

One final UP reefer, once again with graffiti.

Behind the reefers is a string of empty vegetable oil tank cars, returning to the Midwest processing plants.

The long train will be heading straight to the larger yard in Uniontown, since all of the cars will be headed west; no sense in crowding Hillsdale Yard. Plus there are cars in Uniontown to be forwarded to Hillsdale.

More empty cars; a string of pressure-differential hoppers is on the tail-end of the train. They, too, are headed back to the Midwest for reloading.

Finally, a caboose sighting! Still lettered for the AP, 4312 brings DCL9 to a close.

Just as the locomotive at the head end no longer works mainline freights, so too has the caboose been demoted to local service, as she brings up the rear. Gone from the rear of most trains for over three decades, an entire generation has grown up without seeing a caboose in service -and yet you STILL can't sell a train set without one!

DCL9 PT1

Now that the grain train has finally passed, the local can continue on...

The brakeman  has climbed back on, and now borrowed CN 5289 begins again on its way to Uniontown with DCL9.

The head-end is full of UP reefers. The ARMN reporting marks were inherited when the UP  merged with the MoPac in 1982, but weren't used until around 2000 when the UP began rebuilding .older reefers and acquiring new ones.

The train -and its big reefers- rolls through Hillsdale Yard as Chris watches for any issues with the cars.

This car has the typical graffiti that most of the nation's freight car fleet has now a days. And this is 'lightly tagged'.

More clean cars in the mix. Like most railfans, I hate the widespread appearance of graffiti on rail equipment; it is vandalism, plain and simple!
The end of the train next week...

PASSING TRAINS PT57; GM408 PT3

The last of GM408 rolling through Hillsdale...

Another GATX car, the same color as the BNSF car behind it.

The train rolls through Hillsdale Yard.

More brown cars, but these are AOK (Arkansas-Oklahoma Railroad) cars

More BNSF hoppers. About half the train is comprised of BNSF cars.

The EOT flashes as GM408 makes its way out of town, while the local waits for the track to clear so it can continue on with its work. Which it will do...next week!