IN THE YARDS PT 18

 Final week of the year, Hillsdale Yard is still busy...

A Union Pacific reefer, ARMN 111482, awaits delivery to Johnson Foods.

Its companion, ARMN 111177, is still clean of graffiti. Both are loaded with fresh produce from California.

TILX 252705 is carrying vegetable oil.

GACX 8176 is specially painted for Feeding America.

CITX 775259 is a fellow pressure-differential hopper, both are carrying flour.

A pair of corn syrup tank cars round out the string. More such tank cars will soon show up for delivery to City Fizz -soda consumption hasn't slowed down any!

THE HOLIDAY RUSH

 The last days before Christmas...

Downtown traffic, including a semi which just dropped off goods at the Super Market.

Another delivery for the Super Market; the Real Thing.

The UPS driver with a package for Miss Anne's Candy Store. The store makes old-fashioned hard candy, which is quite popular this time of year!

A bigger UPS semi rolls goods from KIDCO out of town. If it's overnight, UPS will get it there!

An A&R bulk semi with flour for Hubbard Bakery rolls in. A lot of holiday cakes and pastries are being baked and sent out!

Holiday travel includes Greyhound.

One of the two plastic hoppers for Pete's Plastics.

The other hopper has a large, colorful "Christmas" graphic painted on its side.

A large ex-Golden West boxcar for Pete's and an MR&T hopper loaded with crushed slag for Hillsdale's road department (used for traction coating on icy roads and bridges). 

A pair of tank cars loaded with anhydrous ammonia for Keystone Fertilizers, to replenish the local supply for area farmers.

UTLX 952566 has the newer style long platform, which is safer than the older style walkway along the top of the car without handrails, like the other car.

And to all: MERRY CHRISTMAS!

THE CHRISTMAS TRAIN

 

The annual Christmas Train arrives!

The two engines now have PTC equipment installed; note the long antenna domes on the roofs.

As the train rolls past, notice the colorful "Christmas" graffiti on the hopper in the yard!

Rounding the curve, we see something different...

A trio of new cars!

A North Pole Ornament Artisans car and a Claus Candy Cane Company car are two colorful additions to the train.

And a colorful reefer carries cookies for Santa. He can't work without his cookies!

The two Polar Express cars are carrying, as usual. eager kids enjoying their Make-A-Wish dream come true with a train ride!

And, of course, caboose 1256 brings up the rear.

Santa's helper waves as the Christmas Train passes through. Due to the added cars, the train will no longer fit in the yard without fouling the main, so it keeps going. The kids of Hillsdale House will be driven to meet the train in Dale City, so they will still get presents -and meet Santa!

IN THE YARDS PT 17

 The Hillsdale crew is assembling a local run to Dale City...

A cut of loaded woodchip hoppers is first up. Chris plays brakeman, while Ricardo is the engineer.

Chris watches as the loaded hoppers (finally) move out of their siding.

Kaolin tank cars are on the other end of the "paper mill" string. Here, Chris has thrown the switch for the next siding, and waits for Ricardo to back onto it.

A set of reefers for Johnson Foods is next.

The cars are coupled. Next, Chris will join the air lines so Ricardo can release the brakes on the reefers and move the cars.

Note there are two tank cars in the local. The string of boxcars is next to be added.

The two Railbox cars are headed to Johnson Foods as well; loaded with packaging for all the products that they sell.

A third Railbox car is headed to City Fizz, with a load of plastic bottles. The Johnson Foods cars will be dropped off first, so being at the end of the train won't be a problem.

Chris watches as the train backs up to the boxcars.

The couple is made. Again, Chris will connect the air hoses, so that Ricardo can pump up the air and release the brakes for movement.

With the train assembled. Tim places the EOT on the rear. The Dale City local -trains GPL10, DCL8, and DCL12 combined- is now ready to head out!

TOWN LIFE PT 29

 The busy holiday season is in full swing...

A Transport America semi leaves town after visiting the Kidco, Inc. warehouse, picking up loads for delivery to shopping malls in the Northeast.

A brand-new UPS van rolls through town. These have been steadily replacing the older package cars that have been seen since the early 80's.

A Western Distributing semi rolls into town, behind an International Lonestar. All that blue looks good!

It's still a warm fall day, as a woman rides around in her Jeep with the top off.

One of the local dairy farmers has a load of hay trucked in, for winter bedding and foraging for his cows.

An old Chevy truck, with a lift, rolls through town. Note the CB antenna on the driver's side fender and the "pipe" steps -this is an Old School pickup!

A blast from the past: a Greyhound Package Express bus leaves town after dropping off several packages at the bus station. The recipients would then be notified to come pick up their items. This is a modified ex-Trailways Eagle Model 10; note the doors at the rear of the bus in the "cargo" section. While not a major force in the delivery game, the service lasted until 2022.

VETERANS DAY WEEKEND

 Two special trains this Veterans Day weekend...

A rare engine; a Baldwin RF-16, one of only a handful still in existence. Painted up in WW2 fighter plane colors, this engine is about to receive a special assignment.

The rare engine is pulling the fall excursion train in place of the usual steamer. 4-4-0 #34 is out of service due to a broken side rod. Still, the passengers are pleased to hear the rare sounds of a Baldwin diesel!

The three-car train rolls past town. The open coaches are popular during warmer weather, but not so much on cold and windy days!

A close-up of the Baldwin.  Built during the early 50's, the RF-16's were not good sellers; only 109 cab units and 51 b-units were built. By comparison, the Alco FA-2/FB-2 sold three times as many units. Of course, EMD's legendary F7's sold by the thousands. While Baldwins earned a reputation as good pullers, the company failed at standardization of its units: even engines from the same order could have differences between them! This was one of the reasons Baldwin closed up in 1956. EMD built about as many F7's alone as Baldwin built diesels total. That this one is running is a testament to the dedication of a group of volunteers who restored the unit to working condition over the course of a decade. Now, once again, the distinctive sounds of a Baldwin locomotive reverberate in Pennsylvania! 

Another train is on the move this weekend; a military train of Bradley M2 APV's (Armored Personnel Vehicle). And on this day, the train is lead by ET44AC 2032, the Salute To Service unit!

The M2's are being moved to Baltimore for shipment to the Middle East, probably Iraq.

Bringing up the rear is a matching caboose! FGC (Florida Gulf Coast, a subsidiary of AP&W predecessor MC&K [Memphis, Chattanooga & Knoxville]) 1111 travels the system -often in the company of 2032- showing support for our nation's veterans, many of whom work for the AP&W.

Happy Veteran's Day weekend to all my fellow vets!