Penn Central Hitop Secondary

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Yesterday I received my latest addition to the locomotive fleet, PC GP9 7124, obviously an ex-PRR unit with dynamic brakes. Although I couldn't find a prototype match, this number fits in with a batch of ex Pennsy geeps. I haven't decided how I'll weather this one yet. Stay tuned. Btw, this is a Walther's Proto2000 Phase II model with DCC and sound....

Three trains meet at Spring Street part two.....

Continuing on, after the Valley turn finished and cleared up, the Spring Street turn held the mainline at Spring Street waiting for the inbound Nitro turn as seen below:

The Nitro turn took the yard lead and proceeded past the yard a bit to up the Hitop Secondary proper so the inbound Spring Street turn could deliver its cars for Spring Street and Nitro into the yard, here shown below:

Engine 5628 then pulled its outbound cars out onto the mainline, ran around his train, then departed for Dickinson:

With the Spring Street turn out of the way, engine 9806 with the Nitro turn backed out of the branch and proceeded to pick up its cars, today only two steel coil cars for Campbell Manufacturing:

After running around its train, the Nitro turn departed. I caught him in Nitro running around his train again to make the long shove through the industrial trackage into Campbell as shown below:

One last photo I shot of 9806 parked at the yard office, its shift done for the day:

Next up, I follow the Hitop mine turn. Stay tuned.....!

Three trains meet at Spring Street!......

Yesterday I was out chasing trains on the Secondary, and struck gold! I heard on my scanner and with checking in at the yard office in Nitro that both the Nitro turn and Spring Street turn plus the valley turn were working and would probably meet each other at Spring Street yard.

I started out as stated in Nitro catching the turn after switching out Holsum Baking. Prior to this he had been switching out the storage and loading tracks at Allied Chemical. The turn was on this trip only taking two empty covered hoppers and an empty boxcar up to Spring Street. I caught him before starting his early morning work at the yard office, and finally leaving Nitro:

In the meantime, the Spring Street turn was busy making up its train over in Dickinson yard, consisting of a load for Kanawha Feed & Seed, a loaded boxcar for Armitage Furniture, and two steel coil cars for Campbell Manufacturing:

I caught the Spring Street turn departing Dickinson and caught his arrival at Spring Street:

Prior to his arrival however, the Valley turn was out on the Kanawha Secondary working as shown below switching out Kanawha Valley Feed & Seed and Snow Hill Fertilizer, then I raced back to Spring Street yard and caught his arrival there:

The Valley turn then proceeded to sort out cars for the Spring Street turn to pick up, then cleared up on the service track:

Part two comes tomorrow of the Nitro and Spring Street turns meeting. Stay tuned.....

Early morning on the Hitop....

Even before the sun rises above the surrounding hills, people are up, awake, and already tackling the day's work and chores. In the Kanawha valley itself, smells of breakfast cooking fills the air, along with fog and the smells of industries. Always a blue collar area, the people of the area have always been an industrious, hard-working people. Some scenes below of morning on the Hitop: