I apologize if this is completely off topic for Z scale.... But for as long as I can remember, I have been obsessed with and completely haunted by abandon railroad tracks... I'm attracted to them like flies to you know what... I have even gone way out of my way to walk them... I cant really even describe the feeling I get when I walk them.... Like I said, they haunt me.... And I like to walk along active tracks like any other train nut. But to me, it does not even compare to walking abandon tracks... Some kind of energy there I cant put my finger on or describe... And that's coming from someone who grew up in the house of science and does not believe in mythical anything... Anyone else feel this way? Maybe I got dropped one to many times on my head as a kid and I am the only one that feels this way.. But just curious if I'm the only one with this obsession...
In my old occupation, it was the old railroad grades, which may be what you are talking about. In my area there were tons of logging trains, they pulled up the tracks but the earthwork is still visible. The spookiest, and coolest, are the grades that end at the edge of the ravine. There are tons of them in the Bad River Indian Reservation in Northern Wisconsin. I guess the huge area was logged with railroads, and with the clay soil and deep ravines, there were flat areas then a 70' or deeper ravine about 200' wide. All signs of the trestle are gone, but cuts and fills leading up to them tell the tale.
I have hiked a fair number of miles, or driven on and along a good amount of others. I do find them a bit haunting at times. For those I never experienced, wondering what once was. For those I knew, often feeling sadness.
You nailed it.... Part if it is trying to figure out what once was, tracks or no tracks... And that's where I feel this weird energy/feeling the most... And yes, abandon tracks I have seen trains on I just have a feeling of loss/sadness since I knew what was there.... Also guilty of following abandon tracks in my car.....
There is an old railroad grade up by where I used to live near Hewitt NJ that was built before an existing man made reservoir.... The grade gradually slopes down and leads right into the water..... If you did not know the history, it would be a very confusing to see....
One of my all-time great railfanning experiences was on a line with no trains and no track either. Former route of the Denver and Northwestern over the Continental Divide at 11,600 feet. Temporary line for 25 year or so before Moffat Tunnel was completed. 25 miles, 5 or 6 hours, over trestles, through tunnels in 1969. Route can no longer be traveled all the way, impassable.
I like to cross country ski on then. The grades are easy and the scenery is many times is spectacular. Sent from my DROID4 using Tapatalk 2
The old B&O line in WV is a rails to trails, I hiked it from the North Bend WV State Park through several tunnels. A real strange feeling being in the tunnels. My wife is not a rail fan, nor a model railroad fan, but, she enjoyed the hike, the scenery was beautiful, it was fall. Take the time to hike as you are able, I can no longer hike due to medical issues, so you are warned, do it while you can.
For me, as a kid, it was the Pacific Electric through Long Beach. It still is easy to find on the map. Then in my 20's, it was anything in downtown LA
Here in the ANF, we've got plenty of examples of both types of abandoned grades. Elisha Kane's Kushequa Route, and the B&O's Northern Sub are slowly being turned into trails. The Ridgway & Clearfield Branch already is, and they want to extend it via other lines like The Shawmut all the way to the Allegheny at Kittaning eventually. Then we have logging grades, which I use all the time when I'm working to move through the forest. A fair number of the forest roads are old grades, and even where the "road" part ends, usually one can follow to grade even further into the woods. Sometimes though, the beech and black birch saplings are too thick to move through. Sent from the magical mystery box
The Tuxachanie Trail in Harrison County, Mississippi was created from an abandoned Dantzler Lumber roadbed about 80 years ago, long before the Rails-to-Trails program came into existence. The trail is about 22 miles long between Hwy 49 north of Saucier and Airey Lake, the site of a camp that housed German prisoners of war during WW-II.
Wow! I did not expect so many like abound rails as I do when I posted this thread. Growing up in New England, I have walked logging railraod trails that were abandon before the 1900... New England is literally littered with abandon railroads from the mill days of the 1800's and 1900's... And of course from when all the Northeast railroads that totally neglected their infrastructure in the 50's and 60's and eventually went under partly because of it.....
I remember as a boy walking some old logging railroad grade on the mountain above our farm. I later saw a map the company had made showing location of their various spurs and was amazed. Always wanted to get back there an look further, but never did it. Now the old home town is all newbs who have no clue this ever existed. There were also remnants of a skid road which angled through one side of the farm.
This is an abandoned Boston & Maine line just south of West Stewartstown, New Hampshire near Beecher Falls, Vermont. It is north of Groveton off the Grand Trunk. June 1969.
Did you ever walk the Beebe River Railroad roadbed? The BBRR was a logging railroad that ran from Campton, NH along the Beebe River up to Flat Mountain Pond on Black Mt. in the Sandwich Range. BBRR's #6, a Climax, is operating on the White Mt. Central RR at Clark's Trading Post in Lincoln, NH.
Oooooo. That Climax looks really nice! I wonder if the headlight is original? The lumber company I noted earlier back home had two. Sadly both gone before my time.
I doubt it. Climax built her in 1920 and the photos of Climax lokies from that period show the more modern headlamps. I suspect Clark's wanted to make her look "old" for the tourists, or who we used call "Summah Folk".....LOL
Hank, I've been to the trading post and poked around around the abandon rail yard and abandon paper mill right down the street from the trading post in Loon, NH. Both are now long gone.... I've also walked the abandon logging rail line in Hopkington Ma running east to west and the line that starts in Milford that runs up to Hopkington. I've also walked abandon tracks in Acton Ma. And Abandon tracks that start in Waltham Ma and run well past Wayland Ma and the abandon tracks that cross it in Wayland. I have also biked the rail trail that goes from Lexington all the way to Medford. I walked the abandon trolly line in the Fells reservation in Ma. I've walked the abandon spur line in Needham Ma. I've walked the abandon Middletown, NY line in Oil City NJ, I've walked all of the abandon Middletown NY tracks and right of ways. I have biked the rail trail from Middletown to Monroe, NY. I have walked the abandon Goshen, NY tracks. I Have biked through the famous abandon Maybrook yard in Maybrook, NY. I have walked numerous abandon rail yards, spurs and lines in Bridgeport, CT (and risked my life doing it considering what year it was) I've also biked more NJ rail trails than I can remember. And so many more in CT, NY, VT, NH and MA but this is all I can remember off the top of my head... I do prefer lines that still have tracks... A lot more clues as to what was... But at the end of the day, I'll still walk railroad grades without tracks and have no complaints... And lord knows I can spend hours studying Google earth...
