Eastern Railroad Discussion > Florida's Bone Valley Part 1: The Mainline

When someone pictures Florida, they'll probably think of white sandy beaches, palm tree lined streets, or millions of tourists passing through the turnstiles of a world class theme park.  Florida ranks second in the United States for the total number of tourists, only behind California.  Others may think of the endless orange orchards that cover a large portion of the state's interior.  Agriculture is indeed Florida's second largest industry.  Two of the country's most popular trains, Amtrak's Auto Train and the Tropicana juice train, caters to their needs.
 
Buried behind "The Sun and the Fun" is the region colloquially known as the Bone Valley.  These vast, lonely acres of Central Florida, dotted by surface mines, huge refineries, and towering phosphogypsum stacks are things you will not see on a brochure for the Sunshine State.  Located within the backyard of Polk County, and the adjacent portions of Hillsborough, Manatee, and Hardee counties, the Bone Valley is so named for the large deposits of phosphate, fossilized bone fragments, and other organic remains found in the sand.  This is where about 65% of the nation's phosphate is mined, most of which is used in the production of fertilizer.
 
Throughout most of the twentieth century, the region was served by two major railroads, the Atlantic Coast Line and the Seaboard Air Line.  Both carriers webbed the area with sleepers and steel to access the many mines and refineries.  Some of the larger facilities were served by both railroads.  As a result of the merger in 1967, and throughout the infancy of CSX, operations have been streamlined and many duplicate routes abandoned.  Many mines have since closed and the land reclaimed by nature.  Some of the enormous processing plants have ceased production and met their fate by demolition.  Only a handful of the old structures still remain.  Their ghosts still haunt the landscape, standing as memorials to the once bustling industry, but are sometimes overlooked by the casual passerby.
 
Even with all the abandonments and reduced mining operations, dozens of trains still polish the railheads every day.  Most of the refined phosphate is hauled by rail to transloading facilities along Tampa Bay to be exported to other countries while some is sent north to domestic markets.  The typical length for a phosphate train bound for export is about 60 cars whereas the domestic phosphate trains average 85 cars.
 
I will be your guide on a hypothetical trip through the Bone Valley.  On the first segment of the tour, we'll see some of the most important junctions, have a look at one of the processing plants, visit a museum dedicated to the phosphate industry, and spend some time at the nerve center of the Bone Valley -- Mulberry.  Our journey will go in subsequent order; starting from Valrico, we'll work our way east towards the heart of phosphate country.  I'll also go more in depth with the different operations as we stop at each point of interest.  Without further adieu, I present CSX's Valrico Sub -- Mainline of the Bone Valley.  
 
Tucked away on the eastern edge of Tampa's suburban sprawl lies the bedroom community of Valrico.  Just a couple of decades ago, this area was hardly more than strawberry fields, rows of orange trees, and grazing land for livestock.  Now it's home to almost 40,000 residents.  Looking west from the Valrico Road grade crossing is the single track Yeoman Sub to Tampa.  To the east lies the gateway to the Bone Valley; an ex-Seaboard junction that marks the beginning of the Valrico Sub.  The Valrico Sub diverges southeast towards the Bone Valley while the Yeoman Sub continues northeast for Plant City and beyond.  All westbound loaded phosphate trains, bound for the facilities along Tampa Bay, must pass through this junction.  Refined "dryrock" phosphate is hauled in covered hoppers to Rockport where it will be transloaded onto ships.  Raw "wetrock" phosphate is hauled in open top hoppers, destined to either the refinery at Riverview or the transloading facility at Big Bend.  All corresponding eastbound empties return via the same route.  In all, an average of 12-14 trains a day traverse the western portion of the Valrico Sub.  When adding 8 more trains from the Plant City side, the Yeoman Sub is the busiest line into the Tampa Bay Area with up to 22 trains in a 24-hour period.
 
**Please note that all photos throughout this tour were taken from a public location.**
 
1.  This is the view looking east from Valrico Road.  The Valrico Sub to the Bone Valley curves off to the right and the Yeoman Sub to Plant City continues northeast .  10/24/15.
 
2.  Loaded coal train N006-19 from Epworth, IL is doing every bit of track speed as it heads west (railroad south) towards Tampa Electric's Big Bend power station.  The Yeoman Sub from Plant City sees a wide variety of trains including manifest, automobile, coal, ethanol, rock, the Tropicana juice train and yes, phosphate.  (More about that on a upcoming trip).  10/24/15.
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/28/16 10:59 by florida581.

---

---

As we depart Valrico, the line heads southeast towards the important junction at Edison, 13.4 miles distant.  The housing subdivisions promptly gives way to rural Florida as the tracks cross South Dover Road.  It is here where the Valrico Sub is arrow straight for nearly 10 miles.  With an authorized track speed of 40 mph, this is the only place in the Bone Valley where a train can stretch her legs.  Track speed throughout the region is usually a modest 10 to 25 mph, making train chasing relatively easy.  However, I'd advise that you bring a scanner, GPS or road map, and have a familiarity with the different junctions, mileposts, and facilities.  Yes, a scanner and a map are a must.  With the exception of a short stretch of CTC in Mulberry, the entire Bone Valley is TWC-DTC.  All trains must receive authority from the dispatcher to navigate the maze of trackage.  Plus, this is a very large area of about 500 square miles.  An unprepared visitor may easily get lost as the old country roads seemingly go on forever.
 
About halfway between Valrico and Edison is the small community of Durant.  This location doesn't serve much of a role in CSX's day to day operations, save hosting a short siding that's used primarily for car storage.  However, Durant was once the junction of Seaboard's line to Venice.  Up until 1986, this route saw freight and passenger trains from Bradenton, Sarasota, Venice and, for a time, hosted the Juice Train.  The right of way is now abandoned all the way to Parrish as CSX favored the Coast Line's route between Tampa and Palmetto.  At Parrish, the Florida Railroad Museum still operates on the old Seaboard.  The "Parrish Spur" is also active through the city of Palmetto where CSX serves Conrad Yelvington's rock yard and also the famous Ringling Brother's facility.
 
Just beyond Durant, and a few more miles of farmland, we enter the Alafia (AL-uh-fie) River watershed.  With the wooded Alderman's Ford Regional Park on our south, the tracks lean into its first curve in 10 miles.  Welcome Junction; this is where the Plant City Sub diverges to the north and heads for its namesake city.  A couple of phosphate facilities were located along the Plant City Sub, namely the Hopewell Mine and Coronet Industries.  Both locations are now closed and their infrastructures removed.  What was once an important route into the Bone Valley is now a sleepy line, hosting a single train a day...an empty phosphate train from Mosaic's Central plant just north of Plant City.  The northern portion of the Plant City Sub sees slightly more activity.  In Plant City, local freight O711 uses the line to serve International Paper and to wye his train before returning home to Lakeland.
 
Just a mile beyond Welcome Junction, we then arrive at Edison.  This community is home to one of the Bone Valley's busiest locations.  This is the junction where CSX's Brewster Sub to Arcadia diverges from the Valrico Sub.  All of the Valrico Sub's Tampa traffic along with the Plant City Sub's can be viewed from the Edison Road crossing.  Plus, there are also trains that run between Mulberry and the Brewster Sub by using a connector track just east of Edison Road.  Unfortunately, those trains cannot be seen at Edison Road due to the trees obscuring your view.  However, those particular trains can been seen from the nearby Allen Road crossing.  Around 15-18 trains a day can be seen at Edison in a 24-hour period, all phosphate related.  In the 1960's, Seaboard ran at least 5 symbol freights through here: trains 380/387 between Tampa and Port Boca Grande, 467/468 between Tampa and West Lake Wales, and train 94 from Tampa to Jacksonville.  Mixed manifest trains through Edison are now a thing of the past as Port Boca Grande was closed and the line to Lake Wales was abandoned east of Bartow.
 
3. This is the view from Edison Road looking east.  The Brewster Sub curves to the right (southeast) and heads towards the New Wales plant, Bradley Junction, Agrock Yard, South Pasture Mine, and Arcadia.  This is the second busiest line in the Bone Valley.  The Valrico Sub turns left (northeast) towards Nichols, Mulberry, the Ridgewood plant, Bartow, and South Ft. Meade Mine.  The siding that runs between Edison and Welcome Junction can be seen tying into the main in the foreground.  10/20/15.
 
4.  Looking west from Edison Road we see O842-20 heading for the Ridgewood plant for another load of dryrock phosphate.  O842 is one of the many trains that haul finished phosphate for export via Rockport in Tampa.  Power is CSXT 4695 and CSXT 4691.  Today's train had 60 cars.  10/20/15.
 
5.  O842-20 is about to hang a Louie on the Valrico Sub and then continue on towards Ridgewood.  The switch at the junction is remotely operated.  10/20/15.
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/28/16 11:15 by florida581.

---

---

---

We bid farewell to Edison as we continue our trek east on the Valrico Sub.  The thick vegetation that surrounds Edison soon thins out as we approach Nichols.  We catch our first glimpse of the phosphogypsum stacks from the closed Nichols Mine.  Phosphogypsum is the waste byproduct of the phosphate industry.  It generally cannot be used for any other use because it is slightly radioactive due to the presence of naturally occurring uranium and thorium.  Because of this, the phosphogypsum is stored (stacked) throughout the Bone Valley.  Some stacks reach as high as 200 feet and cover several hundred acres.  
 
The scene is not all quiet at Nichols.  Carload customer, Llhoist North America, has a facility adjacent to the mine.  It is switched on a very regular basis by one of the Mulberry based locals, usually O810.  The siding at the mine, and the yard tracks, are used for the staging of loaded phosphate hoppers from the nearby New Wales plant.  These cars will then be forwarded to the yards in Mulberry.  Just to the east of Nichols is the "north end" of IMC siding.  Due to its location, IMC is where you may have the best chance of catching a train meet.  Not only does Mulberry Yard's south end tie up at IMC siding, but the Bone Valley's only stretch of CTC track begins here.
 
6.  The view looking west from the Nichols Road crossing shows us the siding where loaded cars from New Wales are being staged.  The closed Nichols Mine looms in the background.  10/20/15.
 
7.  O806-20 waits at IMC for a meet with O842-20.  O806 is hauling 60 cars of wetrock phosphate from the South Ft. Meade Mine to the Riverview processing plant.  After the meet, this train would swap crews with O841-20 at Welcome Jct.  Power is CSXT 4698 and CSXT 4681.  10/20/15.
 
8.  O842-20 (left) is meeting O806-20 (right) at IMC in Mulberry.  10/20/15.
 

---

---

---

Welcome to Mulberry!  Located 10 miles south of Lakeland, this small town of 4,000 souls is the operational hub of the Bone Valley.  According to the Chamber of Commerce, Mulberry is the "Official Phosphate Capitol of the World."  Two important yards, Mulberry and Prairie, are located on the northwestern side of town.  Mulberry Yard's primary function is to receive inbound transfers from Lakeland's Winston Yard.  It also receives K-series phosphate and molten sulphur trains from throughout the CSX system.  The cars from these trains are then sorted into the appropriate local freights that serve the processing plants and other carload customers in the area.  Bone Valley's motive power is also kept at Mulberry Yard.  Whenever a mine or plant is ready with a train, CSX will often run lite power to the corresponding facility.  Another unique tidbit is that EMD locomotives are almost exclusively used for power.  Most commonly seen are SD40-2's and various models of SD70's.  Adjacent to Mulberry Yard is Prairie Yard.  The primary function of this former ACL yard is the staging and building of outbound loaded K-series phosphate trains for various points on the CSX map.  
 
Nestled between the two yards are some facilities that are worth a mention.  Martin Marietta Materials has recently built a rock distribution plant with an accompanying loop track. Then there's the Mulberry Railcar shop.  As its name applies, this car shop provides a wide variety of services such as railcar repairs, cleaning, fabrication, sandblasting and painting.
 
9.  This is the general view of Mulberry Yard's south end.  The yard operations, and any tied down road power, can be viewed from the paralleling public road.  This area is also well lit for nighttime pictures.   10/20/15.
 
10.  A couple of retired phosphate hoppers are seen collecting rust at Mulberry Yard.  10/20/15.
 
11.  O816-02 is awaiting permission to leave the south wye from Mulberry Yard to access the Valrico Sub at IMC.  CSXT 8011 had 5 cars for the customers at Rockland, located in the Bone Valley's interior.  11/2/15.
 

---

---

---

IMC siding ties back into the main as we cross Jenkins Road.  The line dodges a couple of small ponds which separate us from the busy Highway 60 to our north.  This is the first time that Highway 60 has caught a glimpse of the Valrico Sub ever since it crossed its tracks 19 miles to our west.  Downtown Mulberry is now straight ahead.  An elusive pair of US&S type G tri-light signals guard an even more curiously located diamond.  This crossing of the Valrico Sub with the ex-Coast Line's Bone Valley Sub is located directly in the middle of State Road 37.
 
The Bone Valley Sub officially begins at Prairie Junction, about a mile north of the diamond.  Prairie Junction is where the tracks to Mulberry Yard, Martin Marietta, and Mulberry Railcar diverge from the main.  The aptly named Prairie Yard is also located at this junction.  The line continuing north of the junction is actually part of the Lakeland Sub.  However, this 5 mile stretch of track between Prairie Yard and Winston Yard is called the "BV Main" by railroaders and railfans alike.  The Bone Valley Sub was Atlantic Coast Line's primary route in and out of the Bone Valley.  ACL's dryrock phosphate trains bound for export would go north to Winston Yard and then turn west towards the docks in Tampa.  Although export dryrock trains no longer follow this routing, this line is still the primary outlet for the domestic K-series phosphate trains.  South of Prairie Junction, and on through the diamond, the Bone Valley Sub sees far less traffic as it works its way to Achan and into the region's interior.  The diamond sees around 17 trains a day, about 15 on the Valrico Sub and 2-3 on the Bone Valley Sub.
 
12.  O816-20 is returning to Mulberry Yard after completing his work at Mosaic's South Pierce chemical plant.  CSXT 4526 is the lone power for the 16 car local.  The train is running westbound (timetable north) on the ex-SAL Valrico Sub and is about to cross the diamond of the ex-ACL Bone Valley Sub.  The Mulberry Phosphate Museum is seen on the left.  10/20/15.
 
13.  Looking west, we get a better look at the diamond in the middle of State Road 37.  10/20/15.
 
14.  The Bone Valley Sub cuts a path through downtown Mulberry as it works its way north.  Prairie Yard can be seen in the distance.  We also see one of the US&S type G tri-light signals that guard the diamond.  
 

---

---

---

Overlooking the diamond is the Mulberry Phosphate Museum.  Opened in 1986, the museum is located in the former Seaboard depot.  A quote from their homepage says--
 
"The Mulberry Phosphate Museum’s mission is to promote and interpret the local history of Mulberry, Florida from the prehistoric to the contemporary and to examine the impact of the phosphate industry on that history. Through exhibits, programming, and personalized service, the Mulberry Phosphate Museum strives to reach audiences of all ages and backgrounds."
 
There are a few different galleries on the premises.  The Phosphate Gallery, located in a set of retrofitted boxcars, informs visitors of the various aspects of the phosphate industry.  The Historic Railroad Gallery, located in a second set of boxcars, provides a history of Mulberry, Polk County, and the overall railroad industry.  The Fossil Gallery is located in the old depot.  This gallery displays the fossilized remains of the plants and animals that were found throughout the Bone Valley in prehistoric times.  Also located on the grounds is a restored caboose, a GE 45-ton switcher, and a 44-yard dragline bucket.  In 2012, an 1880's era steam locomotive was unearthed by an excavation crew and was put on display at the museum soon after.
 
The museum provides a good "base of operations" for railfanning.  You can enjoy the different exhibits while listening for trains.  Plus, the museum is centrally located to various restaurants and other amenities within town.
 
15.  This is a partial view of the museum's grounds and welcoming sign.  In my opinion, the Mulberry Phosphate Museum has one the most unique logos that I've seen.  The Valrico Sub can be seen in the background.  10/20/15.
 
16.  A couple of the museum's outdoor collections includes this GE 45-ton switcher and a former Seaboard caboose, painted in the Mosaic and Seaboard Coast Line schemes respectively.  10/20/15.
 
17.  This 44-yard dragline bucket was donated to the museum in 1994.  The rock within the bucket contains fossilized shark teeth and small bone fragments.  If you can find them, you can keep them.  10/20/15.
 

---

---

---

On Mulberry's eastern border lies our next major junction, a wye called "South Mulberry" by CSX.  Diverging south from the Valrico Sub, this wye marks the beginning of the Achan Subdivision to Bradley Junction.  Trains out of Mulberry Yard that are destined for points within the Bone Valley's interior, such as Rockland, South Pierce, and New Wales, exit the Valrico Sub by traversing the North Wye.  Wetrock phosphate trains that run between Ridgewood and Agrock or the South Fort Meade Mine and New Wales use the South Wye.  From South Mulberry to Achan Junction, the Achan Sub is referred to as "Dynamite Yard".  The reason for this is still a mystery to me.
 
As we pass South Mulberry's South Wye, we are quickly reminded on how important the phosphate industry was, and still is, to this area.  A towering phosphogypsum stack from the erstwhile Bonnie Mine borders the south side of the tracks.  It's a sombering fact that Bonnie was one of nearly two dozen mines that dotted the area but have since closed.  Most of those mines were located within southern Polk County.  Today, the South Fort Meade mine is now the only phosphate mine left in Polk County.  Located in the adjacent counties, the Four Corners Mine and South Pasture Mine make up the other two active mines in the Bone Valley.
 
The two and a half miles between South Mulberry and the massive Ridgewood complex is amongst the busiest stretches of track along the Valrico Sub.  With 14 or more trains a day, this portion of the line has all the different varieties of traffic the Bone Valley can offer:
•wetrock trains from South Fort Meade Mine bound for New Wales, Riverview, and Big Bend
•wetrock trains from Four Corners Mine / Agrock Yard to Ridgewood 
•dryrock trains from Ridgewood bound for export
•a Mulberry to Ridgewood turn job hauling molten sulphur tanks and covered hoppers filled with domestic phosphate
•a local switcher serving carload customers between Mulberry and Bartow
•unit aggregate trains for Conrad Yelvington's distribution yard located at Bonnie Mine
 
The wye to the Ridgewood complex is now in our sights.  To our south, we pass the spur that leads to Bonnie Mine, now home to Conrad Yelvington's distribution yard where they have their own resident GP30M.  We then approach the final set of block signals.  Ridgewood is the eastern limits of a 5 mile CTC island.  Everything beyond here reverts back to TWC-DTC.  Officially named Mosaic Bartow, Ridgewood is the second largest phosphate processing plant in the Bone Valley.  Before the 1967 merger, both Atlantic Coast Line and the Seaboard served this facility.  The Coast Line built a spur from Tancrede, located on the BV Main (Lakeland Sub), and entered the plant from the northwest.  This spur was abandoned over two decades ago. The Seaboard used the present day spur, entering the complex from the south.  Many companies had a hand in phosphate industry throughout the region such as CF Industries, IMC, Mobil and Agrico.  Through mergers and acquisitions, Mosaic is now the only player left.
 
At processing plants such as Ridgewood, the raw "wetrock" phosphate is finely ground to uniform size. Sulfuric acid is then added to form phosphoric acid, which is concentrated through evaporation, reacted with ammonia, and granulated to produce two basic phosphate/nitrogen crop nutrients--diammonium phosphate (DAP) and monoammonium phosphate (MAP).  Ridgewood also produces fluorosilicic acid (FSA).  The complex can easily be seen from Highway 60.
 
18.  This is South Mulberry's north wye as seen looking east from MLK Avenue.  The track on the left is the Valrico Sub to Ridgewood, Bartow, and the South Fort Meade Mine.  The track on the right is the beginning of the Achan Sub to Bradley Junction.  This is one of the few Bone Valley junctions controlled by CTC.  11/2/15.
 
19.  Looking east from Bonnie Mine Road, we see both the north wye that leads into the Ridgewood plant and also the Ridgewood siding.  The siding is currently being used for car storage.  A towering phosphogypsum stack can be seen in the background.  11/2/15.
 
20.  This is an overall view of the Mosaic Bartow "Ridgewood" plant from Highway 60.  The present day tracks leading into the yard are of Seaboard heritage.  If you look closely, you can see Mosaic using its own power to shuffle cars throughout the massive complex.  10/20/15.
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/28/16 11:03 by florida581.

---

---

---

For the five and a half miles between Ridgewood and Bartow, we pass through the typical rural landscape associated with the Bone Valley.  The countryside is wide open.  Vegetation consists mainly of palmetto bushes, shrubbery and tall grass, and a few lonely palm trees.  The land is artificially undulated from the phosphogypsum stacks.  Along the way, a handful of carload customers keep local freight O807 busy.  Much like Conrad Yelvington moving into the old Bonnie Mine complex, some of the closed phosphate facilities have found new life.  Just outside the Bartow city limits, Sylvite Minerals has moved into the former USS Agri-chemicals plant, again providing CSX a source of revenue.  Once again we cross Highway 60 as we enter Bartow, the county seat of Polk County.
 
Like so many other cases in the Bone Valley, the rail scene in Bartow has greatly diminished from days past.  This town of 18,000 used to have rail lines radiating in 5 different directions: Atlantic Coast Line to Lakeland, Lake Alfred, and Naples and then the Seaboard to Valrico and Lake Wales.  The present day Valrico Sub from Valrico to Bowling Green is the only surviving route.  Roughly half of the Bone Valley's carload customers are located in or on the outskirts of Bartow.  Local O807 usually serves these customers throughout the morning hours.  The rest of the traffic are wetrock phosphate trains to and from South Fort Meade Mine.
 
Shortly after passing downtown, the Valrico Sub makes a hard turn to the right and heads due south toward Fort Meade.  It is here where the tracks enter Atlantic Coast Line territory.  If you recall, the old Seaboard Air Line was abandoned between here and Lake Wales.  The Coast Line's Lakeland to Naples route now survives in three segments.  Starting from the north, the first segment is a five mile spur off of the Carters Sub in downtown Lakeland, known as the CH Spur.  The second segment is now part of the Valrico Sub, stretching 18 miles from Bartow to Bowling Green.  The third segment is now the primary route of the Seminole Gulf Railway from Arcadia to Naples.
 
An old switcher, sleeper car, diner car, and caboose are on display at the Fort Meade Historical Museum.  The Alco RS1 was donated to the museum from the now closed IMC Fort Lonesome Mine.  The display is right next to the Valrico Sub, greeting passing trains to and from the South Fort Meade Mine.  
 
21.  Sylvite Minerals has now set up shop at the former USS Agri-chemicals facility just outside of Bartow.  11/2/15.
 
22.  This is downtown Bartow as seen from the Broadway Avenue crossing.  The Polk County courthouse towers over the surrounding buildings.  11/2/15.
 
23.  O802-02 trundles his way past the static display at the Fort Meade Historical Museum.  O802 had 59 loads of wet rock phosphate from South Fort Meade Mine for the plant at New Wales.  11/2/15.
 

---

---

---

We parallel Highway 17 as the tracks continue south towards the end of the line at Bowling Green.  There's a notable change in the flora.  Unlike most places in the Bone Valley, these final few miles of track are surrounded by tall trees and thick vegetation.  This is due to the presence of the Peace River which is just to our east.  In fact, most of the Bone Valley is within the geological region known as The Peace River Formation.  The river is a very popular choice for kayaking and canoeing enthusiasts in the area. 
 
At Tencor, a seldom used spur diverges to the west.  Used for storage, this track formerly served the now closed Gardenier Mine and washer.  About a mile shy of Bowling Green, the South Fort Meade spur turns east, crosses the Peace River on a half mile long trestle, and then travels another two miles until reaches the yard tracks.  
 
The official end of the Valrico Sub is at a stop sign planted in a pile of dirt and weeds.  Roughly a hundred yards south is another restored depot-turned-museum, accompanied by a caboose.  It's always great to see these small towns doing their part in remembering their heritage and keeping the spirit of the railroads alive.  
 
24.  This is a distant view of South Fort Meade Mine.  It was unseasonably hot for November when this picture was taken.  The heat index was in the high 90's.  11/2/15.
 
25.  The town of Bowling Green has done a fine job with the upkeep of the old ACL depot, now museum.  Bowling Green was located on ACL's Lakeland to Naples line.  11/2/15.
 
26.  This is the end of the line for the Valrico Sub, a stop sign on a mound of dirt and weeds.  The spur to the South Fort Meade Mine is roughy a mile north of here and the old ACL depot is about 100 yards to the south.  11/2/15.
 

---

---

---

Great posting. A map of this operation would be nice.

Regards, Jim Evans

This concludes our 47 mile hypothetical tour of the Valrico Sub.  I hope that you found it enjoyable, insightful, and enlightening.  While it's not the most scenic of areas, nor the busiest regarding rail traffic, the Bone Valley is indeed an integral part of the Central Florida economy.  The various phosphate operations throughout the region is definitely worth a personal visit.
 
-Coming Soon-
 
In Part 2 of my Florida Bone Valley tour, we'll take a trip down the second busiest line throughout the region--the Brewster Sub.  Along the way, we'll see the nation's largest phosphate processing plant at New Wales, go through a popular rail hotspot at Bradley Junction, and visit two of the three remaining phosphate mines.  We'll also see a few "ghosts" of the Bone Valley as we work our way south.  Pacing along side us will be one of the oddities in this land of phosphate, a manifest train.  As an added bonus, I will include a list of all the train symbols that can be seen throughout the Bone Valley.  Please stay tuned!
 
Andrew 
 
27.  This is a self-drawn map of the Bone Valley.  Hopefully it can give you a better understanding of the lay of the land.  I have labeled all major junctions, facilities, towns, and yards.  For clarity, only active routes and existing spurs are shown.  The map is drawn to scale.
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/26/16 09:31 by florida581.

---

That's a wonderful tour.  Thanks for taking the time to develop and write it

Andrew it really needs to be published,

Ed Stewart
Jacksonville, FL

Andrew,
You know that this is in my back yard.I worked many years in the BV.
I want to give kudos for this.For a young man, you are very versed on
the subject.

Uncle Joe,not too far from the BV.
 

I found this so interesting. I knew next to nothing of this vast area. Thank you for the time & effort to post this. Very much appreciated.
John

Interesting stuff indeed...!!  Thanks.....

retcsxcfm Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Andrew,
> You know that this is in my back yard.I worked
> many years in the BV.
> I want to give kudos for this.For a young man, you
> are very versed on
> the subject.
>
> Uncle Joe,not too far from the BV.
>

Andrew, that is high praise, and remember, Uncle Joe was around BEFORE they became fossils!!!
 

Been to that area a few times-really interesting area.

Great post-well done-Thanks

Mike Bannon
St Catharines, ON

Excellent story, I live near Orlando and never get past the junctions Plant City or Lakeland, but might have to venture south next time.
Great map by the way!

Posted from Android

Good history. I've been going down there yearly since 1976 and have witnessed the massive decline in the phosphate industry. For some neat views I took from the air search "Getting high in the Bone Valley" I posted a couple years ago.
Are some of the FEC SD40-2 units still working down there?
RAD