Steam & Excursion > The Morning Train On This Line Had A Certain Special Charm!

Perhaps the one shortline that Railfans of the West hated to lose the most was the Yosemite Valley Railroad. There we something about this little line that captivated those who ventured down to watch it's trains.

We can see the attraction of the line in this simple photo takenn in January 1941 of the morning passenger train steaming through Merced Falls, California on it's way to El Portal, at the entrance to Yosemite Valley itself.

YV 4-4-0 #23 is the power on this short train with YV RPO #107 and observation car #303 in tow. Soon this train will be running along the banks of the Merced River and her few passengers will be treated to some ever more beautiful scenery as they approach their destination in the Merced River Canyon.

Long live the YV!

Martin



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 04/23/18 03:37 by LoggerHogger.

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Great composition in my eyes, shows more than just another train in it. The whole area is alive with items not often seen, the cattle crossing is one of them.

Wonderful photo there! I've never seen that placement of the air pumps on a 4-4-0 before. Very interesting arrangement. They look so big up there they almost take up the entire front of the locomotive.

Photos like this are today's time machines to our rich history.
Thanks for taking us back to this scene.
Bob

Long live the YV! as much in that foto survives.
Both the baggage-RPO car and observation passenger car 330 survive at the Niles Canyon Railroad and are stationed at the Brightside RR yard just to the west on Sunol in northern California Bay Area of San Francisco.
Wes Swift is doing a miracle bringing back the 330 to better than new condition. For me, he walks on water.
And so says I.

Any idea what the large building in the background is?

crackerjackhoghead Wrote:
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> Any idea what the large building in the background
> is?

The Merced Irrigation District built Exchequer Dam which was near Merced Falls. I'm wondering if this housed the workers.