Steam & Excursion > A few from China back in the good old days

These could be posted here, under international, or now even in nostalgia...so I flipped and steam railroading got the call this time.  Anyway, poking through my old stuff looking for "new" pix to scan these came up.  All date from the 2002-2005 period on the Jitong line in China.  Ah the good old days.

JBWX



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/13/20 18:51 by jbwest.

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I've seen the lead engine in picture number 2. 3 years left to go on her 15 years and never to feel the heat of a fire in her firebox again. 

Still kicking myself for not going over:(

Great shots.  I especially like the guys shooting from the frozen river.  Nice!  I went over just twice.  1987 and 1988.  There were two kinds of Pacific's  working passenger.  Large RM's and smaller SL's on commuter trains out of Chanchung.  Even China is now gone (except for a few coal mines using steam).

Thanks,  I was there in 2005, good memory.

Bob

One of the most critical trips I ever took in many ways - steam means something different to me now than it did before my trip in 2005.

1.  Here's another of the 7040, this time near Ya Mien Mio in the Inner Mongolia provice, April 2005.  What a show.

~RGDave

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I always thought it would have been great to see mainline steam in the US.  A two week trip to Manchuria in 1985 was just what the doctor ordered.

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots

Hello RGDave,

this was the last great show, and not to be missed. I never was real fan of steam. But after a first trip to the pass in 2002 I went back at least once a year, sometimes twice as long as steam was running. A few times I also took along some friends. The area has changed considerably. Something like a four lane freeway passed through the bottom of the valley, and the the township of Reshui, railway Galadesitai, looked a little like a tourist trap on my last trip in 2012. And the station may just be spelled Yamenmiao.

Cheers

kbs651

Dear spouse, of all people, convinced me to go in 2003. One of the best decisions I ever made (aside from marrying that girl in the first place). 

march_hare Wrote:
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> Dear spouse, of all people, convinced me to go in
> 2003. One of the best decisions I ever made (aside
> from marrying that girl in the first place). 

Yes, thanks to the spouses who supported this kind of nonsense.  I was also very lucky to have a spouse who encouraged me to indulge my passion for steam.

JBWX

What a shame this ended.  The last place on earth to view this show, and I missed it.  I will always regret I was unable to make it to China before steam was banished forever. 

What made the Jitong and especially the town of Reshui special was that all trains were steam powered and they ran frequently enough that you could put on some warm clothing, pack up some hot soup in a thermos, and just wander up the hill for the day.  There were three levels of track above you, and each provided different views and lighting.  Or you could have a bus drop you off on the other side of the pass and do the same thing there.  It was a very relaxing experience.  No crowds, no photo lines, usually a few interesting folks from all over the world to talk with, and hard working doubleheaded 2-10-2's.  Can life be better than that?  Of course when it started snowing it got a little more challenging, but taking pix in blizzards had its own rewards.  Toward the end it became a bit more regimented as steam became scarce.

JBWX



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/16/20 09:31 by jbwest.

Does anyone remember Nancha Mountain?   Or, how about coming out of the throat of the yard in Chanchung?    (That is, after you got your fill of roundhouse and turntable action for the day).

Keystone1 Wrote:
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> Does anyone remember Nancha Mountain?   Or, how
> about coming out of the throat of the yard in
> Chanchung?    (That is, after you got your fill
> of roundhouse and turntable action for the day).

Those of you who were lucky to get to China earlier certainly had a much greater variety of steam ops to see, and I envy you.  In particular the pacifics on the express trains and the vast backshops and terminals.  But as a photographer I feel fortunate that the last grand show was on the JiTong because it was such a photogenic line in the middle of nowhere.  It forced us to get away from the congested metropolitan areas and into some wide open country where we could be more creative (artsy fartsy I suppose).

JBWX  



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 13:02 by jbwest.