Steam & Excursion > Belfast & Moosehead Lake 4-6-0

This may be very old news, but WHY did this Maine railroad stop using their Swedish steam locomotive?  I believe #1149 is now in Tennessee on display.

Because not enough people had any interest in foreign locomotives to make patronage on the isolated line in the distant Maine woods.  If you hung your head out a dutch door or window to take any photo while riding the train, the engineer would radio to conductor to find and attack anyone who stuck their head out the window. The engine made no sound and the line had no scenery. Total nothing, and wasted time going there. I even got confronted to not take photos of the engine while in the yard because I was close to the open turntable pit but over 50' away.  I never had such a bad experience on any touist or short line railroad in my life.  And all my life I taked to hundrerds of fans to not go to that railroad.  The train had no Westinghouse automatic brakes but used vacuum brakes, and other equipment could not be used.  This might have been after when Belfast had ripped the track out of town which was the point of interest of the tourist line.  Now it is Lake Placid, North Creek, and Kingston, NY that rips up or want to rip up track out from under an active tourist railroads.  Add Creede, CO to that list.

Well....I must be one of the lucky ones.  I went up there after it just started running.  I had no trouble taking movies of it spinning on the "dangerous turntable."  I chased for two days then drove home.      Weather was pleasant, but it didn't smoke much.