Steam & Excursion > Everett Railroad 11 in Black & White

The morning of October 5th, 2024, found cool temperatures and fog as we arrived at the Everett Railroad in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.

Already hot, at the station and coupled to her train was the power we had come to see: Alco-built 2-6-0 #11.  The builder's plate gave a date of 1923, though the locomotive was actually built for export in 1920.  Intended for the sugar plantations of Cuba, the locomotive went unsold and sat around for three years before a shortline came calling.  The builder's plate gave the year she actually left the property.

1-3.  Sitting at the station in cool air that accentuated the vapor wafting from the locomotive, the oil-burning Mogul was a fine sight to our eyes on a Saturday morning.

More to come...

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

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4. The first train of the day departs Hollidaysburg.

5. The far end for the day's out-and-back trips was the "Fall Y'all" event at Kladder.  Driving the fast way took about eight minutes for us to find the location and a place to park, and it took the train a bit under twenty minutes to arrive.

6. From a stairway across the street from the entrance to the Everett's parking lot, the next train of the day departs.  We'd noticed the stairs leading from street level to an overpass carrying a road over the tracks while waiting for the first train's departure.  I estimated that the lighting would still be good for the second train, and we were not disappointed.

More to come...

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

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7.  We ended up leap-frogging the second train of the day.  We really hadn't planned to chase it as such, but getting into the van after bringing our gear down from our location on the stairs took hardly any time at all, and we were overtaking the train in short order.  Approaching the Loop Road crossing, we had time for a quick grab shot.  Then we headed into Blair Township, and were quickly ahead of the train even on a winding road with a 35mph speed limit.  At Cunningham Lane, which is little more than a driveway going back to a home with a towing business behind it, we did a quick set up.  This is where we got the surprise of the weekend: we heard the locomotive working hard!

8.  We discovered that the hill we found #11 began where the track crosses a small river and then climbs for I would estimate somewhere around a half-mile.  This photo is taken from a small pull-off where fishermen park and follow a trail down to the river.

9.  The last train of the day rounds the curve approaching Kladder.

More to come...

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

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10.  Sunday we went straight to the fishermans' pull-off to get another crack at #11 on "the hill."  We followed the trail down to the tracks and Kurt went one way while I went the other.

11.  For the second train of the day, we went back to Cunningham Lane.

12.  Our last shot of the day was also our most interesting... and not in a good way.  We pulled over, along with a couple of photographers from New York, at the end of a driveway where there was ample room to clear the road (35mph, mind you) without fouling the driveway.  Before long an old coot came roaring up on a side-by-side from a house (different driveway) that was decked out in huge political signs and banners, and began yelling at everyone about parking (on public property, mind you), trains scaring his horses and how many G-D pictures do you need of that G-D train anyway..  This was obviously a guy who spends WAYYYY too much time screaming at infotainment channels on his TV.  Then, while making a comment that we were MAKING him act like an idiot, he fired up his side-by-side and roared away... almost hitting three people in the process.  Thirty seconds later the train passed, and our steam shoot had concluded.

It bugged Kurt a lot more than it did me, though we agreed that the fact that I deal with irrational people at times on a professional level may have given me an edge in that regard.  The last shot is still in Blair Township, and I jokingly called the location "A-Hole Acres" in my notes.

I doubt the fellow knew he was cussing out a preacher.  Gotta love it!

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/21/24 09:58 by MaryMcPherson.

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Well done - You have some first-rate views here.
Bob

Great work Mary, timeless images!  Thanks for sharing.

The old guy sounds like a troll that came out from under a bridge.  Or that dog that runs up to the fence and barks at you. Takes all kinds.
Nice series of photos.  Did you shoot video of her working on that grade?
I've always thought that was an attractive little engine.
Are you shooting Tri-X?  In my film days, I was always searching for the finest grain.  Loved K64 and either Panatomic or Plus-X.  Played around fixing old cameras just for fun.
Back then my go-to was a Canon FTb.

Frisco1522 Wrote:
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> Did you shoot video of her working on that grade?
Yes, we did.  I'm about to attempt to upload a highlight reel.

> Are you shooting Tri-X?
Yup; Tri-X.

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions