Nostalgia & History > Following the Visalia Electric RR on 01-22-1988

1. Leaving Exeter, CA
2. Crossing SH 198 at Merryman Station
3. Approaching Lindcove

Don Bowen
Saint Helena, CA

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4. At Lindcove
5. At the Moffetts Substation (One of 3 the others at Woodlake and Lovers Lane)
6. Heading to Goodale

Don Bowen
Saint Helena, CA



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/21/14 09:53 by dlbowen.

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7. At E. Woodlake
8. Woodlake
9. West of Woodlake

Don Bowen
Saint Helena, CA

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10. Doing a drop with a 2 man crew. This is a difficult and somewhat dangerous maneuver. Note the cloud of smoke from the loco's acceleration
11. The VE crew - Engineman Mickey Ross and Conductor Jerry Archer

The VE ceased operations in September 1990.

Don Bowen
Saint Helena, CA



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/20/14 20:45 by dlbowen.

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Considering that once the quarry closed the shots you got were of a train that ran
once every third blue moon, great catch.

Out

That rail looks like it's around 12 pound.
Must be the lens compression.
...Lorenzo

The light rail was 60.5 lbs

Don Bowen
Saint Helena, CA

Great set of photos Don!

Take Care, Stay Safe, Have Fun!

Larry

Great stuff, Don. Never got a chance to get up there; thanks for these memories. Also I love those shots of the snow-capped Sierra Nevada range; it wasn't every day you could see them, and with snow to boot!

Tom

*sigh* Memories of passing by there as a child. What stands out most is the majestic Sierra Range (Sequoia in this case) in the background contrasting the masses of orchards and flatlands.

Don,

I remember this day well! This turned out to be the one and only time the SSW 3813 ran on the VE and the only time (to my knowledge) an SSW unit was ever used on the line. The crew declared the unit Bad Order on account of the gyralite on the long hood being inoperative. The unit was traded out prior to the need for another train out of Exeter. As for the substations, the ones at Lover's Lane and Moffetts still stand, but the one at Woodlake has been gone for +/- 20 years. Nice coverage!

John Ford

Thanks for the memories. I never was lucky enough to catch train action on the VE during the man times I was in the area.

Very light rail.
TAH

I have a memory of visiting the Visalia area and following the track (no trains). At one point there was some repair work being done on the track, and one of the joints had been taken apart, revealing the bond cable which had been under the joint bar. This was a vestige of the days when the line really was electric, back before 1944. It was a unique 3300 volt AC 15 Hz system, the substation buildings were just big enough for a transformer and switchgear.