Nostalgia & History > 39 yrs ago OTD B&O action on the Mountain Sub (Cranberry Grade)

At the end of June 1981 my buddy Tom Luckey and I spent 3 days on B&O's Mountain Sub between Cumberland,MD. and Grafton,WV.  Here are just a few trains that we photographed from 6/25/81 on Cranberry Grade  which begins at M&K Jct. in Rowlesburg,WV. and rises about 1200 feet in 11 miles to the summit at Terra Alta,WV.  M&K Jct. was the helper base and all eastbound coal trains known as "Drags" needed extra muscle to do battle with the 2.4% ruling grade of Cranberry.  In steam days it was usually a pair of mallets being replaced by sets of F3s and later F7s.  From the mid 60s up until the arrival of the SD50s the M&K Helpers usually consisted of sets of 4 SD35s.  A typical 80 car Drag took an hour to ascend Cranberry.  Top shot of B&O 3841,3689,4187,3765  on an eastbound Drag nearing the top of the hill at Salt Lick Curve in Terra Alta,WV. Middle shot of the M&K Helper on this Drag consisting of B&O 7417,B&O 7415,C&O 7426,WM 7436.  Bottom shot of  B&O 4059,WM 4360,B&O 6442,B&O 5983 on #88 at Bishops Farm east of Rodemer,WV. (MP 245 Mtn Sub)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/25/20 21:38 by perklocal.

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Great shots - my favorite stretch of railroad!

Top shot of #88's Helper which was another set of SD35s B&O 7400,B&O 7402,B&O 7407,WM 7432 at Terra Alta.  Next down the hill was C&O 4283,B&O 6675,B&O 3805 on Grafton Empty Hoppers at Salt Lick Curve in Terra Alta.  Last shot of WM 4259,B&O 3714,WM 4317 on the westbound St. Louis Trailer Jet at Rodemer,WV.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/25/20 21:36 by perklocal.

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Very NICE series!

Larry

Thanks for the great memories along the old B&O line.
John in White Marsh, Maryland

All A PLUS! Makes me harkin back to happier days on that great piece of railroading. I got there only a couple of times in the 80s, when the SD50s were the helper power. Never saw the Fs in service, but I overdosed on those 35s!

Bill Rettberg
Bel Air, MD

Well done.
Bob

Spent a number of hours (randomly) at Oakland and Terra Alta last weekend.  Only one train the whole time, possibly a local with about 19 cars and, oh, maybe, !3,000 hp.  So diffferent from the coal parades of the last century.   

Nice set of images!  The sounds must have been just as great as the sights.  Always thought the GP40's would have been very slippery on those grades.

Nice pics.  If you are going to go railfanning, it may as well be with someone named Luckey!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/26/20 16:05 by billmeeker.

We were  "Luckey"  that those eastbounds came up #1 track.
Tom Luckey

billmeeker Wrote:
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> Nice pics.  If you are going to go railfanning,
> it may as well be with someone named Luckey!