Canadian Railroads > Catching Up With 407

407 is the daily train from Dartmouth, NS to Moncton, NB.  It carries primarily import auto traffic from Autoport at the very end of the Dartmouth Sub, but there are usually junk cars of scrap, and empty propane, steel and lumber cars returning west.  The challenge for shooting this train is that it's a morning westbound.  Fortunately, once the train is on the Bedford Sub, it's heading more northeast than west, so there are several opportunities, particularly in the long days of summer.  In the first image, from June 17, CN's recent brush clearing has opened the view up at the mile 44 detector, as SD70M-2 8009 and two sisters split the signals with a typical train.

3 days later, 8812 and 8814 were the power as a slightly different version of 407 passed a new searchlight signal at the west end of Milford.  When the siding was removed about 10 years ago, I thought the signals would eventually disappear too, but they have remained at both ends as control points, and have even had ATCS added recently. The signalling infrastructure might have been more useful if it had been relocated to the wye connection at the East Milford gypsum mine, which is only 2 miles to the east.

GTD



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/18 07:47 by cn6218.

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Train 407 also handles any westbound traffic off the CBNS and local cars at Truro, NS.  Also on June 20, 8812 and 8814 are slowing for the many crossings in the town of Truro.  They will eventually back into the yard and pick up the cars behind the power before continuing west to Moncton on the Springhill Sub.  Because the Springhill Sub does actually run more or less east-west, the photo opportunities aren't all that great until they get closer to Moncton, later in the day.

On June 27, the power had been swapped again, this time for ES44DC 2247 and ex-LMS leaser IC 2458, as 407 passed the mile 44 detector and signals at Shubenacadie East.  Typically the same power stays on this train for several weeks at a time, and this same set was still working it until about a week ago.

GTD



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/18 08:02 by cn6218.

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407 would take the siding at Alton, 5 or so miles to the west, to meet 120 on its way to Rockingham Yard.  Since the summertime light favours westbounds in the morning on the Bedford Sub, I had to retreat all the way back to Moirs Mills, at mile 9, to get some good sun for 120 at 09:38.  Some evidence of the recently removed brush and pole line can be seen in the foreground as 3092, 3005 and 2871 pulled through the big curve across Mill Cove.  This was once a causeway with two tracks, but infilling on both sides over the past 25 years has hidden its original configuration.

120 usually has a DPU, and on this particular day, ES44AC 2946 was it.  30 years ago I would have had to be in a boat to get this angle, and there would have been poles and wires in the way.

Since 120 was relatively early this day ("scheduled" arrival time is 10:30), I still had a chance at 511, the gypsum turn out of Dartmouth.  They are often waiting for 120 at Windsor Jct., but on this day they were far enough back on the Dartmouth Sub that I could get to Laurie Park at mile 24 of the Bedford Sub for this shot of 8014 and 2691 with the empty train at 10:14.

GTD

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A bit more than two hours later, 511 had swapped empties for loads, and was back at Windsor Jct., ready to enter the Dartmouth Sub.  The high sun is kind of brutal, but there isn't much way around it (short of shooting on a cloudy day) in the summer time.  2691 was leading the train across the mile 16 detector and slowing for the switch to the Dartmouth Sub at mile 15.6.  The time was 12:39.

Meanwhile, over in Dartmouth, a surplus of work at Autoport meant that local 505 was working there instead of their usual assignment in the Burnsdie Industrial Park.  At 14:08 they had just arrived back in the yard with a string of autoracks and would put them away before knocking off for the day.  The crossover just in front of 4809 is lined for 511's power, which would shortly arrive and make its way through the yard to the tie up tracks at the east end.  Most days there are 3 switch jobs in Dartmouth, 505 in the morning, 509 in the afternoon, and then 503, the backshift.  All use the same pair of GP38-2s.

GTD

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