Eastern Railroad Discussion > A few pics from 'SLOPE' near Altoona, Pa.

On a recent NS Pittsburgh Line visit in late June, I stopped off at the 24th Street bridge at SLOPE one morning, just West of downtown Altoona..Pic 1...An Eastbound 12G tiptoes downgrade while a Westbound 591 hopper train digs in for the tough climb up the East Slope...Pic 2...a closer look at the 12G's head end....and pic 3...a side by side view of the two trains...Dave Williams

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A/C equipped SD40-2 helpers 3339 and 3342 shove on the rear of the Westbound 591 as the Eastbound 12G continues downgrade toward downtown...and another shot of the 591 as the rear shoves upgrade toward the Brickyard....and finally, a clean set of Conrail liveried helpers brings up the rear of the 12G....Dave W.

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Safe to assume Dave, that Brickyard is right around the corner further west? Nice shots.

Chris Bogley
Bowie, MD

I haven't been in the area for couple years, but is the
brickyard (Vesuvias ??) still active. On weekdays when
they were working, the exhaust fan noise was a pain.

SVTS Wrote:
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> Safe to assume Dave, that Brickyard is right
> around the corner further west? Nice shots.

Yes, looking in the distance beyond the 539's rear end, is the curve just East of the Brickyard.....I'm not sure if the Brickyard facility is still active or not....there is a major development project of some sort going on along the road that runs past the Brickyard (still on the same side of the tracks) The downhill slope in the wooded area near the crossing has been filled in with massive amounts of fill and fenced in...Dave W.

Nice shots Dave. Looks like that bridge makes for a good spot for a few shots.