Eastern Railroad Discussion > Time Freight returns to the Big Sandy Sub & Clinchfield Railroad

As seen in this topic ( https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?2,4344821 ) due to congestion on the CSX system Q696 and Q697 have been brought back as Cincinnati, OH to Hamlet, NC trains (and vice versa).. in their latest incarnation these were shortened to run from Hamlet to Kingsport, TN, with Kingsport to Catlettsburg, KY essentially separated between McClure and Dante, VA. In recent months, operating patterns have sent several unit trains and storage moves along the Big Sandy, Kingsport, and Blue Ridge Subdivisions with rumors stirring of potential reopening of the line to through traffic. Thanks to some discussion on Facebook, news of Q696 and Q697 re-emerging stirred up a lot of buzz. So naturally, not knowing how long these trains will run, I gave chase to the first eastbound out of Russell, Q696-24. Reportedly these trains are to be temporary to help relieve congestion, but any train on a partially mothballed rail line.

#1: First stop was at WD Cabin, the east end of double track from Big Sandy Junction. After meeting a westbound loaded coal train, Q696-24 heads east with 5 engines and 86 cars.

#2: Q696-24 crosses the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River on the single track between WD Cabin and RB Cabin near Walbridge. In recent times this bridge was limited to 10 miles per hour, but it seems that maintenance has restored track speed to the line once again (somewhere in the neighborhood of 25-30 miles per hour)

#3: A few moments later, Q696-24 diverges to the Main 2 track at RB Cabin near the community of Walbridge. Out of frame at right was once the original ROW of the Chatteroi Railroad, the predecessor to the C&O in the area.

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#4: A fast jog out some back roads to the community of Chapman, KY to meet the train again at the single track at CH Cabin. Here as well, C&O signals still dominate the interlocking, with the westbound signal a bit of a rarity featuring a Weigh indication for the scales at Torchlight on the double track between here and Walbridge.

#5: The railroad hugs the east bank of the Levisa Fork most of the way from Walbridge to Thelma, just outside of Paintsville, so very few places along the line are accessible. I met with the train again near the community of Offutt, KY across the Johnson County line. Just west of here was the Whitehouse passing siding, removed in later years.

#6: Another mad dash out KY 581 to the town of Paintsville, just in time to get set up as Q696-24 rounds the bend at the KY 581 crossing and rolls into town at the West End of Paintsville Yard. More C&O signals here as well, in an area that also was once directional signalling in the heyday of the C&O.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/26/17 01:16 by msullivan1993.

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#7: With KY 581 closed just outside of town, a detour was made to the community of Auxier, where a set of crossovers on one end of town lie between C&O cantilevers. The westbound signals at Johns Creek are a little unique in that the Main 2 track features a set of "Darth Vader" hoods, to improve visibility.

#8: Coming off the double track at OX Cabin on the other end of Auxier, Q696-24 passes underneath Bays Branch Road entering the town of Prestonsburg.

#9: Q696 snuck by me while waiting at Beaver Junction before deciding to move towards EM Cabin, to the dismay of red signals eastbound I doubled back to US 23 and headed towards Pikeville. Passing the train just around Harold, the sun had already set behind the hills and the light was fading fast. I set up at the west end of the former Wagner Siding (combined with Pauley siding west of Coal Run Junction to make one long passing siding) Only a handful of these bracketed C&O masts, semi-resembling Nickel Plate Road-style brackets are located along the line, with the rest mostly being cantilevers.

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Good Job!

#10: My last stop before the light finally faded enough that ISO compensation wouldn't help was in the Pikeville Cut-Through just west of the namesake town along US 23. In the 1970's and 1980's, Army Corps of Engineers crews blasted over 18 million cubic yards of rock and dirt from Peach Orchard Mountain to reroute both the Levisa Fork and the C&O's Big Sandy Subdivision around town amid concerns of flooding and the constant blanketing of coal dust, as well as allowing room for the newly constructed four-lane Corridor B which houses US 23, US 119, US 460, and KY 80. The move also shaved a little over two miles off the Big Sandy Subdivision between the CMG 103 and CMG 106, shortening the distance to just around 4,100 feet.

After the last light disappeared, I broke off and headed for home after a dinner stop just outside of town. As to how long these trains will last is yet to be seen, but if there's one thing the big man has done right, seeing through rail traffic return to the hills of Eastern Kentucky, Western Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina is a welcoming sight, in whatever numbers there will be.

(Please, for the sake of a sane discussion, leave the Harrison bashing and topics elsewhere, it's not wanted here. Thanks for understanding!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/26/17 01:15 by msullivan1993.

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Beautiful picture's.Thanks for sharing them.

Walt

Posted from Android

The last picture is something special

Wow, these photos are beautiful. The leader Tier 4 looks massive compared to other units. I like that first photo. Also great photos of the C&O Signals.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/25/17 20:10 by cornerfieldhobby.

Outstanding photography and great post-capture editing. Definitely top level railroad photography. Thanks for being there to capture the images and for sharing them with us.

Great coverage on the Q696. Last shot is fantastic.

Randy

what a Calendar photo. great shot, m h in OHIO

Outstanding... thanks for posting.....

Awesome shots and chase!

No surprise that last shot made IOTD! Beautiful!

Bob

A dramatic set of photos and congrats on IOTD!

Rich

Beautiful country and that last picture--"it don't get no better than that".

Many look like paintings! Nice!
BB

Always love your photos, and the territory you cover!

Posted from Android

wow awesome pics and scenery

Nice picture taking and processing :-)

John.