Eastern Railroad Discussion > Trains and Boats Today in Lake Erie Land

Tuesday September 13, 2022

A crazy day with intense sun and blue sky one minute and raining and overcast the next.
A variety of trains going through the work limits in Vermilion, OH and boats at both the Port of Sandusky and the Port of Lorain.
Let's take a look at the action.

1. The Radcliffe R. Latimer is in Sandusky at the old PRR docks for a load of coal. 

2. After leaving the port, I caught the 268 sitting at the end of the old PRR trackage up from Bellevue. This trackage was conveyed to the N&W upon their absorption of the Wabash and the Nickel Plate in October 1964. Note that the N&W No Trespassing sign is still guarding the yard. The 268 is an intermodal with lots of mtys up front today. He will make a right hand turn here and head east on the old New York Central Chicago Line and head for Bayonne, NJ. Power is NS 1180 and 4368.

3. The bulk freighter John J. Boland is at the Port of Lorain unloading stone. He will soon be heading down the Black River channel to head back out to Lake Erie. But in so doing the NS will have to open the RU Drawbridge for him. This is the NKP line between Bellevue, OH and Buffalo, NY. NS has a very nice and attractive sign off Broadway here and you can glimpse the Broadway overpass in the background.

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4. A look eastward from the Broadway overpass at RU and nothing coming. At one time the B&O (Cleveland, Lorain & Wheeling) crossed the Nickel Plate here on a diamond.

5. Looks like it will be a while for the Boland to get out, so we go back down the pike to the Chicago Line at Sunnyside Crossing east of Vermilion. A head light shows up down at CP 216, then goes out. There are Conditional Stop Signs here at Sunnyside and a green for an eastbound. This guy will be waiting his turn. We do find out he is the 13Q and will cross to Track 2 at CP 219 ahead to take the connector for the NKP to Bellevue.

6. The eastbound is Train 28V the Baltimore bound intermodal with NS 9751 and 9774. We see him here at Sunnyside and also see the Conditional Stop Signs for westbounds.
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/22 19:22 by train1275.

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7. After the 28V passes, the 13Q comes on with NS 1154, 7536, 5812, 3452 and 6139, a really cool consist but the old timers seem to be along for the ride with the big dogs up front pulling and a mid train DPU NS 8159. 

8. A look at the NS 6169. It sure sounded like he had some flat wheels as he went bumping by, apparently less than condemnable or restricting. This SD40-2 was built in May 1978 as N&W 6169.

9. Since 13Q will take the NKP to Bellevue, the chase is on and we catch him again at Shinrock in a nice bucolic setting. Just behind me the Huron Branch veers off to Huron. This is the short cut connector built by the NKP in 1952 after the acquisition of the W&LE whose Huron Branch is further west. The two Huron lines came together just south of the Huron Yard. The new connector is the only line left now.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/22 18:24 by train1275.

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10. Lets take a look at the power as it passes us here at Shinrock. NS 5812 was built as a GP50 (Southern 7012) in October 1980 and NS rebuilt it into a GP38-3.

11. Another odd ball is the NS 3452, built as Union Pacific 3431 in April 1978 with one of those 116" long noses. 

12. A nice going away look, the Huron Branch turns right about where the NS 6169 is positioned.

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13. Now it is time to return to Lorain as the John J. Boland is moving out. We just missed him going under RU drawbridge. Apparently he had issues with the wind gusts causing manuevering issues and called for a tug out of Cleveland. Here the Great Lakes Towing tug OHIO tows him backwards between RU and the Route 6 lift bridge. The tug is powered by two MTU 8V4000 Tier III diesel engines at 1000 hp each. The Boland is leaving Lorain in ballast. The Boland is powered by two EMD 20-645's, just like in SD45's.

14. Another look at the tug and the Route 6 lift bridge.

15. Finally he is out of the channel and by the light house and the tug is heading back to Cleveland. The Boland's next stop is Calcite, MI

 



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/22 18:31 by train1275.

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One last image for the day, a cell phone capture of Mingo Junction to Detroit coke loads,Train 424, heading into the setting sun at Vermilion.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/22 19:26 by train1275.

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Found shots of a westbound coke train at RU drawbridge taken in June 1976 with the B&O diamonds still in place, and of the old NKP depot still standing (at far right in the UP 2909 pic).

mike woodruff
spokane



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/22 19:46 by swaool.

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Great historical shots to compliment the views from today

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