Eastern Railroad Discussion > Guessed Wrong

I didn't leave work immediately this afternoon. I took Spring Grove since I-75 was stopped going north when I had drove the other way with bus less than hour before. In passing the Interlocking called Coleraine on the CSX I spotted the Conrail Heritage Unit. Almost at the same moment the batteries in my Bearcat scanner died and I discovered I had took both sets of charged batteries out of my camera sack. What to do? Well, I guessed that maybe the Conrail would be on a Dayton District train and if so I may be able to beat up Gano Hill at very least. I went home changed out batteries and did a couple other quick things then got back on the road. I heard NS 171 working Sharonville off the single main which meant nothing was going to go Eastbound including the Conrail unit. I gassed up as my tank was on empty. I then drove around and found 171 but nothing going east. I checked out the HU site and found the Conrail had went up the CSX towards the New Castle District, I had guessed that one totally wrong and had no way of catching it. By that time 171 was ready to pull and the Dispatcher told them something was coming out of Cincinnati on track two so to Lockland I went.
1) NS 171 crossing Wyoming Ave and passing under the signal at MP 252 on the Dayton District. 4:52 pm.
2) NS 179 was being held out while 171 worked Sharonville and followed about twenty minutes later. 5:16 pm.

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Another local railfan was there as well. As we talked we heard a horn. I thought maybe it was the eastbound then realized it was on the I&O Oasis Sub. I drove across the Mill Creek into Reading in time to see the I&O crossing Benson Ave. I caught all the lights on Reading Rd and turned onto North St just as the flashers started. I parked without turning off the car and got shot 3. I went to Evendale Yard section of Sharonville Yard to see the I&O come in. This interchange job had been a night move forever so seeing this early in daylight was a rarity. While waiting 29A came west off the New Castle District then 142 called out a Medium Clear. Looking under the bridge I could see it was going north on the New Castle District. Off I went and barely beat it the north end of Cresentville Siding. For over twenty years this has been a Directional Running section of NS where NS and CSX both go south toward Cincinnati so seeing anything running the opposite direction is pretty cool now. 
3) Indiana and Ohio Railway with a transfer job to Sharonville crossing the intersection of North Street and Reading RD.
4) NS 142 passing the north end of Cresentville Siding which is now know as Sycamore. 

Thank you for looking!

​Jim

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Nice photos and backstory.  The clean NS 4332 leading the 171 train and the 4634 with its fresh paint job on the 142 train make for some nice images.  While not a broad panorma, the IORY shot is interesting as well, for how many times over the years has each of us looked down a street at a grade crossing to see if the lights were flashing, gates (if equipped) were down, or train might be going across? 

I was working the territory well to the north of there and now wonder how long it would've taken 142 to show up.  Wrapping up a week's vacation, I'd originally planned to stay close to home in case the CPA firm that files our taxes needed a last-minute document.  After they said they wouldn't need anything else, I could've gone somewhere, but every place I wanted to go had lousy weather until late Friday afternoon.  

I spent a few hours Saturday afternoon on the NS New Castle District north of Muncie.  On Sunday morning, I attended church, then spent several hours in the afternoon on the New Castle District between New Castle and Eaton, Ohio.  Caught four trains:  the first one was an eastbound west of Richmond that had stacks up front and auto racks at the rear--was that the aforementioned 29A?  It met a westbound empty grain train at Richmond.  After crossing into Ohio, I ran into Bill Haines and his wife at Campbellstown, just as the signal started lining up for another westbound.  According to the heritage units site, that was the 26C with the Conrail heritage engine leading the way.  I asked Bill if he'd known that it was coming, and he replied yes, adding that the CSX Monon heritage unit was also on a CSX train that was switching at New River Junction north of Hamilton.   

With cloudless skies and great light, it would've been fun to have chased the Conrail west back to New Castle, but even with I-70 for a speedy bypass around Richmond, it would've been a struggle, probably no more than one or two more catches.  So I settled for a slower return back to Indianapolis, including waiting out an NS eastbound at Nolands Fork Road west of Richmond with an NS unit leading a former BNSF.     



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 04/15/24 08:52 by inrdjlg.

back earlier in the spring or winter the 8102 was on 28X, i ended up missing him by just minutes as stack cars still rolled by the grade crossing at sinking springs pa, i know your disappointment. Other railfans got spectacular photos and videos on the reading line and lehigh lines as the 8102 progressed east on 28X to new jersey

nick