Railroad fans?

[hyena429]

Got to go up and check out the Northern Pacific Museum last week in Toppenish,Wa... What a nice place and a great bunch of folks...They had so much cool stuff to see, and i really went there to see the S-4 ten wheeler they are restoring to run the rails again..I asked the gal working if i could see the S-4, and she said " I'm sorry but the shop guy is not in today yet..I said no big deal and thanks anyways, so we checked everything out and we left the station to go get some food and leave.. While eating, this guy walks in and says, you all the folks wanting to see the S-4? and i said, yup!! He said, come on over to the shop and check her out, go to the shop entrance, i left it open for you guys..So we go in and check out the awesome hard work they doing, and bullcrapped about old trains for hours and hours with the shop manager, he even gave us some cold soda's out of a old water style cooling coke machine..What a awesome time!! if ever in the area, must see for rail fans..Like a place stuck in time. Mite even join up. " need to get my stang going so i can park it out front of the station" I am boggled they took the time to chase me down at the restraunt so i could see it, and happy they did , I donated and will be back.

The S-4 going to be restored and run around the station till everything seems fine, then they said they hope to make runs even up stampede pass with her, made in 1902, i have never seen a S-4 run" only seen them behind fences rusting"

 

[rvrtrash]

Thanks for the tip. I'll have to check it out when I'm in the area sometime. My father-in-law was an engineer for Great Northern, which became part of Burlington Northern, and my son is an engineer for Burlington Northern.

Steve

 

[CZ-75]

Wow! Very cool!!!!!

That's on my bucket list now. Thanks for posting that!

 

[Jim and Jutta]

Very cool, thanks for passing it on. Most train stations appear to have this "permanence" about them with the liberal use of stone, brick and concrete. We're planning a wine tasting weekend in that area to stock up on the local wines, I'll put the Museum on our stop list.

 

[jbojo]

Cool pics, I'll have to make a trip there.

 

[coilwire]

thirty-six years with the Burlington Northern. Traveling machinest working on locomotive in a three state area

Jim

 

[Don65Stang]

I love old steam locomotives. Here's the link for the above engine restoration:

http://www.nprymuseum.org/NP%201364.htm

We have a 4-8-2 Mountain on display in Mobile but sadly it is rusting away in one of our parks.

 

[Mister 4x4]

Please tell me we drove by this when you were here, Don. Fort Concho was only like a block away:

http://railwaymuseumsanangelo.homestead.com/

 

[Boss1Ray]

That is cool. Thanks for posting.

I worked as a switchman, brakeman, conductor and yard hostler pilot for the Burlington Northern in OK, TX, NE, SD and WY. Interesting job. Got to work the famed "Crawford Hill" in NE Nebraska quite a few times. Ran a ton of low-sulfur coal trains through there.

Just before I left that career they were merging with Santa Fe Railroad to become what is now BNSF.

Ray

 

[luxstang]

I'm not really a railroad fan but here's a small piece of what I work with for a living.




Dang, the pic is upside down. Stupid phone.

Anyway, you get the idea.

 

[midlife]

I'm not really a railroad fan but here's a small piece of what I work with for a living.




Dang, the pic is upside down. Stupid phone.

Anyway, you get the idea.

I thought you were a MB mechanic?

 

[Boss1Ray]

Hey Mike - flipped it for ya.



Ray

 

[MotoArts]

I was born a little bit late to fully enjoy what the Pittsburgh/Western PA area once had in the way of rail transportation. I grew up right next to the Conemaugh line of the PRR/Conrail on the Allegheny River, so I couldn't really escape it if I tried. Our coal and steel heritage lent itself to rails everywhere around here. Now, I can only see the remnants of what once was. One of the old GPS units that we had at work showed all of the short lines that hauled coal from the tiniest of mines, and lemme tell ya there were a lot of them.

Assembling in my mind how this place used to function, and all of the mechanical monsters that used to rule it, has always been interesting to me.

Most of the short lines have been converted (or are in the process) into Rails-to Trails bike paths.

Kind of depressing in a way, knowing that I won't ever get a shot at witnessing history first hand.

 

[hyena429]

I will have to post some more pics

Ya i remember you saying something about that Mike..lol

 

[jeremycfr]

My first job out of college was working for a fraternity. Our HQ was an old train station. It was a cool place to have your first office.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[luxstang]

I thought you were a MB mechanic?

Oh, wow, thanks but I would ruin their reputation within 2 days so you could buy them for half a slice of bread.

Hey Mike - flipped it for ya.

Ray

Thanks Ray!!

 

[hyena429]

My first job out of college was working for a fraternity. Our HQ was an old train station. It was a cool place to have your first office

Awesome old station


Was at the old Pasco round house and old computerized Hump Yard, checking out some modern and old power, neat too see the old Burlington Northerns still working the yards and many more.

Back when my friend worked there, they still used the round house table, i was told by a BNSF employee that he turns the motors in it once and a while, but it needs to be fixed before it is full service again, i was quite amazing i could still see all the tracks where the steam trains use to park in the round house, I asked them to tell BNSF to rebuild the round house and fill it full fo steamers, He joked and said.." I am on it!! lol

 

[Machman]

I love old trains and thank you for posting the pics and letting us know how nice the guys were over there.

I remember when I was young going to a friends house and setting up layouts of steam engines and watching them go and dreaming of running them.

then when older a bunch of us would meet after high school on a friday and take our motorcycles and bring supplys and camp near the railroad for the weekend and barbecue and watch the trains go by

One of the group became an engineer , worked in Chicago , Louisiana , then Texas

One of my favorite engines was the Streamlined Hudson and The Big Boy which I guess was the biggest steamer produced , any train guys on the forum know if either of these still exist?

 

[hyena429]

One of my favorite engines was the Streamlined Hudson and The Big Boy which I guess was the biggest steamer produced , any train guys on the forum know if either of these still exist?

The streamlined and probably fastest steamer ever made, the 611 is back on the rail and made UP break out the big guns!!

here is the big boy heading home to be restored again, never did i think a big boy would run again on the rails, i'm sure glad i was wrong!! Amazing time for old steam in USA right now.