Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

Give us a run down of what you saw, post pictures if you'd like...any info is welcome.
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AARR
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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It seems to me the engines handled that train easily up the hill
Saturnalia wrote:TRRS 510: 14,000 Tons of CSX Freight vs Saugatuck Hill | Drone Video
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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AARR wrote:It seems to me the engines handled that train easily up the hill
Saturnalia wrote:TRRS 510: 14,000 Tons of CSX Freight vs Saugatuck Hill | Drone Video
Well yeah of course. They routinely shove 18,000 ton coal trains up the hill with 4 AC locomotives, so a 14,000 ton freight should be cake.
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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TRRS 511: Railfanning Michigan's Upper Peninsula | 01 Sep 2017

ESCANABA, MICH - 01 Sep 2017

Summer is coming to a close, on the Friday before Labor Day Weekend, and for the trains of Michigan's Scenic Upper Peninsula, it's just another day moving the raw materials and finished goods of a natural resource wonder.

Come along for a day's railfanning around the central UP, with the LS&I and plenty of CN action on tap. In this 20-minute narrated short, you'll get a good feel for the flavor of railfanning in Michigan's splendid Upper Peninsula.

FOLLOW ALONG WITH THIS MAP! Created to go along with this YouTube Series, you'll find all of the major named locations plotted on Google Maps - Check it out!
https://www.google.com/maps/@46.6694441 ... SmcPRMInTY

TRAIN INFO LISTED IN ORDER OF FIRST APPEARANCE

LS&I 7 Tilden
Consist:
- LS&I 3009 [U30C]
- LS&I 3000 [U30C]
- 60 cars [Loaded Ore Jennies]
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Negaunee, MI, Riihinen Rd xing/EMJ, on 9-1-17 at 09:06 EDT

CN L549 Partridge/LS&I Turn Local
Consist:
- CN 2301 [ES44DC]
- IC 2697 [C44-9W]
- 4 CHs [Empty Bentonite Clay from Tilden Mine]
- 2 Tanks [Empty Sodium Hydroxide from Tilden]
- 28 Gons [Nickel and Copper Concentrate Ore from Eagle Mine]
- 9 cars [Mixed, from L’Anse]
- 3 Centerbeams [From Potlatch KI Sawyer]
- 6 Woodchip Gons [From Potlatch KI Sawyer]
- 52 CARS TOTAL
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Queens SDG, on 9-1-17 at 10:31 EDT
- CN Marquette Range Sub, Little Lake, Little Lake Rd xing/NE Little Lake SDG, at 11:22
- McFarland, Cord Ranch to Market Rd xing/McFarland DD, at 11:36
- Rock, Depot Ln xing, at 11:48
- Brampton, N5 Rd xing, at 12:05
- Escanaba, 30th St xing/ELS Diamond, at 12:33

CN L552 Quinnesec Turn Local
Consist:
- CN 2927 [ES44AC]
- CN 8845 [SD70M-2]
- 42 cars [Mixed]
Location/Time:
- CN Manistique Sub, Hyde, MI, I Rd xing, on 9-1-17 at 13:23 EDT
- Houle, Sabourin Ln Rd xing, at 13:40

CN U745 All-Rail Ore LS&I Turn
Consist:
- IC 2697 [C44-9W]
- CN 2301 [ES44DC]
- 3 CHs [Bentonite Clay Loads]
- 45 Hoppers [Empty Ore Cars for Tilden Mine]
Location/Time:
- CN Marquette Range Sub, Chaison, MI, 21 ½ Rd, on 9-1-17 at 16:04 EDT
- Campbell, M Rd xing, at 16:21
- McFarland, M35 xing, at 16:42
- KI Sawyer, M553 overpass, at 17:05
- Eagle Mills West, M35 xing, at 17:59
- Partridge Yard, from 19:54 to 20:19

LS&I 3 Yard-Hill
Consist:
- CEFX 1005 [AC44CW]
- CEFX 1003 [AC44CW]
- 61 cars [Loaded Ore Jennies]
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Eagle Mills West, M35 xing, on 9-1-17 at 17:49 EDT
Thornapple River Rail Series - YouTube
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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Well done, Saturn. I enjoy your videos.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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TRRS 512: Notch 8 and Sand! CN L552 vs Gravity at a Crawl

Vulcan, Mich - 09 September, 2017

Trains don't appreciate hills very much, but inevitably they must drag their tonnage over them to get over the road. In this edition of the Thornapple River Rail Series, we're with CN L552, the Quinnesec Turn, as they grind uphill at Vulcan, at Milepost 18 on the Iron Mountain Subdivision in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

From Milepost 17, where the line crosses the Sturgeon River, until just beyond MP 18, the railroad climbs a stiff 1.3% grade in the westward direction. For this L552, with only the leading C44-9W online, the 60 cars pose a great challenge to the aging GE product.

Thus, we capture them as they crawl uphill at a walking pace, with only the first unit online. Presumably, the second unit was offline for fuel savings, and could have been brought online if they stalled out. In fact, they would later bring the SD70M-2 online for the haul up the next major hill at Norway.

CN L552 Quinnesec Turn
Consist:
- BCOL 4653 [C44-9W]
- CN 8858 [SD70M-2]
- 11 Loaded Limestone Slurry Tanks
- 15 Loaded Pulpwood Flats
- 44 Mixed *Powers Pickup*
- 60 CARS TOTAL
Location/Time:
- CN Iron Mountain Sub, Vulcan, Spruce St xing, at 16:07 CDT

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to share this video, like and subscribe to Thornapple River Rail Series!

Like TRRS on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/thornappleriverproductions
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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TRRS 513: CN's Escanaba River Bridges | Drone Video

Escanaba, MI - 23 September, 2017

The Escanaba River runs just north of the city by the same name, and thanks to the quirks of history, the CN has come to own both mainlines which cross the river, even resulting in some trains which cross the river on both bridges during their journey.

Thanks to the CN now owning both the old SOO Line and Chicago & Northwestern Mainlines in Escanaba, the U745 will cross over the river twice to leave town, as we'll see in this video.

Since the train departs from Gladstone, we first see them crossing on the old SOO Line structure near the Verso Paper Mill. The train then enters the ex-CNW main at Algoma Jct, circling back north to cross the river again on the new structure on the CNW side. Previously an ancient through-truss design, today's girder bridge is much more capable of handling the heavy loads of the ore trains traditionally found on this line.

Funny enough, after crossing the river for the second time, U745 will pass back over the just-traversed SOO Line at Larch. Certainly, this quirk of geography is just the sort of thing which happens when one railroad ends up owning the trackage of many formerly independent railroads, which were laid over each other back in the late 1800s.

Of course on the way back, the U745 will cross both bridges once again, so the train will cross the river four times, on bridges not more than a mile apart, built for two different railroads, but not run by the same company, the Canadian National.

CN U745 All-Rail Ore Train
Consist:
- CN 2301 [ES44DC]
- IC 2697 [C44-9W]
- 1 Loaded Bentonite Clay CH [For Tilden Mine]
- 4 Loaded NaOH Tanks [For Tilden Mine]
- 46 Empty Ore Hoppers [For Tilden Mine]
Location/Time:
- CN Manistique Sub, Escanaba, MI, Escanaba River Bridge, on 9-23-17 at 16:09 EDT
- CN Marquette Range Sub, Escanaba, MI, Escanaba River Bridge, at 16:37 EDT

Curious about how the railroads are laid out on the map? Check out my Google Map Overlay of Michigan’s Railroads, via this link: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GeSrF ... sp=sharing

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to share this video, like and subscribe to Thornapple River Rail Series!

Like TRRS on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/thornappleriverproductions
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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TRRS 514: LS&I Ore Train Derailment Cleanup - 02 Nov 2017

Negaunee, MI -- 02 November, 2017

Around 6:30pm on the evening of 30 Oct, LS&I's 3 Tilden Job derailed between Eagle Mills Junction and Eagle Mills, with over two dozen ore jennies, loaded with "fines," derailing alongside County Road 480. As a result, many piled up, with some of the debris landing in a small pond.

With the first major snowfall of the season falling the following night, it would be a couple days until cleanup efforts accelerated with the arrival of Hulcher equipment on November 2nd. For the duration of the line closure, LS&I detoured their trains between Eagle Mills Junction and Eagle Mills via West Wye and Diamond Junction, through a pitch-and-catch maneuver, to eliminate the otherwise required reverse moves. For a map of this layout, see the link farther down below.

Back at the wreck, by the 2nd of November, heavy machinery was finally on scene to begin to clear the dozen or so car involved in the mangled pie at the rear of the site.

In this video, we'll start out with the 7 Weighter at Eagle Mills Junction, coming in the "wrong way" from West Wye, instead of directly from Eagle Mills, with the railroad's remaining pair of U30Cs. Then we'll observe the derailment site over a period of about 6 hours, combining ground and drone footage.

The cause of the derailment was suspected to be a broken rail, but I've never gotten confirmation as to the determinate cause. In any event, there were no injuries and no major environmental impacts.

LS&I 7 Weighter
Consist:
- LS&I 3000 [U30C]
- LS&I 3009 [U30C]
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Negaunee, MI, EMJ, on 02Nov2017 at 09:03 EDT
*Comes off line towards West Wye*

LS&I Derailment Cleanup
Consist:
- LS&I Derailment Site Cleanup on 02Nov2017. Includes 7 Tilden helping to rerail jennies that remained upright, and Hulcher working with backhoes to clear the main tangle
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Negaunee, MI, along Co Rd 480, on 02Nov2017 from 09:12 to 14:21 EDT

Curious about how the railroads are laid out on the map? Check out my Google Map Overlay of Michigan’s Railroads, via this link: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GeSrF ... sp=sharing

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to share this video, like and subscribe to Thornapple River Rail Series!
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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Well done, Saturn. Thanks. I like your video's :) .
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

hoborich
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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I'm puzzled why they only used one unit to get up the hill. I'm no expert, but it seems like two units in notch 3 or 4 wouldn't use any more fuel than a single unit working hard in notch 8, and a lot less wear and tear on the locos. Can anyone shed some light on this?
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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hoborich wrote:I'm puzzled why they only used one unit to get up the hill. I'm no expert, but it seems like two units in notch 3 or 4 wouldn't use any more fuel than a single unit working hard in notch 8, and a lot less wear and tear on the locos. Can anyone shed some light on this?
Something about engineer's preference :wink: :lol:
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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TRRS 515: Railfanning Michigan's Upper Peninsula | 08 Oct 2017

Marquette Iron Range -- 08 October, 2017

By the time October rolls around each year, the season change is in full swing, and it isn’t at all unheard of for snow to fly early enough to make even the most seasoned Yooper show a bit of grief!

However on October 8th, 2017, the Iron Range was awash in sun and the temperatures still nowhere near freezing, with the leaves in the midst of their color change.

This is a fall day of action in Marquette’s Iron Range, presented by the Thornapple River Rail Series

Want to follow along on a map? Here's an overlay I created on Google Maps to help you do just that!
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GeSrF ... sp=sharing

TRAIN AND SIGHTING DETAILS:

LS&I 7 Tilden
Consist:
- CEFX 1012 [AC44CW]
- CEFX 1003 [AC44CW]
- (1) 60 Loaded Ore Jennies
- (2) 120 Empty Ore Jennies
Location/Time:
- (1) LS&I Ore Sub, Negaunee, MI, New Buffalo Rd xing/Tracey Mine, on 08 Oct 2017 at 08:55 EDT
- (2) Empire Jct, at 10:02

CN L539 Local
Consist:
- CN 2036 [C40-8]
- CN 8856 [SD70M-2]
- 9 cars [Mixed]
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Negaunee, MI, Riihinen Rd xing/EMJ on 08 Oct 2017 at 10:21 EDT
- Riihinen Rd xing/Eagle Mills Jct at 11:04
- LS&I Republic Sub, Negaunee, Baldwin Ave xing, at 11:17
- Ishpeming, LS&I Euclid Yard, at 11:31

LS&I 3 Tilden
Consist:
- CEFX 1003 [AC44CW]
- CEFX 1012 [AC44CW]
- 4 CHs [Bentonite Clay for the Tilden Mine]
- 1 Tank [Sodium Hydroxide for Tilden Mine]
Location/Time:
- LS&I Ore Sub, Negaunee, MI, Riihinen Rd xing/EMJ on 08 Oct 2017 at 15:52 EDT

LS&I 3 Yard-Hill
Consist:
- CEFX 1015 [AC44CW]
- CEFX 1005 [AC44CW]
- 121 cars [Loaded Ore Jennies]
Location/Time:
- Downbound LS&I Ore Sub, Forestville, MI, at Three Lakes, on 08 Oct 2017 at 16:35 EDT
- Upbound at Three Lakes, at 17:20
- Eagle Mills East/Morgan Trestle, at 17:57
- Downbound at Neejee Rd xing, at 19:02

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to share this video, like and subscribe to Thornapple River Rail Series!
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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TRRS 516: Escanaba & Lake Superior RR - Mass City to Sidnaw

Mass City, MICH - 22 Oct 2017

In the exceedingly rural western quarter of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, the rails of the Escanaba and Lake Superior Railroad pierce the woodlands, once reaching towards Lake Superior, now ending just past Mass City.

With few customers in these rural parts, the ELS uses much of their trackage north of Channing for railcar storage, which accounts for a significant portion of their overall business. The tracks north and east of Channing, east of Sidnaw, and west of Mass City often have hundreds of under-utilized cars sitting around.

On this day in October 2017, a crew was up in Mass City working the storage cut, kicking out over two dozen cars due to be returned to service or scrapped. After they completed this work, they took off for Channing, but would only make Sidnaw due to Hours of Service.

So come along for this chase through many scenes rarely captured owing to the rural nature of the line and infrequency of train traffic.

Consist:
- ELS 501 [SD40-2]
- ILSX 1344 [SD40-2]
- 28 cars [Mixed, Pulled from Storage]
Location/Time:
- Mass City, MI, from 15:45 to 16:30 EDT
- Wainola, Mud Creek Rd xing, at 16:56
- Rousseau, Penegor Rd xing, at 17:04
- Frost, Co Rd FF16 xing, at 17:33
- Sidnaw, M28 xing, from 18:04 to 18:14

Curious about how the railroads are laid out on the map? Check out my Google Map Overlay of Michigan’s Railroads, via this link: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GeSrF ... sp=sharing

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to share this video, like and subscribe to Thornapple River Rail Series!
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

Unread post by hoborich »

I didn't see anyone protecting that shove at the beginning of the video. Do they just use a groundman instead of a conductor?
"Ask your doctor if medical advice from a TV commercial is right for you".

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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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hoborich wrote:I didn't see anyone protecting that shove at the beginning of the video. Do they just use a groundman instead of a conductor?
He was out of frame protecting the crossing.
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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Thanks.
"Ask your doctor if medical advice from a TV commercial is right for you".

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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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Saturnalia wrote:TRRS 509: Railfanning Rochelle, IL from the Sky

Rochelle, IL - June 24 & 25, 2017

Rochelle is a classic Midwestern railroad town, with the Union Pacific's CNW Mainline crossing the rails of BNSF's Northern Transcon.

With a railroad park and two webcams on site, the diamonds are a hotbed of railfanning activity. But in this video, we take to the skies aboard the TRRS Drone to catch several trains as they move through town.

Filmed on 24 and 25 June 2017.

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to share this video, like and subscribe to Thornapple River Rail Series!

Like TRRS on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/thornappleriverproductions

Videography Equipment:
-Primary: Sony FDR-AX53 4K Camcorder
-Secondary: Sony HDR-PJ790V HD Camcorder
-Aerial Platform: DJI Phantom 3 Advanced Drone
-Edited with: Cyberlink PowerDirector 13

Created by and Copyright 2017 by Alex Christmas, as the Thornapple River Rail Series, All Rights Reserved
Listened to most of it, but I don't hear any time I was saying "railroadfan.com" on your audio feed portion :P
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Re: Thornapple River Rail Series - Episode 500 & Beyond

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~Z~ wrote: Listened to most of it, but I don't hear any time I was saying "railroadfan.com" on your audio feed portion :P
:lol:

A short cut-out, with a nearby bit pasted in over the hole with a fade-in and fade-out took care of it. :wink:
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