I had the privilege of riding the final steam trip on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad this year, pulled by the Age of Steam Roundhouse (Central Ohio) 1293. This locomotive puts on a great show, and the crew is all very friendly. As usual I took my camera along...
Here we see the other Canadian locomotive on the north end of our train. She is about to pull into Akron's Northside Station (busiest passenger station in Ohio!) to board passengers now that the regular scenic has cleared north-bound. The 4241 is a 1966 product of MLW (ALCO).
The photo run-by's were both performed at Indigo Lake. Another packed photo line 20' from the track and parallel to it sent me jogging for the hill on the far side of the lake. I think it paid off.
After the first run-by I came down the hill and shot 4241 and it's reflection in Indigo Lake before the train pulled north again to re-board the passengers (or so I thought).
I was pleasantly surprised when the train just kept backing up for a second run-by. The photo line was packed, so instead of interrupting anyone's shot I just dropped my tripod behind them. Sadly the little track-side hill I've used numerous times to grab videos at Indigo at the south end of the photo line was "closed" by the CVSR personnel on site - not sure why.
Heading south again towards Akron, this is a shot of the beaver pond near Ira Rd. That's Riverside Rd. in front of us.
The Goodyear Blimp was hanging around downtown Akron today. This was the best shot I could muster through the coach window as we pulled south near Memorial Parkway.
Once off the train in Akron again there was plenty of time to go hang out around the locomotive and soak it all in. Steam in this day and age is still a relatively rare thing, and I'm happy to see the CVSR continues to bring some of the heavy hitters to their railroad. This was the 1293's first visit since 2009 - the FWRHS's NKP 765 has had the honors the last two years.
Here our own Tim Botti and fellow AOSR crew member Scott Czigans shoot the rods while a crowd gathers to peer into the past of railroading.
There were quite a few people who stuck around to admire the 1293.
Westinghouse Air Brake, with a service date of 9-89. Amazing that such a small device is the heart of the system that stops the train which takes a whole locomotive to get moving.
AOSR's CMO Tim Sposato oils around the engineer's side after a great trip through the valley.
One of six, freshly greased.
Shot of the builder's and superheater plates, engineer's side.
A lot of polished trim on her face.
Tim Botti and Scot Czigans help fan the spark in the next generation. From what I overheard these two had never seen a steam locomotive before, had happened upon it now knowing it was going to be there, and were mesmerized.
Tim working to fill the mechanical lubricator on the engineer's side.
Tim's newest friend approached to let him know it was "leaking gas!", which of course ended up just being water.
As promised last time, here's a couple pics of the AOSR logo on the nose of the 1800. I like it a lot!
One parting shot from Furnace St. after the train had again pulled south to clear the regular Scenic at Northside Station. It was a great month, and I hope that I get a chance to see the AOSR crew and the 1293 again soon. Thanks to all involved!
