They're on the way to Shenandoah now.
On the move - just passing through Waynesboro as of 9pm EST. My guess is They’ll probably make Harrisburg around 4am at this rate.
They should have brought Robert DeNiro and Charles Grodin for this midnight run!
They passed right through Hagerstown or Shenandoah?
Wrong Waynesboro - I meant the one in Virginia. As of right now (9:50pm) they are nearing the Miller Coors Brewery and Siding at Elkton, VA - about 10 miles south of Shenandoah yard
611 is heading to Strasburg already? What, is it going to be there a month before the events?
Per field reports, crew called for 8 AM in Shenandoah. Let's see how far the make it today.
They have a crew as of 9am. I would imagine they will follow 202 up the valley.
I guess it turned out to be a good thing that it was towed.
As of 10:30am est they’re following the 202 and are at Vaughn (north of Luray, VA).
Stopped at Riverton Junction as of 12:00pm est
How do I find a map of the predicted route?
Heres my map of the Lurgan branch which she will be coming up from after she hits the Hagerstown Division.
Thanks NS Fan. I was hoping it would be coming right up the Susquehanna but no such luck. Depending on the timing I might be able to catch her from the Amtrak platform in Elizabethtown. My mom lives in a retirement community adjacent to the station. I could use that for a nice excuse to visit
Robert K posted:611 is heading to Strasburg already? What, is it going to be there a month before the events?
I think she is due for a boiler inspection that will be conducted at the Strasburg shop.
jhz563 posted:Robert K posted:611 is heading to Strasburg already? What, is it going to be there a month before the events?
I think she is due for a boiler inspection that will be conducted at the Strasburg shop.
If I remember reading correctly, 611 may be due for her FRA annual inspection, which includes a boiler wash, the hydrostatic test of the boiler at 125% of her working pressure, i.e. 375 psi., among other important things.
JHZ563,
This looks to be primarily an NS move so I wouldn't expect 611 to take any Amtrak lines until it gets to Lancaster (or before it has to). A bunch of sites have a bunch of opinions on its routing. If it goes to Enola like it was supposed to on 08-21-19, then it might head south through New Cumberland on the Port Road and cross the Shocks Mill bridge, go to Columbia and take the Columbia Secondary through Mountville into Dillerville Yard. I don't think it can make a turn off the old Reading RR bridge north of I-83 and get onto the Royalton Branch (which would lead to Amtrak's Keystone Line). Waiting for it at the E-town passenger station would be just too easy.
Hope this helps.
I feel like many questions being asked here could easily be answered if some folks just read what was posted above. If you are going to Elizabethtown then you are only going to see a few Keystone trains.
As for the move - she is northbound out of Berryville (Audrey) and headed for Shenandoah Junction as of 2:50pm.
Interesting side note, When she gets to Shepardstown she will pass within a few hundred feet of O. Winston Link’s gravesite.
M J Breen posted:I feel like many questions being asked here could easily be answered if some folks just read what was posted above. If you are going to Elizabethtown then you are only going to see a few Keystone trains.
As for the move - she is northbound out of Berryville (Audrey) and headed for Shenandoah Junction as of 2:50pm.
I appreciate your feedback, but understand most of the location names mean nothing to me, which is why I was asking about a map. The map link posted earlier today wasn’t super specific, but it did call out Elizabethtown as a through point, which makes some sense to me, since that track leads to the interchange at Strasburg. I have never been one to chase trains or sit trackside, but this seems like a unique opportunity. I have ridden Amtrak from Lancaster to Harrisburg many times in days gone by, and I remember freight often sharing the same rails.
I hope someone gets a few snaps along the way. I doubt it will me, but I wouldn’t mind if it was!
Just went through Greencastle headed north
Just went through Greencastle, PA.
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Thanks Larry! I thought it was going to be towed cold - what a cool surprise!
Signed my family up for a shop tour and an excursion behind the 611 in the presidents car (might as well go in style for a change!); can't wait!
My daughter says "I loved the video!!"
jhz563 posted:Thanks Larry! I thought it was going to be towed cold - what a cool surprise!
They CANNOT pull the locomotive cold as it would damage it. There needs to be something to run the lubricators and such. Without it, it would cause unnecessary wear on the valve gear/running gear. Also, how else would they blow that magnificent whistle at every crossing? 😉
Entering Harrisburg from the Lurgan Branch as of 9pm (former Reading Railroad), should be crossing the Susquehanna shortly.
That’s great timing! They going to hide her behind the shops?
Sitting at Front Street waiting for 38G and a local to move. I believe it is south front street Lemoyne, but im not sure
On the move again - turned north at CP Capital (geographically speaking), is going through CP Harris now and heading for Rockville Viaduct to go Enola yard
Crossing Rockville Viaduct as of 11:15pm est.
Route tomorrow will be NS port road south from Enola to Columbia, Dillerville secondary from Columbia to Lancaster, Amtrak from east side of Lancaster station to Paradise interchange.
If you knew when it was leaving, it looks to me like the general area of the Harrisburg air port would be a great place to catch it under the wires. Looks like both lines east of Harrisburg go past the airport together before diverging.
NS is missing some serious free publicity by not having the local news do a nice pr photo op on the 611 before rolling through to Strasburg.
The line past Harrisburg airport is the Amtrak Keystone line and the NS Royalton Branch, neither of which are accessible from Enola yard without backtracking through Harrisburg.
They will go south from Enola yard on the Port Road line, which is the west side of the river. They will cross the river at the Shock Mills viaduct and that will put them on the east side of the river heading into Columbia, Pa.
At Columbia they’ll diverge from the Port Road at CP Cola and take the Dillerville secondary to Dillerville/Lewis Yard. From there they’ll take the tail track through Lancaster station at CP Cork and get on Amtrak at the east side of the Lancaster Station. Amtrak from there to the interchange at Paradise, PA
I don’t have a confirmed on duty time out of Enola or a crew called yet. It’s possible they may use the H19 to get from Enola to Dillerville, and a local out of Dillerville to get them to Paradise since the lead engine will have to be can signal and ACSES equipped to run on amtrak - which all the engines based out of Dillerville yard are equipped with.
M J Breen posted:The line past Harrisburg airport is the Amtrak Keystone line and the NS Royalton Branch, neither of which are accessible from Enola yard without backtracking through Harrisburg.
They will go south from Enola yard on the Port Road line, which is the west side of the river. They will cross the river at the Shock Mills viaduct and that will put them on the east side of the river heading into Columbia, Pa.
At Columbia they’ll diverge from the Port Road at CP Cola and take the Dillerville secondary to Dillerville/Lewis Yard. From there they’ll take the tail track through Lancaster station at CP Cork and get on Amtrak at the east side of the Lancaster Station. Amtrak from there to the interchange at Paradise, PA
I don’t have a confirmed on duty time out of Enola or a crew called yet. It’s possible they may use the H19 to get from Enola to Dillerville, and a local out of Dillerville to get them to Paradise since the lead engine will have to be can signal and ACSES equipped to run on amtrak - which all the engines based out of Dillerville yard are equipped with.
If I understand you correctly - big if given my previous assumptions - that means they will have to pass through Goldsboro, York Haven, and pass Wago Junction. Please tell me if that is correct, because if so it is going to roll right past me!
That is correct - the port road south of Enola goes through Goldsboro and York Haven. I believe 611 will move as part of the H19 which is the local between Enola and Dillerville. Called for 11am as of right now.
M J Breen posted:That is correct - the port road south of Enola goes through Goldsboro and York Haven. I believe 611 will move as part of the H19 which is the local between Enola and Dillerville. Called for 11am as of right now.
Anyway to tell if they have left the yard yet?
Yep they are on the move now - just left a little bit ago, around 2pm. They are between Enola yard and Shocks Mills Viaduct. They swapped engines to ACSES equipped engines to get on Amtrak. Photo from my friend Bruce posted with permission:
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I love that pic. Good to see that smoke coming out. Question about the inspection, how long does that typically take assuming everything is A-Okay with 611 from top to bottom?
Great photo M.J. Breen! So 611 is fired up during the move. I was thinking that the 611 was going to be pulled dead in tow.
She looked good in that video above even behind that INFERNAL combustion loco! And at 5000 HP, I imagine she was pushing that diesel! LOL!
Dave NYC Hudson PRR K4 posted:Question about the inspection, how long does that typically take assuming everything is A-Okay with 611 from top to bottom?
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Hours?
expected in Lancaster between 4 and 5 pm per overheard radio conversation
