98¢ - those were the days. If you were going to attempt to make a powered model, maybe one of the coreless motors that Kato or Bachmann are using in a few of their locos would fit. That and perhaps some small diameter wheels from a steam loco pilot truck (or from Z scale) for the railroad guide wheels at each end of the vehicle.
50 years ago, just a month after BN and a year before Amtrak, the North Coast Limited makes its station stop at Butte MT.
Killer shot! The most desirable ones though, are about 10 miles east high on Homestake Pass. I need to railfan that line someday. I just scraped the surface in 2009 when my best friend and I camped up in the national forest during a 5-day, 1000 mile whirlwind tour of MT railroads past and present. The summit siding in 2009: And from the interstate (thru the windows), a trestle at MP 63:
From March 1987, a Chattahoochee Industrial freight makes its way at Cedar Springs, GA behind RS-1s with what looks like an oversize load of parts for a woodyard portal crane. The railroad was built by Georgia Pacific to serve their nearby paper mill. It's since been sold to Genesee & Wyoming.
June 10, 2010 in Rosenberg. A warbonnet with an orange air conditioner (traded out from a pumpkin) leading some foreign units from back east.
Be careful, should you ever be back there again. The owners have tightened up on trespassers, due to vandalism and theft. Too many fools out there, who believe any unused rails are "abandoned" and open to whatever is desired.
Back in 2009, Amtrak released a feasibility study regarding the possible return of service to the North Coast Hiawatha route that had ended in 1979. It was noted that some of the trackage east of Butte was out of service, so the proposed new routing would go via Helena. Also, it was projected that, among other factors, the needed infrastructure improvements could take up to five years to implement. http://nrvrc.org/nrvpassengerrailst...ational/Amtrak_North_Coast_Hiawatha_Study.pdf
Much like some views of the Milwaukee Road's Rocky Mountains crossing, you can see why the NP's NCL route was very attractive to riders!
It's July 22nd 1989 and the NRHS National is underway in Asheville, NC. Morning finds N&W 1218 and NKP 587 being readied for the day's events.
The 1218 and 587 are seen again in Asheville during the NRHS Convention. The bottom slide was taken in May of 1994 when 611 came to call on Asheville. Having come up via the Loops through seven tunnels, she's covered in authentic Blue Ridge railroading soot.
