A fast freight fans the flames on a ridge above the Wharncliffe signal. Burning the beautiful mountains of the coalfields of Appalachia has been a long tradition to many folks.
Complete with NS brakestick and American flag, coal drag 81W bursts out of Glen Alum tunnel and runs along the slide fence.
Crawling up the Briar Mountain Branch with mtys for the coal loadout, mine run U20 and crew throw up a friendly wave. As shown, the branch cuts off amongst cliffs and is twisty throughout.
Sporting the odd symbol 77A, a coal drag runs west by the oddly named Ought-One. Not many have visited Ought-One, which stands for one tenth of a mile of the Buchanan Branch which wyes off behind ... (more)
Time for a siesta. With Mother Natures air conditioner running and all three engines idling for hours, pusher set J52 sits on the Buchanan Branch wye awaiting a coal drag later in the evening.
On the steep Jacobs Fork of the Dry Fork of the Pocahontas Division, mine run U34 has just begun loading at Brooks Run. Traffic has increased on the Jacobs Fork with two loadouts operating now.
The face of Glen Alum tunnel will soon change as the Heartland Corridor project gets underway, if it ever does. Redbuds cling to the face as a coal drag roars out at dusk.
The nearly full moon glows behind a set of cantilever CPLs along the Tug Fork river. Better shoot all you can as these are quickly disappearing from Vulcan to Panther.
A string of Top Gons exits the Glen Alum tunnel on the way to a mine run up one of the many branches along this remote section. The face of the tunnel will soon be changing with the coming of the ... (more)
With loaded coal cars off the Delorme trailing behind in the steep elevated curve, minerun U14 prepares to get underway again. Spring has just started to touch the narrow Tug Fork valley on this l... (more)
A pusher set runs west toward Williamson, having left Auville Yard earlier in the day. With all the branches in the vicinity one sees light pusher sets plying the rails throughout the day.
R.J. Cormans tunnel motor does switching work in the last rays of sunlight for Georgia Pacifics Mt. Hope plant.
Former SP unit and tunnel motor 8569, now doing work for R.J. Corman on the Loup Creek branch, is tied down at Mt. Hope. Note the steepness of the company spur.
Mine run U35 rolls toward Auville Yard down the Dry Fork Branch on a hot and humid day. Space is limited along this rugged and remote stretch of the Pokey with an office and storage track, along w... (more)
With the evening sun quickly slipping away in the Tug Fork Valley, a unit coal train pokes its head out of the Glen Alum tunnel along this remote and rugged section of the Pokey.
The Heartland Corridor project has begun on the Pokey, with work steadily progressing on Antler #2. As shown, the roof is being raised for doublestack containers soon to ply the iron of the Pokey,... (more)
Raise your hand if you've ever been to Mohegan, West Virginia. Not exactly an easy place to get to, mty coal drag 762 flies thru the massive iron trusses at Mohegan, enroute to a minerun up a bran... (more)
The daily late evening ritual of building a minerun with mtys along the Buchanan siding at Devon as the last golden rays of sunlight are leaving the Tug Fork valley. This brakeman offered asst. af... (more)
With piles of debris from the roof clearance project piled up high outside, a very late 18M according to my guide roars out of Antler #2 tunnel enroute to the Elkhorn Grade. Much of the debris app... (more)
Mine run S0W heads toward Bens Creek on the main, while the crew of 81W does a rollby check. The minerun would later become U26, captured by another photog who left the CWC in time to head to Bens... (more)
An eastbound grain train passes under the old signals at Wharncliffe, while mtys destined for Bens Creek hold the center siding down. These old signals will probably be the next to be replaced aft... (more)
Bursting out of the west portal of Glen Alum tunnel, NS 9759 heads west to Williamson with mtys on the Pokey.
Situated at the spot where WV, KY, and VA come together, an eastbound BNSF powered fast freight runs by the old Wharncliffe depot concrete dock at dusk. The east leg of the Gilbert Branch is visib... (more)
Leaning into the curve at the remote village of Mohegan, pusher set J51 heads east to Farm to assist a coal drag up the Elkhorn Grade. This bridge will also undergo changes due to the Heartland Co... (more)
Norfolk Southern coal hoppers head west toward Williamson at dusk, with the old signals above standing guard. The signals will soon fall as many have along this rugged and remote stretch of the Po... (more)
Milepost on the Dry Fork freshly painted, with an old Southern gondola used for scrap metal and ties rusting away on a siding. Just to the north is Bandy Tunnel and then beginning of a long downhi... (more)
Pushers shoving hard on the rear as a coal drag crosses Trace Branch on the Dry Fork of the Pocahontas on a rainy, foggy day. The head end is near the Dry Fork #3 tunnel at Bandy.
SD50 6522, one of only twenty on the NS roster, makes a backup move into Norton Yard on the east end on this snowy cold morning.
A brandnew SD70M-2 backs up to the wye, preparing to pick up a caboose and then make a mine run up the Dixiana Branch out of Norton Yard on this icy cold Appalachian morning.
NS unit train with a crisp, freshly painted lead engine idles at Cane Patch Mining waits for the clear before hitting the Clinch Valley. This was the third crew to board the train since loading tw... (more)
