January 2006 in SEMO

This old MP Continuous Welded Rail Train was parked on Dexter Siding today. It hauls 1/4 of a mile sections of flexible rail. It was headed up by an increasingly rare SD40-2, and a fairly rare CSX Unit.

This is UP Train AASEW 03. This happens to be my first try at a night shot of a freight. It is parked on Bernie Siding. This was about 8 P.M., so it was pitch black. There are literally NO lights to speak of around where the train was sitting, I had dad shine the van headlights on it, and I tried this 16 second exposure, turned out pretty good, I thought. Dad and I were headed back from grocery shopping in Dexter when we noticed it parked here. I wanted to try out a night shot, dad wanted to go on home since we had ice cream, but this didn't take too long and the ice cream is safe and sound! It made www.railpictures.net, even with that pole! I still don't know what was on the 4th car.

They've brought the same continuous welded rail train from the 1st back south, but they didn't do it without sticking this NASTY SD70M on the front end. It hauls 1/4 of a mile sections of flexible rail. This SD70M also piloted the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus Train through here back on November 21, 2005.

Well whaddayaknow? They do have them in fact labeled "CW44-9".

I caught an unpatched Cotton Belt! There were only 28 left at the time. I saw it show up in an Internet Trace for New Madrid, I knew it had to have been on the local, I traced it for myself and it was IN MALDEN. As soon as dad got home from a ballgame we hightailed it down to the yard for this night shot. This might be the catch of the month!

Last night I caught a Cotton Belt unit, today the last Geep ever built. This is the last domestic GP Unit that rolled out of EMD, still unpatched and going strong. It came in with a patched sister engine on UP Train LSI55 07 and is seen rolling into the yard.

Backing up with a speed lettered sister.

The last GP unit ever built for domestic use sits in the yard behind the yard office coupled to a Speed Lettered, patched sister. Sitting in the late afternoon sun it sure made one nice figure. SP Units were down to 116 at the time of the photo.

With a little bit of snow on the ground, a great looking consist takes the Centralia Local north with the a friendly crew staying warm i` the cab.

In a steady drizzle, we see a hush fall over the Hoxie Sub. at CP Y166 Henderson as the Butler County Courthouse looms in the distance. Derailment cleanup is taking place on the other side of the yard. The signal is showing a Diverging Advance!Approach aspect (red over flashing yellow).

As this$manifest pulled in this morning around 4 A.M., an engine split a switch and derailed 2 of it's 3 locomotives and the first 2 cars, both of them tank cars, the rail rolled over under the derailed cars and engines. Hulcher was called in, I saw their lights on the tracks and their |rucks in the yard when we came over the viaduct, I knew it couldn't be good. Here, at 6:33 P.M., about 14 hours after it happened, cleanup is almost complete. One sideboom has just begun lifting the tank car hauling "a volatile liquid" according to Union Pacific Railroad Special Agent Stexe Ray. The other sideboom is moving down the tracks to assist. The blurred headlights down the road are UP Managers in a Dodge Truck. They have just rerailed both locomotives.

I came to town ESPECIALLY for this uoit, even in a steady drizzle, an ex-CNW in nearly full CNW paint, now belonging to LTEX. It showed up in an Internet Trace, I just had to come get a night shot, it waz really dark here, this is just south of CP Y166. I heard a squeaking sound and saw exhaust, imagine my surprise when I found a derailment on the other side of the yard!

Looking south towards the town of Campbell from MP 63 on the UP Jonesboro Sub. This is former Cotton Belt SSW Territory, this is one view of the railroad that hasn't really changed all that much since the rails were first laid so many years ago.

After giving the crew a couple Steak 'N Shake Milkshakes, they let me into the cab of the locomotive where I took a couple shots from the "beak" of the Texas Eagle.

Here's the assistant engineer's work station. These babies have cruise control, XM Satellite Radio, cup holders, cab signals, big seats...this units are decked out!

The local, led by the unpatched SP came back as a light engine movement.

This SD60 left town long hood forward headed out the Hoxie Sub. as a light engine movement.

The rear of an intermodal heads towards Dexter while a ballast train behind the 9365 waits for a new crew. SP 9794 is now waiting for a signal to take UP Train LSV52 21 into the yard.

As the sun is setting today, the sun is setting on this portion of the New Madrid Sub.

This was actually the first train I had ever seen go across this highway, it was also the last.

I set up behind Rhodes 101 Stop for a shot of UP Train CAENA 25 before heading north about a quarter mile to eat chinese food. This date would have been my grandparents' 54th wedding anniversary, but my grandma passed away last February, so we were thinking of her on this day too. This ended up being the last AECI-New Madrid Train that I would photograph in Malden before the new interchange track in Lilbourn was placed in service.

Engineer "Fast Faye" rockets a train south with CSX Power on the front end and a long consist.

The train arrived at 3:12 A.M., 2 hours and 10 minutes late. The crew had Engineer Steve on it and the assistant engineer I know. When they left he tossed me a couple sets of ear plugs for the Steak 'N Shake Milkshakes I gave them. The South and Northbound Texas Eagles met in the depot here tonight!

Looking at the former Mo-Pac Dwarf Signals change as the the locomotive and first two cars pass.

Naturally, it's cloudy the day this shows up. Here the train was waiting for a new crew, tied down in Junland Siding.

Joe Falvey and I went to examine what they're doing to the bridge. They're adding superstructure to the bridge over Black River, it is 103 years old this year! AMERICAN BRIDGE CO - OF NEW YORK - U.S.A. 1903 is what the plate reads.