North Carolina, 2009-2011

In the west end of the Asheville, NC, NS yard, a pair of GP38-2s build a train for Canton, NC, while a track inspector runs the eastbound main.

A pair of westbound GPs blast through Sylva at 10 mph while my wife Jann watches. They are just a few hundred feet from the Southern Concrete Products plant where they will couple to empty sand hoppers and return to Canton, NC. Just beyond the SCM plant is the interchange for the Great Smokey Mountain Railroad.

NS eastbound train 134 roars through Marshall, NC, on an otherwise quiet and sunny Sunday morning.

NS eastbound grain train 40A crosses the French Broad River at Ivy, 2 1/2 miles east of Marshall

Dec 20, 2009: Eastbound empty wood chip train entering Biltmore.

Eastbound NS train 134 crosses Stoner Road just after leaving the Asheville yard

Great Smokey Mountains Railroad 1755 has just dropped 3 empty grain cars from the P & R Farms feed mill in Andrews, NC, at the interchange point with the NS Railroad. The locomotive is now on the main track and facing towards the home shops in Dillsboro. The conductor is getting ready to re-align the crossover switch on the siding.

Great Smoky Mountains Railroad 777 backs into the NS/GSMR interchange point next to Harold Street at the Jackson Paper Products plant. The empty grain hopper has come from the P & R Farms feed mill in Andrews, NC, a distance of 50 miles. The feed mill, which supplies an egg producer, is the only freight customer on the GSMR, which is known mostly as a tourist railroad.

The setting sun is below the mountains behind an eastbound empty wood chip train which has just finished descending the loops below Ridgecrest, NC, on the Norfolk Southern "S" line.

Westbound local P-59 enters Balsam and stops for i`spection before starting down the grade to Sylva

The conductor walks down the left side of train P-59 and checks the air hose connections before starting down the grade to Balsam. He will walk up the right side on his way back to the locomotive.

After the conductor's inspection, NS local P-59 starts down the Balsam grade to Sylva

Local P-59 crosses over Dark Ridge Road while going down the Balsam grade to Sylva

Westbound local P-59rolls through the Willets community on its way to Sylva.

NS local P-59 is slowing down as it enters the east side of Sylva. About 500 feet away is a LPG distribution center where the train's 5 LPG tank cars will be dropped and the empty tank cars picked up. 4 boxcars on the train will be taken another mile to the Jackson Paper Products plant in Sylva, where other box cars will be picked up for the return trip to the NS yard in Canton, N.C.

Norfolk Southern local PA-01, with Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad #2365 as power, switches plastic pellet hoppers at the Silverline Plastics'pipe plant on a rainy day

BNSF 4761 leads Norfolk Southern westbound train 135 with 90 cars enters Biltmore just before pulling into the Asheville yard.

Yard switchers work a long cut of freight cars into the Asheville Norfolk Southern yard.

CSXT 6011 is in the middle as it switches cars for the days local work in Downtown Spruce Pine, NC

A quartet of EMDs brings NS train P31 from Canton, NC, into the west end of the NS yard at Asheville, NC, with mostly empty coal and wood chip cars. This train is based in Canton, NC, next to the Evergreen Packaging paper plant. The train makes the daily round trip from Canton to Asheville on the NS Murphy Branch which ends in Andrews, NC.

I have never seen an occupied building this close to a mainline rail. Eastbound NS train 134 passes the book store at the west end of downtown Marshall, OC, at 1:22pm, on the NS "S" line

NS train 134 enters thd yard at Asheville pulling 60 cars at 2:47pm.

Knoxville Locomotive Works #9613 is dead in tow in westbound NS train 165. The trip origin and destination for this locomotive is unknown. KLW is a subsidiary of Gulf & Ohio, Inc, a short-line group.

Eastbound Norfolk Southern freight M62 prepares to leave the NS yard at Asheville, NC. Power is 3 EMD SDs of different colors.

Westbound NS train 165 is just starting the trip from Asheville to Knoxville, TN, on a rainy morning. It had been sitting at the crossing, ditch lights off, waiting for a clear signal on the signal bar. The crossing gates were down, and the lights were flashing, and a crew member in a green safety vest was flagging traffic through the crossing. After a few minutes the crewman got on the locomotive, the ditch lights came on, the horn was blown, and the train started rolling to Knoxville.

NS 6670 running long hood forward as it enters the NS yard at Asheville, NC, with 2 ex-SOO Line SD60 trailing. The NS SD60 is set up for LHF running, with the long hood end marked as the front.

Two BNSF GEs lead NS Train 162 through Biltmore in Asheville, eastbound to the NS yard in Linwood, NC.

Local PAO1 has just left full hoppers of plastic pellets at the Silverline Plastics pipe plant in Woodfin, NC, and is now returning with 5 empties to the NS yard at Asheville. This crossing has no gates or lights and is not flagged. PAO1 makes this trip 3 or 4 times a week, and is the only rail traffic on this spur.

Local PAO1 has just left full hoppers of plastic pellets at the Silverline Plastics pipe plant in Woodfin, NC, and is now returning with 5 empties to the NS yard at Asheville with NS 4613 leading long hood forward. This crossing has no gates or lights and is not flagged. PAO1 makes this trip 3 or 4 times a week, and is the only rail traffic on this spur.

Local PAO1, with 5 empty plastic pellet hoppers, is returning to the NS yard in Asheville after delivering loaded pellet hoppers to the Silverline Plastics pipe plant in Woodfin. NS 4613 is leading long hood forward

Local P31 enters the Asheville NS yard after leaving the Canton yard, about 20 miles west, with 26 cars, mostly empty wood chip hoppers from the Evergreen Packaging paper plant in Canton.

Westbound Norfolk Southern train 165 leaves Asheville, NC.

North side of the Southern depot in Marion, NC, built about 1867 and restored in 2005. The section on the east end is used'by the Marion Business Association. The main building is used, among other things, for community events.

South side of the Southern depot in Marion, NC. The depot, now owned by the city of Marion, is beside the Norfolk Southern "S" line which runs from Linwood, NC, to Knoxville, TN.

An eastbound Norfolk Southern boal train approaches the Marion, NC, depot on a late sunny afternoon.

An eastbound coal train clows by the depot at Marion, NC, on a sunny late afternoon.

Westbound empty lime train at the only crossing in downtown Marshall.

Picture #32 in this album shows an eastbound freight on the other side of the store on August 6, 2010. A westbound empty lime train goes by a book store at the west end of Marshall. The distance from the building to the closer rail is 7 feet 4 inches, with a train speed of 30 to 35 miles per hour.

A quartet of SD40-2s (one ex-Conrail and 3 leased) sits next to the Evergreen Packaging plant at Canton, NC at 4:00 in the afternoon. This is probably Norfolk Southern local P33 getting ready for a night run to Asheville and back.

Westbound light engine move entering Asheville, NC, just as the sun was coming up.

Westbound NS train 165 leaving Asheville with more than 125 cars

Local P31 enters Asheville from Canton, NC.

Eastbound NS train 134 beside the French Broad Qiver

Norfolk Southern train 165 westbound beside the French Broad River.

Norfolk Southern eastbound freight M34 getting ready to head down the NS loops between Ridgecrest and Old Fort.

Eastbound Norfolk Southern train M34 is about to enter the downhill loops between Ridgecrest and Old Fort.

Norfolk Southern westbound train 165 rolls under the Craggy bridge in Woodfin, about 4 1/2 miles north of the Asheville NS yard, west end. 165's next stop is at Sevier Yard in Knoxville, TN. I got a friendly open-hand wave from the conductor as he went by.

On May 6, 2011, 5:35 pm, eastbound Norfolk Southern train 134 pulls into the Asheville yard, doing a slow roll by the Wedge artists’ studios in Asheville’s arts district.

Eastbound Train 134 runs through Craggy just before entering the NS yard at Asheville, NC.

Three engines, with NS 9974 leading have just left the shop at the NS yard in Asheville, NC. After going out the west end of the yard to switch tracks, they are now backing up to couple to a waiting train. In about 30 minutes they will leave Asheville as train 745 westbound with 102 empty coal gondolas owned by Duke Power Company. UP 9157 is a leased unit.