Today's Train of Though- The Weather Outside? Still Kind of Frightful, March 27, 2011

One sure sign that spring is right around the corner? We're less than a week away from the start of baseball season!

But don't let that lull you into a false sense of security, as the weather in New England is always subject to dramatic change with no warning. One minute you could be enjoying tempratures higher than those in Florida or California, and the next you could be reduced to a shivering, soggy mess by an abrupt snowstorm or freezing rain.

Of course, railpictures.net contributor Ryan Parent likely didn't have that problem when he snapped this picture of northbound New England Central train 323. Since this picture was taken at the beginning of February 2008, Parent likely knew he was in for at least another month of inclement weather before 'mud season' but braved a snow squall to catch NECR GP38 #3849 and two other Rail America GP38s heading north through Cornish, NH.

The unassuming Granite State town of about 1600 was home to the reclusive author JD Salinger and two covered bridges, including the 1866-built 450 ft-long Cornish-Windsor covered bridge spanning the Connecticut River between Cornish and Windsor, VT. Traversing the former Central Vermont Railway line to White River Jct and north to Burlington and St Albans, VT, train 323 will cross the Connecticut River into Windsor a few hundred yards to the south of the Cornish Windsor bridge on a steel trestle.

Today's Train of Though- Of Sound Mind; Dec 4th, 2010

The Puget Sound & Pacific is a fairly new arrival as far as some of the shortlines in the Pacific Northwest are concerned. After already successfully starting up the Arizona & California and California Northern railroads, the ParkSierra group ventured into the Northwest with their purchase of the former BNSF (nee Northern Pacific) line between Centralia and Grays Harbor, WA (as well as the branch between Elma and Shelton, WA and on north to the naval base at Bremerton) in the summer of 1997. In 2002, ParkSierra Group was purchased by Rail America and the Puget Sound & Pacific as well as the California Northern and Arizona & California were brought into the Rail America fold.

Traffic, like other shortlines in the Pacific Northwest, consists of about what you'd expect- like forestry products. Of course, with the line also serving the Naval base at Bremerton, there's also a touch of the unexpected, like garbage, munitions and Trident missile insertion tubes.

And like other Rail America operations, over time this would mean an influx of power from other, more distant Rail America lines. With the leaves changing on this sunny October 2010 afternoon, railpictures.net contributor Joel Hawthorn caught Puget Sound & Pacific GP38 #3802- still in its ParkSierra paint scheme- rounding the curve and in charge of seven units with the Shelton-Bangor Turn, including power from the Florida East Coast and Dallas, Garland and Northeastern (still in Norfolk Southern paint). The heavier grades north of Shelton require additional power.