765 on Horseshoe Curve

Nice photos.

I guess we could have made a little more smoke, eh?

I guess we could have made a little more smoke, eh?

oh, I don't know about that. of all the photos posted of 765's recent runs through Horseshoe Curve, I am amazed at the lack of smoke as she labors uphil. A real testament to you fellows running her, and the work done to get her back in shape.

well, if beggars can be choosers, yes.  Darned efficient fireman...  From a photography standpoint, it appears the Sunday employee runs were the best for the curve with all that misty, foggy weather where the steam just hangs in the air.

Still, you take what you can get and are very happy for it.  Would have gone for this shot last year, but didn't know if NS would run people out of it, so went for MG instead.  Now, I can cross this one off the list.  Now, to just be able to ride open vestibules around the curve behind steam.  That would be the real treat...

Kevin

You hit the nail on the head...it is the FIREMAN who deserves the credit for working with a clean stack. The coal we were using this year also had something to do with it. The coal used this year was a high quality coal with low ash, high heat, high fusion temperature and very little smoke.

Saturday was warm and dry, so the exhaust steam was invisible. Sunday was a much better day for steam photography. The air was cold and damp with a misty rain falling once in a while. That kind of weather makes for great steam loco photography because the exhaust steam is very visible and hangs in the air a long time before evaporating.

Very nice photos...clean stack as well. 

Chris

Looks like she was coasting uphill.

If there is a flood of NKP 765 photos, videos, audio, or what not.....so be it.  I personally can't get enough of it.   Even the lesser quality posts seem to have something unique to offer.....if you don't mind taking the time to sift through them.

I was born in 1971.  To actually have so much exposure to the 765 is a real treat.  I never thought that I would be able to experience something comparable so close to home....and things are just "different" on your "home" rails.  The ordinary tracks that you pass by every day suddenly become extraordinary, for however brief a moment. 

I have about a dozen or so NKP Berkshire photos in both color and black & white that I have framed and have hung on my home and office walls.  They seem to be more alive now.  They are not just the relics of a day and time gone by.  They still have relevance....and are alive again, to a certain degree.

I saw her in person and rode behind her for the first time on the Cuyahoga Valley Line two falls ago.  I was fortunate enough to ride the Nickel Plate Limited on Mother's Day.  Both were a real thrill.

And let's face it, having one of her engineers as a forum member/webmaster is kind of cool in it's own right.

Thanks to everyone who has posted on the matter.  I certainly appreciate it!

I can promise you she was NOT coasting uphill.  Smoke/steam output has everything to do with coal (and the coal they are using doesn't smoke much), skill of the fireman and ambient conditions.  Take a warm, dry day with good coal and proper firing practices, you won't get much smoke.

As an example, the picture below is the loudest I have EVER heard steam working.  It is the only time my ears have actually hurt from the intensity of the sound, and I've done this a lot with a lot of different engines.  It's also the only time in about 20 years shooting video that I have ever experienced audio clipping on the video from exhaust.  Part of it would be the funneling of the sound through a tight rock cut, but the decibel level here was absolutely unbelievable.  Notice that the smoke is basically non-existent.  Just a light haze, if that.

Back on 765, she was doing a good amount of work that day.  Don't let the pictures deceive you.  Smoke and sound output do not correlate.

Kevin

Well, at least there is no guy with a neon vest standing between the engine and tender!