On July 20, the Norfolk Southern Steam Program switched gears from Southern 630 on the lower half of the system to the Nickel Plate 765 for the northern half. The first journey found the 765 on home rails for a one-way ferry move from her home in New Haven, Indiana to Bellevue, Ohio. The weather was cool and overcast as the Berkshire made her way east. It was more of a day for video, but a few decent photos were captured. One of the highlights of the day was in Fostoria, Ohio, where a good number of people turned up thanks to a newspaper feature a few days before the trip. 765 certainly didn't dissappoint, accelerating to track speed as she blasted past the depot. Of course, the still camera was stowed in the car for this one....
On July 21-22, 2012, the Norfolk Southern Steam Program hit Bellevue, Ohio. No stranger to Bellevue, the 765 provided head end power on a set of 5 trips south on the Pennsylvania main line about 35 miles to Bucyrus. After a rather murky chase on Friday, the skies cleared and the weekend was blessed with great weather and mild temperatures. Heavy freight traffic (up to 100 trains a day pass through Bellevue) delayed the trips, which only made the late afternoon lighting better. 40mph running and a 55mph chase road that is heavily patrolled with a few stoplights made “chasing” a bit of a misnomer, but it was great to see all the Cedar Point Amusement Park traffic go ga-ga when the 765 came blasting through.
until next time...
Kevin
