Rail Trail in Pine Creek Gorge (Pa. Grd

Where’s “Pine Creek Railroad” Dave when we need him?

I had relatives in nearby Potter County and we visited the “Grand Canyon” once but I can’t remember if the railroad was still operating then (in the 1950's). 

According to the not-so-reliable Wikipedia, the Jersey Shore, Pine Creek and Buffalo Railway was the first railroad built through the gorge in 1883. 

And just yesterday, a friend gave me a 1942 Kalmbach map of railroads in Pennsylvania which shows that in 1942 the NYC was operating the line called the “Pine Creek Route” between the towns of Ansonia and Jersey Shore, PA.

HTH,

Bill 

It operated at least into the mid to late 80's. Ansonia is where the Wellsville Addison and Galeton Railroad, (WAG) connected to the outside world. I was there in the mid 80's, and the rail line was still in service. In fact, the last WAG GE centercab, #1700, was on siding there waiting for repairs, so it could be shipped to a museum.

Jeff

The Jersey Shore, Pine Creek & Buffalo interchanged with the Philadelphia & Reading (reorganized as the Reading Company in 1923) at Newberry Junction west of Williamsport.

The JSPC&B was a branch of the New York Central. It's a bit odd to think of the Route of the 20th Century Limited and The Great Steel Fleet going through the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania to meet the P&R, but it's true.

The mighty NYC had another branch into Charleston and Dunbar, WV. NYC boxcars full of Gravely Tractors left the factory in Dunbar.

colorado hirailer,

      Believe it or not, there be good reasons to come down from lofty mountain grandeur of Colourful Colorado and venture east of Denver to see sights like Reading & Northern 425 strut her stuff :

Colorado Hi-railer,

   I live about 45 minutes from Pine Creek and I bike it fairly regularly it is 62 beautiful miles through the gorge. The last NYC train went through in 1988. If you are a bicyclist it should be on your bucket list.

Pine Creek Railway leased to and then subsumed within the Fall Brook Railway which became the Fall Brook Division within the NYC and later renamed the Pennsylvania Division of the NYC (Lyons, NY to Jersey Shore, PA).  Very interesting history involving the dealings of Vanderbilt and his competition with the PRR for coal.

Unlike the Water Level Route, this division south of Corning, NY involved many elements of mountain railroading.

Poppyl 

I had a look at this today.  The eastern state park overlook was jammed with people,

as I think there is only one overlook area on a narrow peninsula.  No parking, so I

drove to western state park and had a lot of parking and overlook sites.  Also was able

to drive down to floor of canyon on a narrow rough jeep trail, but this on other side of stream from rail trail.  Also discovered a Pa. Lumbering Museum on U.S. 6 west of there with a three truck Shay, a sawmill complex worth modeling with a log pond, log buggies, machinery, etc.  And this in the eastern US!!  However, these are a long day's roundtrip from York, with little Interstate routes north of Harrisburg.