Riding Private Varnish:On the Cardinal

Backing in to Union Station gave some interesting views of the yard facilities, nearby buildings, and the Lake Shore Limited equipment. With departure, we saw one of the Amtrak Heritage units and a pair of new Gensets.

 

 

Sunset came all too quickly. New to me were the long lines of wind turbines. They stretched as far as the eye could see.

 

I stayed up as late as Lafayette, but then turned in.

 

 

 

 

Weather moved in overnight, and the day dawned gray as we passed CSX freights near Ashland, KY. Driving rain kept me off the rear vestibule much of the trip across West Virginia.  I did get a few quick views at Charleston. Much of the New River Gorge, though, was shrouded in clouds, fog, and driving rain. I did get quick shots of the historic town of Thurmond and the "modern" station at Prince.

 

 

The rain had eased somewhat by the time we reached Clifton Forge, VA, although a drop or two on the lens could still mess up a photo. It had been a torrent around White Sulphur Springs, WV, so I got no photos of the station there or the Greenbriar gounds. Lots of yard action at Clifton forge, fuel pad, and some of the [preserved buildings and equipment from the C&O Historical Society. Ex=-C&O 4-8-4 #614  now was in green paint, for the never-started Greenbriar Express.

 

 

Rain continued intermittently after Clifton forge, but not with the earlier intensity. I was able to get a few scenic shots. Western VA is a beautiful ride on the Cardinal. We took siding to allow the westbound version to pass. it too had PV's, a sleeper and a dome.

 

 

A rock cut on Afton Mountain looked like a perfect model for O-

Gauge scenery!

At Gordonsville, we saw what might be the perfect railfan house, as the Cardinal curves off the line to Newport News and onto the connection to NS at Orange. A parked caboose was a nice surprise.

 

 

As we reached Alexandria, the sun came out and blue sky predominated as we crossed the Potomac River.  the CARDINAL cut us off and continued on to New York. Before the switcher arrived to move us to track 30, I watched a corridor train arrive. The Mount Vernon would spend the night in Union Station and continue on in the morning on The Crescent. Being so close to home, we caught a train to Baltimore and the great PV adventure came to an end.  Hope you enjoyed the trip.

 

 

Good morning Bill 

 

Thank you for sharing your trip with us, I enjoyed every post

 

Clem k

Great pictures Bill.  Thanks for taking the time to post them.

 

Art

Bill, thank you very much. You painted a picture trail of a rare journey indeed.

 

Dan W.

Really enjoyed the series and now I'm a bit saddened that we're at "journey's end".  Were those Iowa Pacific cars in the Chicago yard laying over from Pullman Rail Journeys service?

--Reed

Great stuff, Bill.  Thanks for posting.

 Thanks for sharing with us Bill

 

 Glad you got to see  Ashland's AK furnace in the daytime,it's just over the hill from my house.I hear the AK switchers  with their distinctive horns all day long,along with the CSX and across the big creek where I work (well really Kenova) all day also.

Thank you so much! I enjoyed the ride.

Bill

Thank you so much for taking the time to share. I've always thought about a trip like this. Riding along with you was fun, informative and inspiring.

Scotie

Bill,

 

  Thanks for sharing your trip. I hope you get a chance next year to do it again.

 

Bill

Thanks, everyone, for the kind words. I hope to get a chance next year, too.

 

Bill

Boy you took some great photos on this trip.