Pop-Up Post: CN Nos 377, 372, 271, 305 - February 2025

In Part 2 of this three-post series, I profiled a day of VIA and CN traffic at Kingston's VIA station. This post continues the plethoric passing of 14 trains, including four CN freights: Nos 377, 372, 271 and 305. CN No 377 is first:

Ex-Rock MWCX 462639 (top photo). ONR 7418-7725-7794-7701-7712-7716-7431-7446:

CFL TA 1010: Chemin de fer Lanaudiere propane tank car, not Canadian Football League!

Tail-end ingot empties Coe Rail COER 804902; Rio Tinto RTAX 19090, 19084:

No 372's tank cars passing behind.

CN No 372 is second, partly eclipsed by the parallel primary passing of 377:

KCS 172248 (above)

BN 467465 green and BNSF 'swoosh' 426061

Ex-CSX now VWCX 256578 and 250031:

AEX ex-Winchester &Western 23926:

American Styrenics ASOX 889170 heavily-graffiti'd. I call this car the 'attitude of gratitude':

CN No 271 was third:

With the ascent of automobile manufacturing in Mexico, I'm seeing quite a few of these. TTGX 825130 Ferromex with vertical lettering:

CN No  305 was the third westbound and fourth freight I found:

UP 701442 in forestry product pool service (above). Graffiti'd CIT Group covered hopper CBFX 310876:

Running extra...

Here's my very brief review of the 2025 issue of the annual Model Railroad Planning, still my favourite magazine of the year:

• Too many monster layouts. Their dimensions: 40x52, 13x22, 22x28, 25x35, 19x60. These are thought by the editor to be inspiring, but for many aspiring but house-less layout builders, they may be overwhelmingly unattainable.
• Too much like Great Model Railroads showing completed, post-planning layouts. We need to see more uncompleted benchwork, bare walls, in-progress photos!
• Modelling other layouts: I was able to spot Lance Mindheim's Monon curve and Florida look-alike, Tony Koester Ohio junctions. Modellers see these fine layouts but need to 'go their own way' and not just build what they're seen elsewhere!
• Good news - no car floats, no 'overpasses of death'.