Loose-Car Railroading on the Hanley Spur

The concept of  'loose-car railroading' is just about gone. Going miles to lift of set out one car to a shipper or consignee? Can we make money doing that? Well, on my HO scale Hanley Spur layout, it's still happening, albeit in a modelled era being nominally 1970. (Don't bother telling me it's a '73 Ford or a '76 Trans Am. It's nominally 1970, though I include industries and operations just before and just after that date.) This post covers 10 feet, took about 20 minutes, and resulted in 150 digital images. (Are you ready to see all 150? Don't worry, you won't have to. A good photographer doesn't show his bad pictures, and there were...many.). At Wellington Street crossing (top photo), the freight shed lead leaves the Hanley Spur and heads downtown and to Canadian Locomotive Co. We're waiting for our train. The conductor is ready to flag the crossing.

Still waiting, we walk north to River Street, where the CP Kingston Subdivision crosses CN's Hanley Spur under the bridge there. It's a tell-tale location!

The wooden end-cupola CN van pauses between Millard & Lumb and the coal piles at Anglin's (above). Lots of material at M&L to be welded and pounded into shape. The conductor must know the M&L guy! This train was in no rush and I was able to walk along neighbouring streets and the right-of-way. I'm on the limestone ridge at the Imperial Oil warehouse at North Street where CN Geep 4530 lifted Penn Central boxcar 77040:

Just before that, I was at water level where the lift was being made. The trainman ambled back and forth from caboose CN 78257 as they seemed to be deciding how loose this loose-car lift was going to be time-wise. I had time to switch to my other black & white camera:

I clambered up on the car just before it was lifted! The tank car unloading track is at left:

The trainman is on the front of the unit as the unit chants and creaks out of the spur.

I cross over to the CP and got a soaker walking across the poorly-drained low ground! Their spur at right leads to a spur serving four customers.

It was reedy. It was swampy. That's why they call this part of Kingston the Swamp Ward, I guess.

I clambered up on the River Street bridge and two locals were up there to see the goings-on. It looks like CP is down from Smiths Falls, just up ahead by the Woolen Mill on Cataraqui Street. My lucky day!

The train sat there and sat there. I walked over to Rideau Street and got this photo between a couple of garages:

Black and white view while walking down the River Street bridge.

At Cataraqui Street, I was on the east side of the CN, with CP on my left. The local section crew was out shimming some ties:

The caboose toddles by:

Another pause. As CN sits on the Cataraqui Street crossing, I walk up to Rideau Street again, beside the Bailey broom factory. The Woolen Mill is in the distance, with the National Grocers building at right:

View from the back of the broom factory. The trainman appears to be flagging the crossing, letting a VW Bug resembling our '61 cross:

Nope. He was just sitting there. 

The conductor comes down from the cupola to appraise the situation:

The train eventually started to move, beating CP at a walk. And I mean walking speed!

Switching over to black & white for the approaching caboose:

The back of the Whig-Standard warehouse was my perch for the final view of two of the slowest trains on two of Canada's largest railways taking their own sweet time! On to Ontario Street!

Oh, I could roam 'round and round on this layout snapping photos. It's not difficult to add tens of photos to the SD card in no time! One benefit - reviewing the photos away from the layout show some things that can be improved. I'm a little hesitant to post too much of this 'snap'photography, because there are only so many locations where I can get the point-and-shoot camera low enough, and I don't want these to become too 'recognizable'. The wonders of digital photography!

Running extra...

Check out the latest editions of the Platforum podcast on Youtube just released: Episode 14 and Episode 15 "RTC, Over..." with Metrolinx' Joe Zika and RTCDave Parker. Dave has a fulsom Flickr feed! Their discussions reminded me of the wise witticisms of CN RTC T J Ball.

Hard on the heels of the previous post on Sydenham, Rian Manson sent along this long-lost photo of CN 3715 at Sydenham, likely taken near the Old Dairy. 

I wrote in my diary about this week's pandemic dairy modelling - a Wilmots milk truck. I skimmed a tanker cab, military truck box, and wheels from a Tyco trailer to make the whole thing. Just contributing my two percents. Those motorcyclists look like they're rushin'.

Did you know there's a variety of watermelon called 'Cream of Saskatchewan'? I didn't. It's yellow in colour! It was apparently brought to North America by immigrants from Russia.