Trip Slides - Train Ride to San Diego

[C855B]

Select highlights from last week on our annual train trip to the West Coast.

W/B crew change in La Junta.



Scene from SDSONS layout in Balboa Park.



Parked Santa Fe Southern geep not looking all that abandoned, although we know otherwise.



Raton station in the crisp afternoon light.



Carefully decommissioned semaphores secured behind razor wire. BNSF knows their value, for sure! (video frame capture)



Semaphore on the job. Many are still on the line - we counted about 20, and know we missed a few - but time is running out quickly. Most we saw were RR west of Las Vegas.

[Philip H]

What's the story on the Santa Fe Southern? Looks like an interesting paint scheme.

[C855B]

Here's the Wikipedia on the SFSR: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Fe_Southern_Railway

It has more than I knew about it, other than the "group of local businesspeople" who bought the line in '92 was mostly Michael Gross, the actor who played the dad in Family Ties. Gross was active in Southern California railfan circles.

The line hasn't been operated for about three years.