07-29-2009, 05:14 PM
Sunday, we headed out the South Simcoe Railway (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.southsimcoerailway.ca/">http://www.southsimcoerailway.ca/</a><!-- m -->) for a ride between Tottenham and Beeton, west of the Holland Marsh. Holland Marsh is one of southern Ontario's powerhouse produce producer, being farms on the very fertile former marsh. The area was served by trains of iced reefers in days gone by, but there's no sign of them since the highway system and mechanically cooled trucks took over.
The railway runs through some beautiful countryside, and the commentary by the conductor was fantastic. Even the jokes were not too bad...! We were behind a diesel switcher as former CPR #136 is not quite ready after a couple years' work to restore her. No photos as she was safely tucked away in the shed.
[albumimg]1202[/albumimg]
However, CPR 1057, which used to run on excursion service through nearby Orangeville and the Credit Valley (route of the CVR) in the 1970s is awaiting restoration work.
[albumimg]1207[/albumimg]
Some beautiful countryside. Lots of scenery details!
[albumimg]1206[/albumimg]
[albumimg]1203[/albumimg]
[albumimg]1204[/albumimg]
Just when we thought we were getting somewhere, we were, well...
[albumimg]1205[/albumimg]
In addition to the rolling stock that actually rolls, there is a static collection that houses some interesting artefacts and displays. Hopefully this caboose will be in service when the steamers return to action.
[albumimg]1208[/albumimg]
After the ride, we visited the combination bookstore and gift shop where I managed to find a couple of kits on consignment - hoppers for Tony Koester's Allegheny Midland and Allen McClelland's V&O. We were also tipped off to a little hobby store and layout just up the road on the way to Orangeville...
Black Horse Junction Railroad is a very well stocked hobby shop that occupies two walls of John Clark's layout room. Despite this seeming disadvantage, he has some interesting stuff I've not seen in stock anywhere else. However, at the risk of having my model railroad membership revoked, I'd have to say that the train stuff was not the most interesting things in this shop...!
In addition to Black Horse Junction, John also makes full size wooden propellers for vintage aircraft in a very well equipped wood shop on the main floor. But that's not all... His woodworking skill also extends to stocks for muzzle-loading flintlock rifles (for which he also makes the trigger and firing mechanisms). He also builds 1/4 scale R/C WW2 warbirds - Spitfire and Hurricane specifically.
If you still don't believe this, check out his website... <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.clarkindustries.on.ca/">http://www.clarkindustries.on.ca/</a><!-- m -->
After this unplanned, but informative and very interesting stop, we headed towards Orangeville, my hometown and once an important CPR town on the route from Toronto to Owen Sound.
We looked around the vicinity of the former Orangeville facilities, including finding remnants of the 5 stall roundhouse that once serviced the road engines that passed through (Orangeville did not have a dedicated switcher, nor (from what I can tell) a helper for the steep grade northbound out of town).
The last original building - the bunk house and restaurant - burned following an electrical fault a couple of years ago. Using the insurance money, the town built this interpretation of a witch's hat station in its place. The original witch's hat survives, although it has been transported downtown and converted into a restaurant.
[albumimg]1211[/albumimg]
Orangeville is also the starting point for the Credit Valley Explorer (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.creditvalleyexplorer.com/">http://www.creditvalleyexplorer.com/</a><!-- m -->), an excursion/dinner train that runs south along the old CVR right of way. Here is your motive power.
[albumimg]1209[/albumimg]
I don't know when they plan to get this RDC back in service, but it would make an interesting excursion too.
[albumimg]1213[/albumimg]
Here's where you head out - south from the yard towards Alton, Cataract, etc.
[albumimg]1210[/albumimg]
And the other way -north to Fraxa Jct, Teeswater, Owen Sound. There used to be more tracks on the left - that's where the original TG&B facilities were built. I remember the Maintenance of Way equipment, including snow plows, being stored there.
[albumimg]1212[/albumimg]
As I mentioned, Orangeville (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.orangeville.org/">http://www.orangeville.org/</a><!-- m -->) is my hometown, and this house was my home for my "formative" years. It is situated right next to the CPR line as it makes its way from the yard northwards out of town (basically around the corner on the left in the photo above). I hope to build a model of this sometime...!
[albumimg]1214[/albumimg]
The Forks of the Credit is home to one of the more impressive bridges (formerly trestles) in southern Ontario. Originally a wooden trestle that curved through 90* high over the Credit River, it has been filled in and replaced with concrete and steel structures over the years. Nearby is the village of Cataract, where the CVR had a branch to Erin, Brimstone and the old Dominion Road (now gone, but former sites of quarries). For more on this see Will Annand's work on a model of late 1800's CVR (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.muskokacomputes.com/CVR-Home.html">http://www.muskokacomputes.com/CVR-Home.html</a><!-- m -->) , and Richard Wakefield's now dismantled Bruce Railways (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.mcswiz.com/MyLayout/Homepage.asp">http://www.mcswiz.com/MyLayout/Homepage.asp</a><!-- m -->).
[albumimg]1215[/albumimg]
[albumimg]1216[/albumimg]
The railway runs through some beautiful countryside, and the commentary by the conductor was fantastic. Even the jokes were not too bad...! We were behind a diesel switcher as former CPR #136 is not quite ready after a couple years' work to restore her. No photos as she was safely tucked away in the shed.
[albumimg]1202[/albumimg]
However, CPR 1057, which used to run on excursion service through nearby Orangeville and the Credit Valley (route of the CVR) in the 1970s is awaiting restoration work.
[albumimg]1207[/albumimg]
Some beautiful countryside. Lots of scenery details!
[albumimg]1206[/albumimg]
[albumimg]1203[/albumimg]
[albumimg]1204[/albumimg]
Just when we thought we were getting somewhere, we were, well...
[albumimg]1205[/albumimg]
In addition to the rolling stock that actually rolls, there is a static collection that houses some interesting artefacts and displays. Hopefully this caboose will be in service when the steamers return to action.
[albumimg]1208[/albumimg]
After the ride, we visited the combination bookstore and gift shop where I managed to find a couple of kits on consignment - hoppers for Tony Koester's Allegheny Midland and Allen McClelland's V&O. We were also tipped off to a little hobby store and layout just up the road on the way to Orangeville...
Black Horse Junction Railroad is a very well stocked hobby shop that occupies two walls of John Clark's layout room. Despite this seeming disadvantage, he has some interesting stuff I've not seen in stock anywhere else. However, at the risk of having my model railroad membership revoked, I'd have to say that the train stuff was not the most interesting things in this shop...!
In addition to Black Horse Junction, John also makes full size wooden propellers for vintage aircraft in a very well equipped wood shop on the main floor. But that's not all... His woodworking skill also extends to stocks for muzzle-loading flintlock rifles (for which he also makes the trigger and firing mechanisms). He also builds 1/4 scale R/C WW2 warbirds - Spitfire and Hurricane specifically.
If you still don't believe this, check out his website... <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.clarkindustries.on.ca/">http://www.clarkindustries.on.ca/</a><!-- m -->
After this unplanned, but informative and very interesting stop, we headed towards Orangeville, my hometown and once an important CPR town on the route from Toronto to Owen Sound.
We looked around the vicinity of the former Orangeville facilities, including finding remnants of the 5 stall roundhouse that once serviced the road engines that passed through (Orangeville did not have a dedicated switcher, nor (from what I can tell) a helper for the steep grade northbound out of town).
The last original building - the bunk house and restaurant - burned following an electrical fault a couple of years ago. Using the insurance money, the town built this interpretation of a witch's hat station in its place. The original witch's hat survives, although it has been transported downtown and converted into a restaurant.
[albumimg]1211[/albumimg]
Orangeville is also the starting point for the Credit Valley Explorer (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.creditvalleyexplorer.com/">http://www.creditvalleyexplorer.com/</a><!-- m -->), an excursion/dinner train that runs south along the old CVR right of way. Here is your motive power.
[albumimg]1209[/albumimg]
I don't know when they plan to get this RDC back in service, but it would make an interesting excursion too.
[albumimg]1213[/albumimg]
Here's where you head out - south from the yard towards Alton, Cataract, etc.
[albumimg]1210[/albumimg]
And the other way -north to Fraxa Jct, Teeswater, Owen Sound. There used to be more tracks on the left - that's where the original TG&B facilities were built. I remember the Maintenance of Way equipment, including snow plows, being stored there.
[albumimg]1212[/albumimg]
As I mentioned, Orangeville (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.orangeville.org/">http://www.orangeville.org/</a><!-- m -->) is my hometown, and this house was my home for my "formative" years. It is situated right next to the CPR line as it makes its way from the yard northwards out of town (basically around the corner on the left in the photo above). I hope to build a model of this sometime...!
[albumimg]1214[/albumimg]
The Forks of the Credit is home to one of the more impressive bridges (formerly trestles) in southern Ontario. Originally a wooden trestle that curved through 90* high over the Credit River, it has been filled in and replaced with concrete and steel structures over the years. Nearby is the village of Cataract, where the CVR had a branch to Erin, Brimstone and the old Dominion Road (now gone, but former sites of quarries). For more on this see Will Annand's work on a model of late 1800's CVR (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.muskokacomputes.com/CVR-Home.html">http://www.muskokacomputes.com/CVR-Home.html</a><!-- m -->) , and Richard Wakefield's now dismantled Bruce Railways (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.mcswiz.com/MyLayout/Homepage.asp">http://www.mcswiz.com/MyLayout/Homepage.asp</a><!-- m -->).
[albumimg]1215[/albumimg]
[albumimg]1216[/albumimg]