After a very long time I am finally back online. I see that everyone has added new pictures since my last visit awhile ago. Great pictures. I have been taking alot over the past few months and have to show you all. I just moved and am in a prime location. I can now take pictures without leaving my front porch.
Matt
Conrail's Blairsville Cutoff - A Fictitious Alternative Route Over The Allegheny Mountains From Blairsville, Pa to Cresson, Pa
Heya LiveSteamer,
I was scoping out some aerials of your area and there doesn't seem to be any grade crossings at all in Portage much less in either direction to Lily or Wilmore. That led me to wonder two things,... they must go through there at a pretty good clip AND, with no grade crossings, do you ever hear the horns?
Is that picture looking north or south?
Howdy TrainNut. There is one grade crossing and that is at carney's crossing. Just right up from lilly. It is between lilly and cresson. That is the only one I know of in this area. Even though the trains are going up grade a few of them do have some speed to them. The east bound mail trains sure have speed though. You can hear the horns and the bells from my place. They usually hit the horns near my apartment. You can feel the rumble of the locomotives when they go by.
That picture I took is looking north but the train is heading east bound towards Altoona.
Matt
Conrail's Blairsville Cutoff - A Fictitious Alternative Route Over The Allegheny Mountains From Blairsville, Pa to Cresson, Pa
I hope y'all don't boot me off of this thread, but I figure if you like NS, then you will probably like NW, too!
Having said that, here are a couple of places you might enjoy:
images.google .com/hosted/life. Search for Roanoke or Shaffer's Crossing
Also, check out imagebase.lib.vt.edu/
This info was contained in an article by Tom Angleberger in today's Roanoke Times. If they fail to work, just e-mail him at <!-- e --><a href="mailto:tangleberger@roanoke.com">tangleberger@roanoke.com</a><!-- e -->
I only know what I know, and I don't understand very much of it, either.
Member: AEA, American Legion, Lions Club International
Motto: "Essayons"
Carl, I don't have a problem with predecessor roads. I'm sure most guys don't although if you include Conrail it would really hijack the thread.
Charlie
Today I did a little railfanning in cresson for about an hour right up to after the sun set. I got pictures of the service facility, and where MO Tower used to be. The only remains left of the tower is the small shack that was with the tower. This shack is used to keep the switches from freezing up in the winter. More to come.....
First Picture - MO Interlocking.
Second Picture - Shack used to house equipment to keep the switches from freezing.
Third Picture - Backside of the service facility.
Matt
Conrail's Blairsville Cutoff - A Fictitious Alternative Route Over The Allegheny Mountains From Blairsville, Pa to Cresson, Pa
Second Picture - The hill used to have tracks on it which went across a steel girder bridge. The bridge was removed to make way for the double stack trains.
Third Picture - Front of the service facility.
Matt
Conrail's Blairsville Cutoff - A Fictitious Alternative Route Over The Allegheny Mountains From Blairsville, Pa to Cresson, Pa
![[Image: 4243794069_5d5a40a025_o.jpg]](http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4057/4243794069_5d5a40a025_o.jpg)
