The Indiana Rail Experience with Nickel Plate Road 2-8-3 No. 765 got underway this past weekend with the Indiana Ice Cream Train excursions on Friday and Saturday.
The sold out 45-minute excursions departed from a former New York Central depot in Angola, Indiana, on track now used by the Indiana Northeastern. The station itself, which houses a restaurant, is on the campus of Trine University.
The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, owner of NKP 765, has an agreement with the short line railroad that serves Indiana, Ohio and Michigan, to run a series of excursions this year and beyond.
I made the drive north on Interstate 69 to Angola on Saturday morning with a stopover in Waterloo to catch a late westbound Lake Shore Limited and three Norfolk Southern eastbounds.
Arriving in Angola around 11 a.m., it was easy to find the Ice Cream train because it was parked just south of West Maumee Street, the main east-west artery in town.
The nose of the 765 was pointed north. Later in the day that would mean less-than-ideal lighting conditions.
I had not seen the 765 since September 2018 so it felt good to visit a long-lost friend. The Berkshire-type engine gleamed in the late morning sunlight under a cloudless sky.
Although there was a crowd milling about, it was easy to make images of the static locomotive without people barging into my photos.
The Ice Cream Train departed four times each day, alternating going north and south of town. Passengers were given a cup of ice cream before boarding.
The first trip went north. After photographing it leaving the boarding site, I gave chase even though I really didn’t know that well where I was going.
I saw smoke in the distance so I knew I was close behind. I kept going, looked down a road to my left and caught a glimpse of the train.
I turned left onto the next road that, presumably, went to the tracks. A crowd of locals and railfan photographs had gathered at the crossing.
The sight lines and lighting were good. But after several minutes of waiting, some of the railfan photographers began leaving. The locals quickly followed suit.
It turned out we were one crossing too far north of where the excursion train stopped and reversed direction to return to Angola.
I drove back into town without having made any images on this chase. I kept going to look for a photo site for the second excursion.
I found one not too far out of town. A guy from Geneva, Illinois, was already there. Two other fans showed up shortly after I arrived and set up their video cameras.
After waiting for a while, I spotted the headlight of Indiana Northeast GP9H No. 5903, which pulled the train southward.
After getting my photographs, I followed the train, which I had been told would halt just south of the depot in Pleasant Lake.
A least two of the vehicles ahead of me on Old Route U.S. 27 were railfans and I followed them, hoping they knew where they were going. They did.
Several photographers and a few locals were on hand next to the volunteer fire department. An interesting site at the firehouse was two people on horseback talking with the fire department staff.
The 765 was a short distance beyond the depot and a photo line had formed.
After getting my images I tried to catch and get ahead of the train. But that effort failed due to my unfamiliarity with the streets on the south side of Angola.
I waited for the third excursion of the day to leave and snapped a few images before heading back home.
There are excursions planned for late summer and during the fall with additional trips, perhaps, to be announced.
Next time I’m up that way I’ll be better prepared to chase now that I have explored the territory.
Nonetheless, I was more than satisfied with what I was able to get.
Article by Craig Sanders
Tags: Angola Indiana, Indiana Northeastern, Nickel Plate 765, Nickel Plate Road 765, Nickel Plate Road No. 765, NKP 765, Steam excursion trains, steam locomotives
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