About two weeks ago I did a quick chase on CN’s former Bessemer & Lake Erie railroad. Three former Illinois Central SD70s commonly referred to as Death Stars led the train south from Conneaut.
Anywhere else his would be the catch of the week if not month but here this was more of a disappointment. Still they made for some nice photos all the same.
The top image was made along Conneaut Creek in Conneaut where the next two images were made in Albion, Pennsylvania.
Putting together the train alongside Conneaut Creek.
I go to Conneaut these days to see the former Illinois Central SD70s that have been assigned to the ex-Bessemer & Lake Erie property since early 2015.
Despite being owned by Canadian National, the ex-B&LE hasn’t seen all that much CN red and black in recent years.
On a recent visit to Conneaut, the CN job to Conneaut came into town in early afternoon with B&LE 867 on the lead. Then came two IC SD70s followed by a CN SD60.
The CN unit, No. 5422, did sport a bright red nose. That came courtesy of a rebuild in Centralia, Illinois, in a former IC shop in 2012.
I guess if the train I’m going to chase must wear CN red, I’d prefer that it be bright red.
I didn’t chase it all that far. By the time the CN train was ready to leave Conneaut it was getting to be late afternoon.
I would catch it in Albion and Conneautville, Pennsylvania, before breaking off the chase and heading home.
Splitting the signals in Albion, Pennsylvania.
A last look at CN 5422 as it saunters through Conneautville, Pennsylvania.
Having finished switching in the yard, the southbound train on the Bessemer Subdivision of Canadian National sit just north of the crossing with Old Main Street. The engineer is waiting for the conductor to be brought out by truck.
It has been more than a year since Peter Bowler and I had chased trains together so we were long overdue for an outing.
Everything fell into place one recent Sunday as we made plans to meet early – as in 5:30 a.m. – to travel to Conneaut to catch a train on the former Bessemer & Lake Erie.
But the first order of business was getting Amtrak’s eastbound Lake Shore Limited just east of Conneaut.
No. 48 was running about 10 minutes late when it rushed past us in the early morning light. We then went to see if we could intercept an inbound B&LE train at Albion.
As we drove toward that city, I heard the detector go off at MP 117 and then heard the crew call out over the radio a 10 mph slow order for MP 125. They were at MP 122.
That was a good omen. The train was coming. But our luck ran out when we found a bridge closed on U.S. Route 6N a couple miles short of Albion, Pennsylvania.
Further bad luck hit when Peter discovered the Pennsylvania Gazetteer he had brought was missing. We still don’t know where or how he lost it.
Relying on A GPS on Peter’s smart phone, we searched for crossings west of Albion, but we never saw the train.
As we were driving back to Conneaut, we heard the sound of a remote control switch being toned up on the radio. It turned out to be the creek switch at the south end of the Conneaut yard and we missed the head end of the train, although we did see the rear.
All we could do was wait for it to come out once it was done switching in Conneaut yard. It first poked its nose beneath the Norfolk Southern trestle at 11:17 a.m.
As the crew was switching, I was able to ascertain from their radio communication that the lead locomotive facing south was Illinois Central No. 1018.
Given that B&LE owner Canadian National sent a fleet of ex-IC SD70s locomotives to its Bessemer Subdivision last March that was not a surprise.
But I had heard the crew talking about a 905, which I knew from an online posting was B&LE SD40T-3 No. 905, which is the only tunnel motor still working on the Bessemer Sub.
It turned out that the 905 was the second unit behind the 1018, so that kept my streak intact of having a B&LE locomotive in every train I’ve ever photographed on the ex-B&LE.
The motive power consist also included CN 5336 (SD402-W) and IC 1019. The CN locomotive was one of the rattiest looking I’ve ever seen. It had the appearance of someone having taken a blow torch to burn paint off its flanks.
I’ve seen trains come out of the Conneaut yard and go past the Old Main Street grade crossing while switching, but I had never seen one stop just north of the crossing when it was done.
That provided a rare opportunity to make an image of the motive power sitting still on a curve with good lighting.
When I spotted the CN truck coming to drop off the conductor I knew the train would be leaving soon.
We relocated to the U.S. 20 bridge. I’ve photographed here before, but had yet to get an outbound move with an IC SD70 in the lead.
Mindful of the U.S. 6N bridge closing, we had mapped an alternative route to Albion via Pennsylvania Route 215 and Old Albion Road.
We waited for the train at the crossing of Route 215, which was a new photo spot for me.
We then did some traditional B&LE photo locations in Albion, Conneatuville, Hartstown and at KO Road.
The latter is widely known as KO Junction, but CN now calls it Sandy. The dispatcher told the crew that it would re-crew at Sandy.
No new crew was on hand to board the train there so we went into Greenville to look around. That, though, is for another story.
The waters of Conneaut Creek were still as the train came out for head room while working the yard to build the train.
Perhaps you need to be a die hard Illinois Central to have taken, let alone, posted this image of IC 1018.
Getting underway for a southbound trek from Conneaut as seen from the U.S. 20 bridge.
A new photo site on the B&LE for me was just west of the crossing of Pennsylvania Route 215.
Trying an angle I’ve never done in Albion of the train coming out of the siding and onto the main at the start of CTC territory.
Coming ’round the curve in Albion.
Trying a motion blur shot on the north side of Conneautville.
At Hartstown with the swamp in the distance.
The crew start to tie ‘er down at Sandy, which many know as KO Junction.
Tied down at Sandy and awaiting a new crew to continue southward.
The classic image at Conneaut of a train coming out of the yard along Conneaut Creek now features Illinois Central SD70 locomotives.
My “orange” streak on the former Bessemer & Lake Erie remains intact. By that I mean that I’ve yet to see a train on the Bessemer Subdivision of Canadian National that did not have at least one orange B&LE locomotive.
It also means that the days of all orange B&LE locomotive consists are probably past.
In late March, CN began assigning Illinois Central SD70 locomotives to its Bessemer Sub. Since then, the IC units have been the lead unit on many of the trains on the B&LE.
Online reports indicate that two of the 900 series SD40Ts still on the Bessemer Sub have been removed from service and are slated to be sent west for rehabilitation. Speculation is rampant that all of the tunnels motors will soon be gone.
But during a visit to the Bessemer last Saturday, I found a southbound train with two tunnel motors, Nos. 907 and 905, albeit in the trailing position.
I followed the train of empty coal hoppers from Conneaut to KO road near Osgood, Pa. Here is a sample of what I was able to get.
When the train departed Conneaut at 11 a.m., there were a dozen or so railfans lining the banks of Conneaut Creek or standing on the Old Main Street bridge.
There may a lot of discontent with the disappearance of the orange B&LE locomotives in favor of black IC units, but fans have been turning out in large numbers to document this transition period on the Bessemer.
At each photo stop I made, there were five or more other fans also on hand with license plates from Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York.
Obstruction on the rails.
Slowing to pick up a crew member at Old Main Street in Conneaut as well as to do a roll by inspection.
Picking up speed at Pond Road just inside of Pennsylvania.
Passing RX in Albion, Pa. By now it had become quite cloudy.
On the north side of Conneautville, Pa. This was a new photo location for me.
Rolling past the wetlands and into Hartstown, Pa. The view is from the U.S. 322/Pennsylvania Route 18 bridge.
Passing over the detector at Hartstown, Pa.
Through the signal bridge at KO. It sure could use a new coat of paint.
About to cross KO Road near Osgood, Pa. With this image I headed back north, my chasing of the B&LE being done for the day.
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