A Difference of 37 Years

I found a photo I took on Sept. 22, 1984, of former Grand Trunk Western No. 4070 on the Cuyahoga Valley Line at the intersection of Portage Path & Merriman Roads in Akron.

I wanted to duplicate that shot with Nickel Plate Road’s 765 during its visit this month to the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad.

On the Sunday morning ferry move to Akron I did that.

In the morning the sun favors the fireman’s side of a southbound train. However, at this location the railroad shifts facing west to east, thus the sun favors the engineer’s side.

The lighting was perfect for the 9:35 a.m. arrival.

Photographs by Edward Ribinskas

CVSR Steam in the Valley Tickets On Sale Today

Nickel Plate Road 765 steams through the Sand Run Metro Park in September 2018.

Public tickets for the September return of Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 to the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad went on sale today (July 2, 2019).

The Berkshire-type locomotive that was built in Lima, Ohio, will be pulling excursions on the CVSR on Sept. 21, 22, 27, 28 and 29.

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, which owns the locomotive, said these will be the only public excursions to be pulled by No. 765 this year.

New this year to the annual Steam in the Valley lineup will be the first nighttime trips behind steam and the first trip in years to operate the length of the CVSR between Rockside Road station in Independence and Akron.

Passengers aboard the latter trip, which departs Rockside Road at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 27, will also have a static night photo shoot opportunity in Akron.

The photo shoot trip will be 3.5 hours in length. All other trips will run for 2.5 hours and include a photo runby opportunity at Indigo Lake.

Other nighttime trips will depart Rockside Road at 6 p.m. on Sept. 21 and 28.

Ticket prices range from $25 to $75 depending on the type of accommodation chosen. As in past years open window cars will be assigned to the train.

Passengers willing to pay extra for “enhanced service” option will receive complimentary alcoholic beverages and food, depending on the level of service chosen. The enhanced service options range from $150 to $55.

At the high end price of $150 you get a four-course meal served in the dome section of the Silver Solarium or Silver Lariat plus complimentary beverages. That option is available only on the Sept. 27.

At the low end price of $55 you get complimentary beverages but no food with seating in a lounge area.

Passengers must be 21 years of age or older to obtain an enhanced service options that involves alcoholic beverages.

One enhanced service option, though, has been labeled as family friendly. Staff will provide crafts and activities suitable for children. That option will cost $40 per person and is available on all 10 a.m. departures.

The trains will feature a 1940s theme with music from that period provided by an onboard quartet.

Historical reenactors in 1940s garb will be at the station and aboard the train. Passengers are encouraged to dress for the occasion in their best 1940’s or 50’s look.

All passengers ages 3 and older must have a ticket. Children under the age of 3 may ride for free but must sit on a parent’s or guardian’s lap.

Departure times and dates from Rockside Station are Sept. 21 and 28 at 10 a.m., 2 p.m., and 6 p.m., and Sept. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

Departures times and dates from Akron Northside Station are Sept. 22 and 29 at 10 a.m., and 2 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.cvsr.com/steam/ or over the phone at 1-800-468-4070 x1.

For those who wish to view or photograph the train, the CVSR will set up a viewing area at Howe Meadow.

Parking will be available there and visitors will be directed to the viewing area.

The traditional photo runby site at Boston Mill station is currently closed due to construction of the adjacent new Cuyahoga Valley National Park visitor’s center.

Another Sunday with NKP 765

The ferry move to Akron steams though Brecksville.

Steaming through Sand Run Metropark in Akron during the ferry move on Sunday morning.

The last excursion of NKP 765’s two-week stay on the CVSR blasts through Jaite en route to the photo runbys at Boston Mill.

Ursula and I arrived at Ohio 82 in Brecksville close to 8 a.m. to catch the ferry move of Nickel Plate 765 and its train to Akron.

We were able to set up first at the white chains since the rest of the crowd hadn’t shown up yet.

I decided photographing from the Station Road bridge with the reflection or what used to be a

reflection shot because of the tree growth and the Route 82 arches.

By the time the train showed up at about 8:55 a.m. the crowd of photographers next to us and behind us was substantial.

We made it to Big Bend with about three minutes to spare. The traffic light at Merriman and Portage Path was the big culprit.

After the train passed I hurried  to the car to get to mass at a church I found on Portage Path in Cuyahoga Falls.

The bottom photograph is the after trip from Akron coming south at Jaite. I was standing right along the chain.

Steam Returns to the Valley This Weekend

Nickel Plate Road 765 presents an impressive sight as it climbs the hill into Akron. It is shown passing through the Sand Run Metro Park during its ferry move on Sunday morning.

Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 will pull another round of excursions on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad this weekend.

The schedule includes a trip from Rockside Road tonight (Sept. 28) at 5:30 p.m. and from Rockside at 9:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. Trips out of Akron are scheduled to depart on Sunday at 11:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m.

Last weekend saw the 765 execute the same schedule. Here is a gallery of some of my favorite images of the Berkshire-type locomotive in action during its first weekend.

Everyone stops to watch a steam locomotive. NKP 765 steams through the Sand Run Metropark in Akron on Sunday morning during its ferry move to position itself for the day’s trips.

Snaking around a curve in the Sand Run Metropark in Akron on late Sunday morning.

Cameras are out as NKP 765 approaches the CVSR’s Big Bend station in the Sand Run Metropark in Akron as the first excursion of Sunday returns to the Rubber City.

Running backward northbound at Bath Road during the Sunday afternoon excursion.

Getting some reflection in the Cuyahoga River during the Saturday afternoon trip.

Executing another photo runby at Boston Mill.

The afternoon trip on Saturday approaches West Pleasant Valley Road. I was the only photographer on the bridge waiting for the train.

Coming with a head of steam over Columbia Run along Riverview Road north of Boston Mill on Saturday. On Sunday a Peninsula cop keep railfan photographers off the grassy area where this image was made.

The first southbound run of the day on Saturday morning is underway as the 765 skirts the Cuyahoga River near the Canal Exploration Center.

Taking the Farkas Challenge: Final Akron Memory

How does one end a challenge? Some would end it simply by thanking those who took the challenge, but that is not enough.

How do I thank some of you for moving out of your comfort zones? You may never have posted on the Akron Railroad Club blog prior to the challenge.

It took both hard work to get your image right and courage to write the blog entry. You did it once, you can do it again (and again and again.) You have so much to share, so please continue to do so.

For others, you have contributed to the blog before the challenge. Thank you for the time-machine glimpses of a past many of us haven’t lived.

You chose an image for the challenge, wrote the entry, and again brought Akron’s past back to life. Keep up your blog entries.

Thank you, Craig, for putting this together in your own unique way. For some members, you were their voice when they had no words.

Last of all, I’d like to thank the readers of this blog. Each of us who participated in the challenge touched your lives with a photo or memory, and you touched our lives with your comments both spoken and written.

Here is one last memory. It is June 27, 1983, at the Norfolk & Western (ex-Akron, Canton & Youngstown) yard, and Nickel Plate Road No. 765 is preparing to leave for Fort Wayne.

The past, present, and (hopefully) the future meet in this image. What memories this brings. When I first started railfanning, this was the N&W’s ex-AC&Y engine facility and blue or yellow FMs and ALCOs still lettered for the AC&Y sat ready to move the tires and other freight Akron was known for producing in the mid-1960’s.

Friendships were started. Thanks to ARRC member Paul Woodring and Mark Perri, I had a chance to see NKP 765’s first public showing under steam in September 1979. We even had short cab rides.

Who would have believed that NKP 765 wouldn’t become a stranger but would instead grace many days of the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad’s Steam in the Valley excursions, but she has done so and is scheduled to do the same this year.

The names have changed from AC&Y to N&W to Norfolk Southern and finally to Wheeling & Lake Erie.

The paint schemes have changed even more, but the fun of railfanning and the great friendships brought on by it haven’t changed at all.

Thanks again to all of you. By the way, does anyone have a new challenge?

Article and Photograph by Robert Farkas