WE SD40-2 No. 6350 has entered the eastbound Norfolk Southern main in the NS yard in Canton on April 13, 2012. The crew will bring the train east and then back up into the NS yard to interchange cars. The 6350 was built for Canadian Pacific and later rebuilt by Alstom.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
A pair of Wheeling & Lake Erie GP35-3 locomotives, Nos.100 and 102 are at the east end of the yard in Brewster on Nov. 10, 2016. Both units were once owned by the Southern Railway with the 102 once having served the Central of Georgia. The Wheeling rebuilt the 100 in July 2000 while the 102 was rebuilt in December 2000. The 100 carries the name Lynn R. Shook under its cab.
hotograph by Robert Farkas
Wheeling & Lake Erie GP40-3 No. 301 sports a Denver & Rio Grande Western look as it teams up with SD40-2 No. 6381 to pull a train across the diamond with the R.J. Corman line east of Brewster on March 18, 2010. Since this image was made the 301 has been repainted into the standard W&LE “tiger stripe livery” of black and orange.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Wheeling & Lake Erie SD40-3 No. 3102 and former Wisconsin Central SD45 No. 1718 lead an eastbound freight sitting in the W&LE yard in Brewster on July 1, 1996. The 3102 was originally an SD40 built for the Missouri Pacific and in this photograph still sports its MoPac “Jenks Blue” livery. It was subsequently sold to WC/Oxford Leasing and leased to the Wheeling in 1982. Where the MoPac “buzzsaw” herald used to be are the letters WC. The 3102 was rebuilt by the Wheeling in February 2002.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Wheeling & Lake Erie SD40-2 No. 6347 is by the Akron Barberton Cluster Railway engine house in Barberton on June 13, 2012, in the top image.
In the bottom image, two Wheeling GP35s, No. 100 and WE 101, the latter being the Pittsburgh & West Virginia tribute unit, are waiting to leave ABC tracks and enter CSX tracks near Lambert on the CSX New Castle Subdivision in Akron on April 25, 2012.
Having interchanged cars with the ABC, the train will head east on CSX using trackage rights until the W&LE interchange track where they will go east to the W&LE Akron Subdivision to get to Brittain Yard in Akron.
Article and Photographs by Robert Farkas
Here are three images made in Akron on July 30, 2022. In the top image, Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad FPA-4 No. 6771 is southbound approaching Akron Northside Station as the train crosses over the remains of the Ohio and Erie Canal.
In the middle image, the 6777 is is being towed south and will be the lead unit on the northbound trip.
In the bottom image Wheeling & Lake Erie SD40-2 No. 7006 is on the connecting track between CSX and the W&LE. In a few minutes the former CEFX unit will pull forward bringing its train onto the Wheeling. Then it will back down to Brittain Yard.
The Wheeling acquired the 7006 in December 2015 and quickly pressed it into revenue service.
Photographs by Robert Farkas
Today’s two for Tuesday features a pair of Wheeling & Lake Erie trains in Spencer from April 12, 2014. Both units worked for EMD leasing before winding up on the Wheeling where they ran around for years in their blue and white EMD livery. Both locomotives are SD40-2 models. The 6314 is still on the Wheeling motive power roster and still wearing the livery seen above. The 6382 is off the Wheeling’s roster.
Photographs by Robert Farkas
It is late afternoon on Oct; 21, 2007, in New London, Ohio. It is the type of day I live for in the fall with sunny skies, low sun angles and warm colors in the late afternoon sunlight.
I’ve gotten wind that a westbound is coming on the Carey Subdivision of the Wheeling & Lake Erie and have stationed myself on the Bigelow Parkway bridge that spans the W&LE tracks as well as those of the Greenwich Subdivision of CSX.
On the point of the train is high hood GP35 No. 2679, which at the time was painted in the bright red and gold livery some fans dubbed the Kodachrome scheme.
The crew leaves its train on the main and cuts off the power to pull ahead. It then backs into the siding to drop off SD40T-2 No. 5413, one of the Wheeling’s handful of tunnel motors still painted for its former Denver & Rio Grande Western owner.
After that the crew couples the 2679 back onto its train and then awaits the permission of the CSX dispatcher to enter the Greenwich Subdivision to continue its journey to Willard to interchange with the Class 1 carrier.
Article and Photographs by Craig Sanders
Wheeling & Lake Erie GP35-3 No. 112 is heading west on CSX in Akron toward Barberton to interchange cars on Feb. 28, 2012.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Last Saturday was a nice day weather wise but I didn’t have a specific plan for railfanning.
I went to Berea and then saw on social media that an eastbound Wheeling & Lake Erie train was powered by the Rio Grande tunnel motor pair.
I drove to Wellington in hopes of catching it. I then saw it was still waiting for a crew so I drove to Bellevue following the line just in case.
I got there about 11 a.m. and found them sitting outside of town where I took these photos. I stayed at the railfan platform hoping they would get a crew and then chase them east.
Another Wheeling train from Norwalk showed up about 3:30 p.m. and went into the Norfolk Southern yard.
I took photos of that, also. I waited until dark but, sadly, no crew ever showed up so I drove home.
Later I found out that the other Wheeling train combined the trains together on the return to Norwalk.
W&LE 5412 was formerly Rio Grande 5391 but was renumbered last winter. Sister unit 5413 retains its original Rio Grande unit number.
I also can confirm that NS is indeed using the hump at Bellevue yard again.
Article and Photographs by Todd Dillon
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