Amador Central # 8 with 4 loads crossing Foothill Road near Ione, CA
Nearing the end of the descent from the mill at Martel with three boxcars of finished wood products and a car of wood chips, 44-tonner number 8 and crew are rounding the curve that takes them across Foothill Road amongst blue oaks, coyote brush and manzanita, vegetation typical of the heavy clay soils in the area. While clay mines were an important source of traffic for the SP Ione (pronounced ("eye-own") branch in earlier times, the Amador Central was mostly supported by lumber traffic.
Amador Central # 8 with 4 loads crossing Foothill Road near Ione, CA
Nearing the end of the descent from the mill at Martel with three boxcars of finished wood products and a car of wood chips, 44-tonner number 8 and crew are rounding the curve that takes them across Foothill Road amongst blue oaks, coyote brush and manzanita, vegetation typical of the heavy clay soils in the area. While clay mines were an important source of traffic for the SP Ione (pronounced ("eye-own") branch in earlier times, the Amador Central was mostly supported by lumber traffic.