Jackson Alexander
Wrong Kind of Salt for the Current Situation
The Rochester & Southern has always been an interesting railroad to me. The second acquired property of the Genesee and Wyoming corporation as it's known today, the R&S was the first major toe-dip into the big leagues for GWI back in 1986. The little railroad that ran salt out of Retsof became a giant overnight it seemed from that point on, making acquisition after acquisition. Their purchase of the BR&P line from Rochester to Ashford Jct. didn't last all that long in its full length, with the line being torn out south of Silver Springs shortly after. As much as that sucks, the surviving portions are still neat and money makers in their own right.
Last time I was around, the railroad ran to the salt mine in Mt. Morris during the day and ran the turn to Silver Springs at night in the warmer months and swapped the schedule in the winter. Naturally, being the better line for a photographer, I was interested in the winter chases down to Silver Springs. On this day, a cold but snowless morning and early afternoon gave way to a powerful snowstorm once they hit Silver Springs. There was so much white around you'd think you were at a rodeo in Arkansas. This obviously led to some incredible pictures but no northbound chase as it was getting dark and the roads were not safe to keep up with a train on.
Thankfully however, the railroad has the rights to serve Morton Salt in Silver Springs, which gave me a little more photography opportunities than a simple interchange swap would. While I could have used some salt on the roads at the moment, we were at the wrong salt customer on this railroad for that. The salt they're concerned with at Morton usually ends up on your table, not under your tires. Nonetheless I was able to hop around the small town as they made their moves. The spur down into the plant is a ridiculous grade, made obvious by the four units descending into the background of the image here. I can only imagine how fun it was to crawl back out onto the main for the crew that day. I bet they wouldn't have minded having some salt of their own on the rails.
After a few more shots I tiptoed my way home through a wall of white with an SD card full of goodies. What a fun end to the day that was.
Wrong Kind of Salt for the Current Situation
The Rochester & Southern has always been an interesting railroad to me. The second acquired property of the Genesee and Wyoming corporation as it's known today, the R&S was the first major toe-dip into the big leagues for GWI back in 1986. The little railroad that ran salt out of Retsof became a giant overnight it seemed from that point on, making acquisition after acquisition. Their purchase of the BR&P line from Rochester to Ashford Jct. didn't last all that long in its full length, with the line being torn out south of Silver Springs shortly after. As much as that sucks, the surviving portions are still neat and money makers in their own right.
Last time I was around, the railroad ran to the salt mine in Mt. Morris during the day and ran the turn to Silver Springs at night in the warmer months and swapped the schedule in the winter. Naturally, being the better line for a photographer, I was interested in the winter chases down to Silver Springs. On this day, a cold but snowless morning and early afternoon gave way to a powerful snowstorm once they hit Silver Springs. There was so much white around you'd think you were at a rodeo in Arkansas. This obviously led to some incredible pictures but no northbound chase as it was getting dark and the roads were not safe to keep up with a train on.
Thankfully however, the railroad has the rights to serve Morton Salt in Silver Springs, which gave me a little more photography opportunities than a simple interchange swap would. While I could have used some salt on the roads at the moment, we were at the wrong salt customer on this railroad for that. The salt they're concerned with at Morton usually ends up on your table, not under your tires. Nonetheless I was able to hop around the small town as they made their moves. The spur down into the plant is a ridiculous grade, made obvious by the four units descending into the background of the image here. I can only imagine how fun it was to crawl back out onto the main for the crew that day. I bet they wouldn't have minded having some salt of their own on the rails.
After a few more shots I tiptoed my way home through a wall of white with an SD card full of goodies. What a fun end to the day that was.