Tim Stockwell
The Maine Objective
I got home last night from a 3-day trip to Maine to match up with Caleb Wentzell to shoot the final days of Pan Am before CSX takes over on June 1st. I'm normally not one for multi-day trips, and as Caleb could tell you I hemmed and hawed a lot before finally deciding to go (with my wife's blessing, of course). But, though I had shot SAPPI-3 and MD-1 in 2008 and 2009 with GP9s (and at least one trailing GP7), that was it for my Guilford/Pan Am coverage east of Wells. So, as I figured, it was now or never...
On Day 1 (Monday, May 16th), I left home in New York around 0600 and was able to catch a POAY with four, blue C40-8s at North Berwick on my way to Waterville (where our motel was). But, that wasn't new territory for me, so a "one and done" and I was back on the road headed for Waterville. Just as I came to where the former Maine Central "Upper Road" crosses under I-95 in Auburn, however, my eye caught slowly-moving boxcars, and then three, blue GP40s pulling the train. I had stumbled upon PORU, so I would for sure be making a detour before continuning to Waterville. A somewhat backlit shot of them crossing the Androscoggin River in Lewiston followed, as well as one more shot at a crossing east of there. When they got to Danville Junction, they of course sat, then sat some more. Apparently MOW was on the tracks in Leeds and needed to clear up first.
By the time they got moving again, full sun was gone, but some filtered sun still made things okay. One of my favorites from this PORU chase was here at Leeds. With open engine compartment doors and smoke pouring out of the trailing 381, to me it was a perfect picture to represent the tail end of the Guilford/Pan Am era!
ST Train PORU
Leeds, Maine
May 16, 2022
The Maine Objective
I got home last night from a 3-day trip to Maine to match up with Caleb Wentzell to shoot the final days of Pan Am before CSX takes over on June 1st. I'm normally not one for multi-day trips, and as Caleb could tell you I hemmed and hawed a lot before finally deciding to go (with my wife's blessing, of course). But, though I had shot SAPPI-3 and MD-1 in 2008 and 2009 with GP9s (and at least one trailing GP7), that was it for my Guilford/Pan Am coverage east of Wells. So, as I figured, it was now or never...
On Day 1 (Monday, May 16th), I left home in New York around 0600 and was able to catch a POAY with four, blue C40-8s at North Berwick on my way to Waterville (where our motel was). But, that wasn't new territory for me, so a "one and done" and I was back on the road headed for Waterville. Just as I came to where the former Maine Central "Upper Road" crosses under I-95 in Auburn, however, my eye caught slowly-moving boxcars, and then three, blue GP40s pulling the train. I had stumbled upon PORU, so I would for sure be making a detour before continuning to Waterville. A somewhat backlit shot of them crossing the Androscoggin River in Lewiston followed, as well as one more shot at a crossing east of there. When they got to Danville Junction, they of course sat, then sat some more. Apparently MOW was on the tracks in Leeds and needed to clear up first.
By the time they got moving again, full sun was gone, but some filtered sun still made things okay. One of my favorites from this PORU chase was here at Leeds. With open engine compartment doors and smoke pouring out of the trailing 381, to me it was a perfect picture to represent the tail end of the Guilford/Pan Am era!
ST Train PORU
Leeds, Maine
May 16, 2022