A Reading Ramble Across the Midwest

A pair of Norfolk Southern heritage units - NS 1067, Reading and NS 8104, Lehigh Valley - enjoyed an odyssey across the upper Midwest in July following the "family get together" at Spencer Shops in North Carolina.  First they went to Detroit, Michigan, then Lincoln, Nebraska, next to Laurel, Montana, then Dilworth, Minnesota where they were broken up.  The Reading unit then went to Kansas City and then to Louisville, Kentucky.  The Lehigh Valley unit went to Chicago and then to North Carolina. 

This posting all started with a couple of emails alerting us to this "Reading Ramble."  First here is a portion of one of those emails, then a series of pictures of this odyssey. 

Here's a sweet-evening-light view of this latest 'Reading Rambler' and 'Valley Voyager' (See the 5th photo from Fairmont, NE).  By deciding to 'Go West' on vacation in a big way, might the 'Queen Bee' and 'Valley Girl' already be earning their second nicknames? Note that all four locomotives are coupled elephant-style.

Speaking of elephants, imagine this Color Riot consist of power leading either of the two Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus trains...'Reading on the Ringling'. Hey, stranger things have already happened in just the past two weeks...like this intrepid duo that seems to have arisen from the dusty pages of the old "Rail Northeast" magazine, appearing in fresh paint on new units in places like NC and NE this month! (It is a dry July and Ol' Queenie has always been leading, as there is not yet even any RR crossing diamond / highway grade crossing mud-pump splatter on her shiny plow pilot!)



The first leg of this journey saw the Reading and Lehigh Valley units taking a coal train to the Detroit area after the family gathering in North Carolina.

7/9/12 North of Bucyrus, OH, photo by Kyle Ori

Next, they took an train of empty coal hoppers to Lincoln, Nebraska.

7/12/12 La Salle, MI, photo by Aaron J. Border

7/12/12 South Rockwood, MI by Aaron J. Border

7/14/12 Burlington, IA by FJ Grizel

At Lincoln, NE they were put in charge of a BNSF general merchandise train bound for Laurel, Montana, which is about 10 miles west of Billings, MT.  They traveled across Nebraska, across a corner of Colorado, and then through Wyoming to Montana.

7/15/12 Fairmont, NE by Luke Lohrmeyer

7/16/12 near Benkelman, NE (SW corner of NE), photographer unknown

7/16/12 NE/CO state line along US 34, photo by Kirk Orndorff

7/16/12 Yuma, CO, photo by Kirk Orndorff

7/17/12 near Peetz, CO, photo by Chip

At Laurel, MT, the ramblin' pair were sent to Dilworth, MN, on another BNSF train.  Dilworth is just across the state line from Fargo, ND.   I have no pictures from this leg of the journey.  At Dilworth the pair of NS heritage units were split up.  The Reading unit was put on a train to Kansas City.

7/22/12 Perham, MN, photo by Matt Hagfors

7/24/12 Kansas City, KS, photo by Zach Pumphery

Meanwhile, the Lehigh Valley unit was put on an intermodal train bound for the Chicago area.  Then it was put in charge of a NS grain train bound for North Carolina.

7/22/12 La Crosse, WI, photo by Dennis Weber

7/24/12 Hammond, IN, photo by Matthew Ginkel

7/27/12 Pelham, NC, photo by Khalil Poole

Finally, the Reading unit was returned to NS in Kansas City and sent east to the Louisville, KY area where it was put to work on coal trains.

7/27/12 St. Charles, MO, photo by Jake Branson

7/29/12 Danville, KY by Gage O’Dell