Working rail roads and their tracks.

[ArlyA]

Looks like a swtich engine. These are small engines designed to push cars around yards.

 

[MossRoad]

 

[gstrom99]

Looks like a swtich engine. These are small engines designed to push cars around yards.

Across the pond, too. It has those goofy "bumpers".

 

[bcp]

Variation on the theme:

Bruce

 

[bcp]

Happens in the US, too.

Bruce
Bruce

 

[gstrom99]

Happens in the US, too.

View attachment 783524

View attachment 783532


Bruce
Bruce

"Lock the switch? Oh yeah, I'm sure they did..."

 

[MossRoad]

Up at St. Joe., Michigan today for a nice walk. There's a RR track that parallels the beach trail. I noticed earlier that the swing bridge was closed across the river. Usually it's open unless a train is coming. It is usually just Amtrak passenger trains twice a day. Once I saw a short local freight on it. But today, we saw this, a coal train. A loooooong coal train. Single engine at the front, and a pusher at the rear. We do not see that very often around here at all, as it is so flat. But I'll guess it was well over 200 cars long.

Coming


The end


Going

 

[BravoXray]

Up at St. Joe., Michigan today for a nice walk. There's a RR track that parallels the beach trail. I noticed earlier that the swing bridge was closed across the river. Usually it's open unless a train is coming. It is usually just Amtrak passenger trains twice a day. Once I saw a short local freight on it. But today, we saw this, a coal train. A loooooong coal train. Single engine at the front, and a pusher at the rear. We do not see that very often around here at all, as it is so flat. But I'll guess it was well over 200 cars long.

Coming
View attachment 783647

The end
View attachment 783646

Going
View attachment 783648

Was it going north or south?

 

[MossRoad]

Was it going north or south?

North

 

[MossRoad]

Was it going north or south?

The only place it could have come from is Chesterton, IN. I've seen similar trains go through New Buffalo, MI, but there is no way for those tracks to connect to each other except Chesterton.

The only next town north where there's a split is Hartford, MI., but that dies to the east, and the other fork continues up to Holland, MI., then splits east to Grand Rapids, MI, and north towards Port Sheldon, MI and there's a large coal power plant there. So I'm guessing it's heading there.