The best colors in years..Fall on the 2nd and 3rd districts

[E.M. Bell]

Finally, conditions have been almost perfect this year, bringing some one of the best fall color seasons that KY and TN have seen for a long while. Here are a series of pics from 10/21/06 during a trip South on the CNO&TP. Fog, lots of sunlight and good color, and a busy railroad mad efor a most enjoyable day. Caleb has already covered the highlights, so I will just share my results from the day. Clicking on any of the thumbs will get you a larger image, should you deem any of these worthy...

Intermodal 216 in a moody fog shot at Gradison KY. Shooting in conditions like this are tricky to say the least, but I was pleased with these...



Moments later, 25A comes North on #2 track.



The morning fog decided to hang around for a long while.  We got lucky and stumbled onto a patch of sunlight and great color near Parkers lake.

Train 230 at Parkers Lake Ky



NS 282, once again at Parkers Lake. Even a GE looks good with a background like this!



After we got down into TN, the fog came back as we gained elevation. A slew of Southbounds where holed up around Onidea waiting on a broken rail to be repaired and a fleet of Northbounds to clear. Here is 177 at Robbins TN.



Northbound 144 leaps across the New River shortly after the fog dissappeared..



Train 175 seems to always get older power, and this version was no exception. A C39-8 and a SD40-2T renta-wreck on 175 at Glenn Mary Tn.



167 has his entire train in the long tangent at Sunbright TN, as seen from the Pea Ridge bridge.



From what we could gather on the radio, a lot of trains where stacking up in Oakdale waiting on new crews. We headed on South and set up camp at CP Strange, just South of Harriman TN. in the span of a hour we get Three trains.

Northbound 174 tiptoes through the Kudzu at Strange.



After making a setout at South Waters, NS 177 rolls through the interlocker at Strange.



Following close behind 177 was a 285.



After a hearty lunch at the Harrdee's, we stopped at the small yard at Emory Gap Tn to shoot a 223. Good power for once!



Moving on just a mile or so North, we shot 175 again as it began it trip across the 3rd district. Here he is at CP Mcoy..not a scenic shot, but the old C39's are getting short on time, so I will take what I can get with them



The whole time we had been around Harriman, the Knoxville West DS had been talking to and about a 890 coal train on the K&O.. He had been rusting to the rail at the siding at Blair, waiting on a 167 to get by him. We went up the K&O a little ways and shoot him near Caney Creek Tn. A Dirty Bird and Two NS motors are on the point, with a pair of NS GE's shoving hard on the rear.



After a quick crew change at Devonia street in Harriman, 890 eased across the K&O connection towards the CNO&TP mainline. We found a little park along the Emory river and shoot him as he crosses the spindley looking bridge across the river in downtown Harriman.



The last shot of the day was 890 once again. Here, he is easing up the TVA lead at Emory gap, headed for the Kingston Steam Plant.