An important unremarkable train

I was telecommuting on Thursday (10/24/07) and had to get the oil changed in the mighty railfanning minivan. The crossing gates came down on Marina Bay Parkway grade crossing in time for me to stop. The RPRC “inner” crew were heading back into the 23rd Street yard with a handful of cars. While I waited at the crossing I snapped some reference shots through the passenger window.

I like to capture everyday routine details to document the operations of this line. Years from now, when things have changed, or I have moved away (hopefully not!) these posts will be good to have. Modeling is about recreating the average, not the extremes. I have often regretted not capturing the ordinary stuff on prior railfanning forays. I hope you find these sorts of shots useful too!

Here’s the sequence. RPRC 2285, running cab first pulled forward at 5mph.

I marvel at this caboose every time I see it, especially so close to home.

The cars that followed are not at all remarkable so I snapped away! Some day in the future, this little move will be replicated on my N Scale layout.

Note the dulled colors. The trucks and wheels are a combination of rust and dirt weathering, Note also the steel rod connecting the end platforms to the ladder.

Here’s the first of a couple of boxcars. They’re not too badly tagged, nicely dulled and with slight dark staining from runoff from the roof.

Then the Golden West Service boxcar. The old girl is nicely faded, particularly around the logo and has some dark patches nearer the roof line from roof runoff washing down the sides of the car between the weld lines. Note also the blue patch on the lower left corner of the car side where reporting marks have been restored over the graffiti.

Bringing up the rear was another UP boxcar. This one has black patching on its left corner over the tagging.

The cars are all being brought over from the UP interchange and are probably heading to the auto distribution center on Cutting Blvd near Canal Blvd. The location is reached via a short trackage rights run along the BNSF Siberia Lead. The whole train is very simple, yet very characteristic of the types of comings and goings along this track. Here’s the last view of the train heading into the 23rd street yard over the switch connecting to the BNSF Siberia Lead.

As the train cleared the crossing, a BNSF crewman was waiting at the Siberia switch ready to line the Warm Springs train toward Oakland.

Comments

[Mike (FergusonTE)]

Thanks for sharing! There are a lot of pictures of locomotives but not enough of rolling stock, structures, signs, railbeds, etc. Keep up the work. It will be valuable to someone someday. :)

-mike

[Steve Cox]

Thanks Mike,

Things always seem so permanent...until you look back a few years!!

- Coxy