RailFest in Altoona, Pa., This Weekend

[GonzoCRFan]

Wow, that video is pretty funny. What's even funnier is only myself and Lee know what an infinitesimally small fraction of my Ed-rant was actually included on that video. Because that tiny blurb was about the only part that didn't contain language that was highly unsuitable for this (or any) forum...

I'm in the process of transferring and editing the 3 GB of photos I took over the 3 days. I'll have them online eventually, sometimes after one of my partners in crime checks the NS computers and churns out a full train report.

[keystonecrossings]

Some photos from "Lee and Jerry's Most Excellent Adventure"...

It started Friday night with Lee coming to my place. Here he is setting up that shot of his Penn Central units on my Sherman's Creek bridge...


Saturday morning he and I, with sons in tow, headed to mecca (Altoona). There we hooked up with Max. As mentioned, ED DIDN'T SHOW!!! We railfaned in Altoona, then on to the Curve, then to Cresson at the summit. We grabbed dinner at Sheetz and then I took Lee to our annual camping spot... Cassandra.

Cassandra is about six miles west of the summit of the mountain crossing. It's a tiny town with an old highway bridge that remains after a new bypass was built in the 1930s. The town maintains the bridge and a small park just for railfans. The right of way was built by the Pennsy in the 1850s. It is now down to three tracks, from four. Here's a shot of the bridge, taken from the park area...


From the bridge, looking downhill and west, you can see about three miles. Westbounds fly by but eastbounds can take as long as 10 minutes to get to the bridge from as far away as you can see. Here are the approaching restored Pennsy E units. Despite the credit shown, it was actually shot by my son...


From the bridge, looking uphill and east, the line continues to climb and curves left out of sight...


From the bridge, here is a look at the park... the "grassy knoll" as I call it...


A look from behind the camp...


"Lee, put away the train porn... there's a real train right in front of you!"...


It doesn't get much better than this... main line action, jams and sandals on, a recliner, hot coffee, and sausage on the barbie!


81 trains in 24.5 hours. Wow!

Even Lee admitted, "This is the best train watching spot I've ever been to."

[Lenny53]

 It is now down to four tracks, from three.

I don't get the new math ???

[wm3798]

 Lenny, that's how the equation works when Jerry neglects to include the empty beer bottle quotient... ;D

In the picture with the lap top I was actually editing the Ed video...

Lee

[Ed Kapuscinski]

BTW Lee, I want the whole Sean rant.

[SquirrelHollow]

Great pictures,  great work on the video, great layout.  I'm glad everyone had a good time.


If I hadn't been working, (and lived 700 miles closer) I would have tried to make it.

Oh well.... maybe this week, I can afford a drive to the Milton RR Museum near me.  Been here 5 years now - never even laid eyes on the building.

[wm3798]

Sean wouldn't mind me sharing, but the rules of gentlemanly behavior prevents me from posting it where anyone else can get their hands on it.  Maybe I'll try uploading the file to your website...  Then again, perhaps it will be posted publicly unless a brown bag full of Atlas fishbelly hoppers, in speedlettering of course, is left under the mailbox at the corner of High and Locust Street in Cambridge before 5 pm tomorrow...  And there better not be any cops.

Robert, 700 hundred 7 shmundred.  Next time the video might be at your expense ;D
Lee

[keystonecrossings]

 It is now down to four tracks, from three.

I don't get the new math ???

Oooops! Thanks... fixed.

[keystonecrossings]

And now for an entirely different type of video from RailFest...

[SquirrelHollow]

And now for an entirely different type of video from RailFest...

/>

Lol

[John]

I bet there were a bunch of old fat guys at the top of the hill running from one end of the park to the other trying to find the train

[wm3798]

Call me a traditionalist, but I thought the clown with the horn on his car was an idiot.

Especially since he took up two parking spaces with his truck when he wasn't out bleating.
Lee

[Bob Bufkin]

Lee

He post over on the Yahoo PRR list and goes by the name of Ed K.
Bob

[GonzoCRFan]

Call me a traditionalist, but I thought the clown with the horn on his car was an idiot.

Especially since he took up two parking spaces with his truck when he wasn't out bleating.
Lee

Heh, if YOU weren't too fond of him, imagine hearing that a$$hole driving up and down the valley in the middle of the night blaring those horns while we tried to sleep atop the Curve. We got so fed up with him, that we ended up calling the cops Saturday night.  >

[wm3798]

Egads, another Ed K?

I hope he doesn't mistake my video as an homage to him and not our own erstwhile Ed K....

Lee