Photo of the Week: 1/21/2011

It's another Friday, which means it's time for another photo! I was busy last weekend and missed the photo, I apologize for that. However, I have two photos to share this week.

The first photo is not one of mine, so I will not post it directly here. Click here to see it. This is a photo of part of the deadline in Waterville, Maine, approximately 20 years ago. The two locomotives in the photo are Maine Central S1 950 on the left and 958 on the right. I can make a very good guess as to what became of the 950, but it is the 958 that I would like to talk about today. Without much further ado, here is my photo for this week:

This is the same locomotive, the 958, working for the Plymouth and Lincoln Railroad (PLRR, the official name of both the Hobo Railroad and the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad) in November 2009. Every November, the PLRR runs a Toys for Tots train, not where they distribute gifts, but for people who have donated to the charity. The train runs on a Sunday afternoon at the end of November, originating at Laconia depot and running just past the Lakeport drawbridge, about two miles away. That November, I decided to chase the train along its short route, because there are several decent photo locations in that short stretch but trains are rare and hard to keep up with. Because three of them were running that day, I was able to get photos at all the places I wanted.

This photo is of the train crossing Elm Street in Lakeport on its way back to Laconia. The old Lakeport freight house is behind the fire station on the right, but is not visible in this photo. The train's consist was the 958; two ex-MBTA RDCs, or "Boise Budds" because they were rebuilt into de-motored coaches in Boise; two ex-Lackawanna heavyweight coaches that were used in commuter service in the New York area; and a caboose equipped with headlights, ditch lights, and a plow that the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad often uses for reverse moves.

This same locomotive also pulled my train from Lincoln to Meredith when I rode the fall foliage excursion back in September.