Trainwatching Sites
ARDEN (March 1, 1999)
South of Asheville, and indeed, just south of Skyland, is the small town of Arden, which is the site of a junction off the Ashville-Hendersonville-Saluda line, over to the Skyland Power Plant. Since it looks like such an obvious place to watch trains, at least on the Steam Powered Video's railroad maps, you might be tempted to try to get there. Forget it. Fred says the junction is visible from a local street bridge (Rosscragon or Rathfarnum or some such street), and getting down to the junction would require a good hike over some rough territory. Remember, this is mountain territory, with squeezed in railroading, and nice big open junctions on a map often don't pan out on the ground. Stick to Asheville.
Fred Burton, a model and prototype railnut was kind enough to share these goodies with us.
CAMERON (980724)
While a mere shadow of its pre-CSX truncated days, the ex-SAL line thru Cameron still sees 3 trains (total) per day, according to knowledgeable locals. What you will notice while driving thru this most picturesque little town on NC 24/27 is that the station is now longer by the tracks. What you might miss is that the building still stands, and parallels the highway about one block west of the tracks. It's not pretty, but still carries proudly the "CAMERON" name on the west end of the building. Check it out.
CANDOR-- MOUNTAIRE (November 22, 2001)
From the junction of the I-73/I-74/US-220 and NC-211, go east on NC-211 towards Pinehurst. You literally cannot miss the Mountaire and Perdue chicken feed storage complexes -- they're literally the biggest and tallest structures around for many, many miles. The first facility is that of the Mountaire company. There are 2 entrances, one for the office area and one for the elevator/milling area itself. The office area has no viewing of anything other than pine trees, and the industrial area is off limits to railfans. Therefore, you'll want to drive (east) past the elevators, and you'll very shortly see the spur going off the ACWR leading back into the plant. Park off the road, and look down the spur, and you'll probably see cars and an engine.
The plant gets unit trains from CSX, and moves them into the area using leased GP40-2 series widecabs. The trains are pretty big for a small shortline, and they're impressive to watch. Stay out of the Mountaire property. Your best bet is to contact the ACWR up at Star in advance of your visit, and try to determine when a train is scheduled down to or back from the plant.
CANDOR-- PERDUE (November 22, 2001)
From the junction of the I-73/I-74/US-220 and NC-211, go east on NC-211 towards Pinehurst. Just east of the Mountaire facility is the Perdue elevator, milling, and processing complex. While the elevators don't have the size and capacity of the newer Mountaire facility, they're still very large, and require dozens and dozens of 100-ton hoppers to keep them "fed". Pass the sign/entrance to the mill area, and continue east on NC-211 until the ACWR tracks bend towards the southeast. Take the right turn here onto Spicewood Road. Spicewood parallels the ACWR and the yard tracks serving the elevators. Because of the NW-SE bias of the tracks, photos are good here all day, especially since there is a public road over the ACWR at the southeast end of the Perdue property. There is also, once past the tracks on this latter road, there is a private road going into the complex.
There is often an engine here, and photos are no problem at "quiet times", but do not trespass on Perdue property.
CHARLOTTE -- CARGILL (November 2004)
This spot is on a vestigial remainder of what once was the secondary main from Charlotte south to Columbia, and was known as the R-Line (see a tour of the Piedmont Division south and west of Charlotte). When the construction of Charlotte Junction relocated the R-Line further to the west, there was a stretch of track south from Charlotte Yard that was abandoned. However, tracks from a railroad point "Griffith", in the vicinity of Bourbon Street, north to South Side/Atherton Mill, was retained, as significant industry adjoined them. This location is a nice spot to watch the railroad work one of the largest railroad customers in the area, a Cargill facility.
From I-77, take exit 6, and head east on Woodlawn Road West. Don't make a mistake and go west, which is Billy Graham Parkway towards the airport. After several long blocks, you'll get to Old Pineville Road and the vicinity of the tracks and Cargill. Take a right onto Old Pineville, and head maybe a half mile south to the vicinity of the plant. The area just north of the plant has an open, mown area between a parking pull-off and the tracks. Charlotte is in the process of building a light rail line along the original R-Line, and this location will someday be a lot busier than it is now. That said, some 30 cars or so are switched during the day (except Sunday), so there is plenty of activity to watch for those interested in how a railroad really works.
Thanks to Todd Hetrick for this interesting railfan location.
CHARLOTTE -- CSX PINOCA YARD (March 13, 1999)
This is the CSX yard facility in Charlotte, and it seems to be bursting at the seams! It officially begins at the end of the Tryon siding's west end, and extends westward for a few miles to the beginning of the Thrift block. To get here, drive west on Rozzelle's Ferry Road from Tryon siding (see below) to the vicinity of Manley Street. All along this drive (and indeed all the way out to where Rozzelle's Ferry becomes Mt. Holly Road, and then on to the junction of the latter with NC-27 (which goes thru Frog Pond 55 miles to the east!!!!)), you will have the railroad/railroad yard/railroad on your left. An excellent drive, but there is a lot of highway traffic, and you really can't get pix along here without putting yourself in danger of being splattered by a tank truck or crazed teenager in a low-rider.
The yard and activity within it are difficult to see for several reasons. In-coming and out-going trains often block virtually the entire yard from view. The former Piedmont & Northern tracks and yard area are being used by CSX as siding tracks and yard tracks, respectively, and it's complicated, to say the least. There are usually a few yard engines present, but they, too, are often blocked from viewing from Rozzelle's Ferry Road. You are better off viewing action at Tryon siding to the east or Mt. Holly to the west (see both).
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location.
CHARLOTTE -- BOURBON STREET (December 13, 2001)
From I-77 in the south part of the city, take exit 5 and go east on Tyvola Road. The first set of tracks you encounter will be those of the "new" line from Bourbon Street up to Charlotte Junction and the Piedmont Division main line. When you get to Old Pineville Road, take a right and go back over these tracks. You'll shortly come to Bourbon Street (a very small street). Take a left and park.
In years gone by, Columbia - Charlotte traffic came here and went straight north to the Charlotte yard area. To reduce downtown congestion, a new connection was put in which goes well to the west of Charlotte to Charlotte Junction. These are the tracks you've crossed twice. The old main goes for a ways north and ends. There is a mayonnaise plant on the old line, MoW stuff is sometimes parked here, and the circus train parks here when it's in town. Immediately north of Bourbon Street is where the new line diverges northwest from the old.
Craig xxxxxxxx provided the information for this posting.
CHARLOTTE -- CSX TRYON SIDING WEST END (March 13, 1999)
This is a relatively new (~1998) siding installed just west of the downtown crossing of the CSX and NS mainlines, and is east of Pinoca Yard. This siding helps relieve bottlenecks between these two "tight" places as the CSX (ex-SCL, exx-Seaboard Air Line) goes between Hamlet and Bostic. To get here, take NC-16 Brookshire Freeway west from I-77, and then go southwest on Hoskins Road. At Rozzelle's Ferry Road, take a right as if you were going back towards Charlotte. The west end of the siding will be on your left.
All Hamlet - Monroe - Bostic traffic flows thru here, and you should expect a train every 1-3 hours, but they can be bunched up, and traffic seems to be growing. This line is dispatched block-by-block verbally from Jacksonville, so a scanner will be a very big help. Note well that once any train departs Tryon siding toward Monroe, it will be at least 2 hours before anything from Monroe will get to Tryon siding, and then to Pinoca Yard.
There are excellent photo fields of view from both sides of the track, off railroad property. As far as security is concerned, this is an OK area to watch trains, but I always recommend taking buddies with you while railfanning in urban areas.
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location.
CHERRYVILLE (March 13, 1999)
From NC-150 downtown, go to the tracks on (ta-da!) Depot Street to the station. This is a nice station, and one which is classic Seaboard. There are minor signs of a rehab being undertaken, but these signs are, indeed, minor. All Hamlet - Monroe - Bostic traffic flows thru here, and you should expect a train every 1-3 hours, but they can be bunched up, and traffic seems to be growing. This line is dispatched block-by-block verbally from Jacksonville, so a scanner will be a very big help. There are excellent photo fields of view from both sides of the track, off railroad property. The "new" Cherryville siding is about a mile east of here. Meets are not uncommon there -- listen to your scanner.
Traffic here is a little heavier than at Tryon siding (see Charlotte -- CSX Tryon Siding West End, above), as unit coal trains off the ex-Clinchfield at Bostic come down to Duke Power plants located on the Terrell Subdivision (see Mount Holly, below). Note that the west end of the new Cherryville siding has a signal which conveys only information about the position of the points on the spring switch at that location -- it conveys NO INFORMATION REGARDING TRACK OCCUPANCY. For you folks with scanners, there is a radio relay at the depot, so transmissions will be particularly loud and clear (5x5, Army guys!) here.
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location.
ELIZABETH CITY (December 26, 2001)
Elizabeth City is a great place for vacationers. It's pretty much the gateway to Nags Head, Kitty Hawk and Cape Hatteras. For visitors to Tidewater Virginia, this is a nice day trip to get yourself out of the big city bustle. If you like fishing, you'll think you've died and gone to Heaven. The town itself is old and filled with some delightful buildings. A walking tour is in order, for sure.
Railroad-wise, the original Norfolk Southern Railway came south from Norfolk, went through Elizabeth City, crossed the Albemarle Sound between Waddill and Mackeys, and then went south to Washington and Chocowinity. Today, shortline operations are conducted by the Chesapeake and Albemarle, and there is a small engine facility in town. From US-17, turn onto West Church Street (signs will point to the County Fairgrounds). Cross the tracks, and then turn left at the C&A sign, which is about 2/10's of a mile from US-17. This is a dirt road, and you'll probably see a sign for 1500 Lexington.
Cross the tracks again, and the mobile home office building and engine inspection track are just to your right. When engines are on the inspection track, ideal light is about 10AM. There is no yard here, and the branch going south to Weeksville appears unused.
This material was adopted from information posted to the CarolinaRails yahoogroups list. Russell Underwood was the contributor.
ELKIN(September 25, 1998)
Immediately west of Exits 82 and 83 of I-77 in north central North Carolina, Elkin has a "yard" which is really a few long tracks in the downtown area. As with any shortline operation, I'd call ahead to get operations info (call to Rural Hall, NC). With the number of cars here (maybe 30-40), it's obvious there must be quite a bit of switching performed, and there are lots of good photo locations.
ELLENBORO(March 13, 1999)
A town which is small by most standards, this is a still a really nice place to see some trains and visit with some folks who don't think big is necessarily better. The depot is still standing, and is interesting in the way it looks bigger than it really is -- note the use of the overlapping siding on the east and west ends. All Hamlet - Monroe - Bostic traffic flows thru here, and you should expect a train every 1-3 hours, but they can be bunched up, and traffic seems to be growing. This line is dispatched block-by-block verbally from Jacksonville, so a scanner will be a very big help.
Get to Ellenboro by going east from Forest City on US-74 Business about 6-7 miles.
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location
FAYETTEVILLE -- RIVER TERMINAL (February 2005)
From the intersection of I-95Business and NC-87, go north on the NC-87 frontage road (Greer Avenue), and take the first right onto Old Wilmington Road. Go south to Frederick Avenue, take a left, go over the tracks, and then turn right. This road enters the Borden Chemical plant in about 50 yards. This general area is River Terminal, and it sees quite a bit of rail traffic. This is technically part of the Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad, not CSX or NS.
Expect AR to work the Terminal in the morning to mid-day, Monday-Friday, then take the outgoing cars to the yard in Fayetteville, interchange with NS and CSX, and then go back down to the Terminal. He will then spot the arriving cars, and usually ties up inside the plant area, away from access by fans.
We'd like to thank Warren Calloway for this information.
GIBSON(December 11, 1998)
A basically unremarked place on the railfan map, Gibson has two things going for it. This quite small town of a few hundred folks has a railroad station which seems to be about the size of most of the commercial buildings in the town put together. It has a normal sized passenger and agent's area (now the Police Department), but it has an outsized freight portion, which is long, long, long, and completely enclosed. Altogether, I think this station must be 200 feet long. The whole thing is painted a rather interesting yellow. It is quite an impressive structure in such a small town.
The line here, which is the CSX sub-main between Hamlet and Dillon, SC, is pretty curvaceous. There are some interesting curves in the town area itself which should yield some good pix for the thoughtful photographer. Should be fun, too.
GOLDSBORO (9411)
NS From the intersection of North George (Business US 70) and Vine, go east on Vine 1.5 blocks to the old Southern Freight Station. There is usually at least 1 engine here.
HENDERSONVILLE (December 23, 2004)
At Hendersonville, the former Asheville -- Spartanburg line goes north/south, while the Toxaway Branch goes off to the west. The line no longer is active south of Hendersonville, as the Saluda grade finally gave way to the bean counters, and is no more. The junction with the TR-Line, Toxaway Branch is at the station in town. A Frograil tour of the TR-Line is here. From I-26, take US-64 west into downtown. As you go over the tracks, the station is visible below. The station is located on 7th Street, and unfortunately has chain link fencing around it [Webauthor's note: which is a whole lot better than "...the site of the former station..."!!!], but there are some decent photo op locations in this vicinity.
In the depot itself, there is an active model railroad club which is open to the public Wednesdays noon-3PM, and Saturdays 9AM-noon.
INDIAN TRAIL (March 2, 2000)
This is a town, becoming a bedroom community now, between Charlotte and Monroe. Between those two latter cities, CSX (ex-SAL) runs from the Hamlet/Greenwood/Atlanta mainline to Charlotte/Bostic. There are perhaps 8-12 trains per 24 hours here, although traffic seems to have picked up lately. From US-74 (Independence Boulevard) and I-485, go east on US-74 until you get into the town of Indian Trail. Turn south onto Indian Trail Road, and keep going until you get to the tracks in the center of town.
Depending on the light, you can park northeast of the tracks, off Blythe Street, or cross the tracks and park on the northwest side of the tracks by turning immediately right into the village's town hall parking lot. Go all the way to the end of the lot, and there is a nice grassy area which will yield excellent photo ops. The track is dead straight here, and trains are not fast, so you should have good results.
Data from your Webmaster, and up-dated by Tony Sissons.
LATTIMORE (March 13, 1999)
A small town west of Shelby, and is reached via US-74 -- follow the signs to Lattimore. This is a very neat and clean town, and they've moved the depot a little west of it's original location. In it's new location, the depot not only looks grand, but it also give excellent north-side photo ops of all Hamlet-Monroe-Bostic traffic. South-side photos are certainly available in this area also, all from off-railroad property. See Cherryville and Charlotte -- Tryon siding west end for traffic details.
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location.
MONCURE(November 1, 1999)
This is on the former SAL main line between Raleigh and Hamlet. Traffic has been slashed here, as the CSX's ex-SAL has been truncated from Norlina north. A day local job turns out of Raleigh and most freight comes in/out of the area on a single thru freight between Hamlet and Raleigh. Amtrak's Silver Stars whiz thru, and CTC still is the dispatching standard here, but this line is but a shadow of its former self.
To get to Moncure, exit US-1 at SR 1012 ("Moncure-Pittsboro") and turn southeast past the convenience store. Turn left at the T-intersection (old US-1, now SR-1011, and marked with "Bicycle Route 1" signs). Turn right onto Post Office Road and follow it to the end. The former station and abandoned alignment to the old bridge are encountered first; the newer alignment with CTC siding are in view straight ahead.
Fred Burton, a model and prototype railnut (and expert), was kind enough to share these goodies with us.
MOORESVILLE August 24, 1998
Mooresville sees a local from Barber, which generally arrives just before noon. Between Main and Broad streets you can park on either street, and get good off-railroad property photos. There is also a local which comes up from Charlotte (this is the Quarter Master Job, which usually turns back to Charlotte at Davidson, about 5 miles south of Mooresville). At the Bay State flour mill is an EMD SW-7, the "Bay State Switcher"; this engine is usually behind NationsBank in Mooresville.
Power for the Barber-Mooresville local (P-23, according to the timetable) is mostly two-axle power, including U-23B, B23-7, GP-38XXX, GP-40XXX, GP-49, GP-59, and GP-60. Power on the Quarter Master Job is a little heavier: B30-7a, SD-50, and Brian's friend has even seen a C40W-9.
This information is from Brian Christy, who is amassing quite a knowledge of NS ops in this part of North Carolina. Your friendly web author would add that the ex-Southern station in downtown Mooresville may be the least attractive on the whole system; Brian points out that it's now the Mooresville Visual Arts Depot.
MOUNT HOLLY (March 13, 1999)
Ah-ha, you think, a simple little town in which to watch Hamlet-Monroe-Bostic CSX traffic. Wrong!
True, all that traffic flows thru here, but the trackage patterns are pretty complicated, and railfanning on roller skates might be in order here. Immediately west of the Catawba River and just east of the NC-273/NC-27 junction, Mount Holly has a most interesting nest of tracks for the railfan to peruse. Here, Piedmont & Northern and SAL tracks paralleled each other west-bound. From the P&N tracks (these are south of the CSX ex-Seaboard tracks), the Terrell sub goes across (at grade) the CSX (ex-SCL, exx-SAL) tracks north to Duke Power facilities.
Today, the P&N is part of the CSX empire, and the P&N track south to Pinoca Yard is actually used as a siding by CSX. Throughout this entire area, the Clariant Chemical Corporation seems to have giga-sized plants everywhere, so expect to see local switching action any time.
The CSX (ex-SCL, exx-SAL) bridge over the Catawba River is a neato truss bridge, while the old P&N bridge is a deck bridge. Take some good pix. While burning up some film, also take a few shots at the ex-P&N station here. The ex-P&N line heading southwest is inactive, but is owned by the North Carolina DOT, so maybe we'll be seeing commuter trains thru here someday!
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location.
NORTH WELDON (December 22, 1996)
When the CSX main line comes off the trestle over the Roanoke River from Weldon, maybe two miles south of Garysburg, the line splits at this junction (truly out in the middle of nowhere). This is an important, active junction, as this is where the northbound line splits to go to either Tidewater Virginia or Richmond. Look at a good map to figure out how to get there, but here are my suggested directions:
From US 301, going north from the river, turn left (west) immediately before the ABC store. You will think you made a mistake, because you'll be in the middle of some big cotton fields. Go straight until a "Y", and then bear left. Keep going towards the woods and down, and you'll be at the junction. If you are careful, you can keep off railroad property, and get some really interesting shots here. This is a pretty good train watching location, but one at which you need to be particularly careful to respect property rights of the farmers and CSX. Because this location is pretty narrow, winter/late fall/early spring is the best time of the year for this location (as it is for most rural locations on the east coast).
RALEIGH -- CSX STATION AND YARD AREA
From Capital Boulevard, exit onto Peace Street. Head approximately 1/4 mile east on Peace Street (towards downtown), and take a left onto Halifax Street. After only a hundred or so feet, turn left onto aptly named Seaboard Avenue. At the end of Seaboard is the former Seaboard Airline depot, which is now a nursery/ garden shop named Logan Trading Company.
Before the depot parking lot, take a right onto Semart Drive (there will probably be no street sign); this road will eventually dead end a few hundred yards down at the small CSX yard office parking area. CSX and North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT, or just DOT) share this yard, and you'll note that there is a chain line fence between you and the yard. From here, you can see the NCDOT storage area as well as usually a few private passenger cars, as well as and ex-CNW F7B unit!! When not working on local freights, there are usually 3-4 CSX Geeps parked in this area, and a six axle unit might be present on occasion.
Photography is tricky, as the tracks are oriented southwest - northeast on a gradual curve. The only real photo ops are from the platform back at the old Seaboard depot through a chain link fence (it is part of the garden shop), or if you are nice enough, behave like an adult, don't make a scene and don't look like a bum, the CSX folks might let you get a few shots through the gate at the CSX yard office into where the locos sometimes park.
Both traffic and trains thru here are slow. TJ estimates one scheduled freight, two locals, a few NCDOT movements, and an Amtrak, pretty much make up the play card. It's usually hit or miss, but CSX provides a welcome diversion if things are slow over on Norfolk Southern.
The general area is relatively safe, with newly developed neighborhoods of moderately priced houses, and a few fancy wine shops and restaurants surrounding the CSX yard area. Use caution looking out for wavering pedestrians, especially on weekends. Also note that in the Spring, the Logan Trading Company (ex-Seaboard Depot) can be a very busy place.
Frograil wishes to thank TJ Mahan, USAF, for this information. Indeed, I think we need to thank TJ and his brothers and sisters in arms for far more than this railfan location posting.
RALEIGH -- NS GLENWOOD YARD (September 2006)
Alas, Raleigh isn't what it once was, but there are still trains from NS, CSX and Amtrak. One of the best places to see some action is at the major yard facility in the area -- NS's Glenwood Yard.
From the beltline (I-440) in North Raleigh, go south on US-70 at exit 7A, which is Glenwood Avenue. After about 3 miles, you'll get to a 6-point intersection. You want to turn left onto Whitaker Mill Road (the road is almost perpendicular to Glenwood Avenue -- the other road on your left, at about 10:30, is Fairview Road, which will take you to the southernmost extent of the yard, which is not a suggested area for train watching). Go east on Whitaker Mill Road, which will encounter a fork, and stay on Whitaker Mill as it bears to the right. Shortly, look for Carson Street on your right. Turn right onto Carson.
After cresting a small hill, the yard will become visible at the bottom of the hill. Don't miss the stop signs while looking ahead at the yard, as they are quite frequent. Continue down Carson Street to the yard, and park your car on the right side of the road, well before the yard. On your left is the current yard office and tower (a very nice brick building). On your right will be a white building, this was the old yard office, and directly in front of you is the car shop. Walk towards the tracks and peek around the corner of the old yard office, and you will be immediately greeted by the motive power sitting at the engine facility. Do NOT venture any further towards the tracks or engines.
Close to the yard office and tower, there are a few picnic tables under some shade trees. This is the point from which you want to watch the action. Park yourself here and the sporadic action will pass in front of you. If you stay here, keep your mouth shut, and behave like an adult, you will almost certainly not be bothered by NS employees, but remember, this is railroad property, and you must treat it with the same respect you would expect of others on yours. Perhaps the best time to watch is between 3 and 6PM, as the 3PM yard job will begin shuffling cars around at about 3:25, or whenever train 350 comes into the yard from the west. The mainline, upon which 350 will enter, is the one closest to you. Interestingly, the yard is on a .72% grade (!), so the dynamics will be howling as they pass you.
You will be on the north side of the yard, so photos will most often be problematic here, but this is really a site for simply enjoying taking in the action of what a railroad is and does. Put your camera away, relax, and just enjoy the show.
This excellent data comes to us from Corey Vernier, who has spent a lot of time nailing down the details for us. The data relative to the viewing area was updated in September 2006 by the Webmaster.
RALEIGH -- NS GLENWOOD YARD NORTH (November 10, 1999)
From the beltline (I-440) in North Raleigh, go south on US-70 at exit 7A, which is Glenwood Avenue. After about 3 miles, you'll get to a 6-point intersection. You want to turn left onto Whitaker Mill Road (the road is almost perpendicular to Glenwood Avenue -- the other road on your left, at about 10:30, is Fairview Road, which will take you to the southernmost extent of the yard, which is not a suggested area for train watching). Go east on Whitaker Mill Road, which will encounter a fork, and stay on Whitaker Mill as it bears to the right. Turn right onto Old Wake Forest road at a stoplight. (If you cross two CSX tracks while still on Whitaker Mill, you've gone too far.)
Old Wake Forest makes a sweeping, downhill curve and ducks underneath a train track. About 200 feet after the underpass, there will be a gravel road on your right; turn onto this (very bumpy) road. Continue until you see a long concrete ramp up the hill to the tracks that you just went under (this is directly before a huge warehouse). Go up this ramp and park your car as close to the embankment as possible. [Webauthor's note: As you may technically be on railroad property here, you must keep well back from the tracks. Make sure your vehicle is NOT parked on railroad property, and do NOT cross any tracks. Remember, you want to be an insignificant part of the landscape, not someone making a train crew nervous or upset.]
This is the place to go when train 350 is leaving to the east (usually about 6-9PM, which makes this a summer railfan location, obviously), because the crew has to double or triple cut their train as the yard itself is quite short. Corey makes these additional notes regarding this site: "CSX is easily viewed from this location; however, the diamond with NS is obscured by trees. The NS-CSX interchange is directly beneath the large bridge to your east. Occasionally, you can watch CSX work this interchange."
This excellent data comes to us from Corey Vernier, who has spent a lot of time nailing down the details for us.
ROANOKE RAPIDS (961223)
This town is served by the vestiges of an SAL branch line between the SAL at Norlina, NC, and the ACL at Weldon, NC. The branch comes down from the "elevated" main at Weldon, snakes by the passenger and freight depots (still standing) under the main line, and curves abruptly to the west. There only seem to be two customers of this line (and I was only there a short time, so need some help with this), but they are both major ones. There's a power plant east of downtown, and a huge Champion International wood products/paper plant north of downtown off NC 48 (where, by the way, you can get a free car wash!).
At the power plant, there is a switcher (and the engineer LOVES to blow its horn!). You probably will not be able to get a shot of it from public property, but if you're really dedicated, hike along the Roanoke Canal Trail, which actually goes completely around the back of the power plant complex, and you just might get a shot of the engine. I only saw it from a distance, and don't really know what it is.
At the intersection of 14th and Roanoke (NC 48) in town, there are some interesting things:
- You can often catch two engines at this little "yard."
- The SAL passenger depot is in good condition, and is easily photographed. I hope the city fathers figure out something good to do with it.
- I visited on December 22, 1996, and took photos of the old, but very interesting yard office and warehouse. On December 23rd, those two ancient structures were obliterated by one yellow piece of equipment in less than three hours. They are gone forever. For Heaven's sake, take your pictures NOW!
ROARING RIVER (September 25, 1998)
This is the site of a large Perdue Chicken feed distribution center, and is on NC-268 between North Wilkesboro and Elkin on the Yadkin Valley Railroad. Be advised that this is not a dinky, GE-60 tonner shortline. Six-unit consists are not uncommon, and these trains can be 40-60 cars long; they tend to move right along. Pretty impressive. Call ahead (in Rural Hall) to get schedules, and scope out your site. The crossing at the Perdue elevator is a good place to catch the action, and you may also see the local working the area.
SALUDA -- TOWN (March 14, 2002)
Saluda is now without traffic -- NS closed the line during the winter of 2001-2002.
SHELBY (March 13, 1999)
There is a nice CSX (ex-SBD, exx-SAL) freight station in Shelby, which is on the Bostic - Charlotte mainline. Unfortunately, our advancing ages are such that neither Fred nor I can find the exact directions to the site, but it's pretty much downtown -- follow your railfan nose. One clue from Fred: the Cleveland Feed Mill, which is on NC-18, can be seen from the station.
Fred Burton was my navigator and source of info on the visit to this location.
SPRING HOPE (9411)
NCRR In the middle of this little village, at the old railroad station, you're likely to find one of the Nash County Railroad's immaculate geeps. Take a picture and enjoy small town North Carolina, where God was generous with his blessings.
TAYLORSVILLE (January 21, 2000)
This is one of those "Getting there is half the fun" sites. In fact, it may be more than half the fun. From Exit 148 on I-40 west of Statesville, go west on US-64 for about a mile, and then turn right to follow NC-90 into Taylorsville. If you stay on US-64, you'll parallel NC-90, but you'll be away from the tracks. While there are poles obstructing your view of the tracks in some areas, with a little scouting effort on your part, you can catch the train in an ideal location, depending on the time of day. I'd suggest the area immediately east of Taylorsville for pix, as there are industries here with a pretty expansive, curving view of the Alexander tracks.
John Mercer reports that the best days to see something are Tuesday and Friday, with an engine departing in the morning, running to Statesville, switching, and then returning to Taylorsville in the mid-afternoon.
WALKERTOWN -- NORTH
In the northeast corner of Winston-Salem, take exit 112 from US-52. This is Akron Drive. Head about 6-7 blocks east on Akron to a left onto North Glenn Avenue. Glenn will morph into Old Walkertown Road, and you'll continue northeast to the area of the automobile mixing center. The tracks here are Roanoke - Martinsville - Winston-Salem, and they are broadly southwest - northeast here, and there is the third leg of a wye leading east into the loading/unloading area of the auto center. As you get north of the northern wye lead, you'll see the Gardens of Memory graveyard on your right. There is a 2-track, at grade crossing here, and everything working on the north leg of the wye will be visible.
Please take your shots from Old Walkertown Road, and not from inside the Gardens of Memory.
This location has been adapted from a carolinaRails@yahoogroups.com posting by Tyler Russell.
WALKERTOWN -- SOUTH
In the northeast corner of Winston-Salem, take exit 112 from US-52. This is Akron Drive. Head about 6-7 blocks east on Akron to a left onto North Glenn Avenue. Glenn will morph into Old Walkertown Road, and you'll continue northeast to the area of the automobile mixing center. The tracks are Roanoke - Martinsville - Winston-Salem, and they are broadly southwest - northeast here, and there is the third leg of a wye leading east into the loading/unloading area of the auto center. As you approach the south leg of the wye, look for Oak Hills Drive to the right. Take this right and park in the vicinity of the overpass. There are 4 tracks here, and the overpass appears to be modern and wide, but be careful! At least according to the aerials, the viewing from Old Walkertown Road should be pretty wide open, but trees may have grown since the satellite shot its images.
WINSTON - SALEM -- GAYNOR/PENN
Northern Winston-Salem has the NS yard in it, and the locations around Gaynor Street and Penn Avenue offer some excellent potential viewing. From US-52 heading north, take exit 112 onto Akron Drive. Go northeast from US-52 to a right onto Ogburn Avenue. At the intersection with North Glenn Avenue, go across the latter and the road becomes Gaynor Street, which will shortly dead end at the yard. Be careful to not drive onto NS property. If you wish, you can take a left onto Penn Avenue from Gaynor, before you get to the tracks. Penn will give you a different view a little to the north of Gaynor. Either way, you have a good chance of getting skunked because of standing strings of cars, but you also have a good chance of seeing some nice yard action.
This location has been adapted from a carolinaRails@yahoogroups.com posting by Tyler Russell.