Sad Sam

SP90

SP Coast Division train 90, the San Francisco–Los Angeles mail train known as “Sad Sam,” passes through the Chatsworth rocks northwest of L.A. in the early 1960s. Bruce Hollinshead I was a teenager when I first began biking the two miles from my home to a place called Gemco after school. Like many spots on […]

Read More…

To Saigon via Summit

CTRTW0308_03

A Santa Fe RSD15, SD24, and two SD45s curve toward Summit with an eastbound freight on November 14, 1970.  Jay Potter People used to say that railroads held the country together. They were the proverbial ribbons of steel that kept commerce and people moving and made a lot of things possible. Today — as I […]

Read More…

Refurbishing a railway in the redwoods

rehab_railroad1

1. The Sierras. From Little Truckee River’s sawmill, trains pass several towns all the way to Lake Tahoe’s mines in the distance. Thirty years ago, Don and Sue Watters planted more redwoods in their already woodsy backyard to remind them of their favorite recreational area. The effect is quite dwarfing for viewers, who can picture […]

Read More…