Coal drag N253 struggles up the grade on #1 track at Oaks as MOW equipment clears on #2. A helper is shoving on the end on this bright winter evening. Tech help goes to my daughter Laurel.

Sparkling clean CSX 5228 crawls up a swag near the end of Duff Mountain, with a helper on the end near Cotula. Odd that this move, primarily autoracks, needed the Chaska helper today.

C212 has just gotten the green to return to Chaska, after having shoved Q541 over the mountain.

U22 putting together a string of loaded coal cars between Cucumber and Newhall, WV on the Jacobs Fork of the Dry Fork. Swags and dips are the norm for branch rail conditions in the coalfields of A... (more)

With a wide variety of power behind, CSX 9018 coasts downhill thru Habersham and off the Duff Mountain grade in late evening sunshine on a bitterly cold day.

As coal drag N226 approaches in the distance, the helper crew hurries aboard to go north on #2, then south from single to main #1 and hook up for the shove over Duff Mountain. A broken rail below ... (more)

On New Years Day, a CSX autorack passes the helper engine stored in the house track at the Chaska helper office. Work will be slow this holiday as most coal was shipped earlier in the week.

NS U22 makes it's way thru Cucumber, WV picking up loaded coal cars along the way. Not far down the grade sits the junction with the Dry Fork Branch at Rift, WV.

U38 retrieves coal cars after setting off mtys at Brooks Run Mining in Newhall, WV. The Jacobs Fork is located in the scenic tip of McDowell County, on the WV/VA line. The brakeman has just knocke... (more)

CSX coal drag leans into the curve above the small community of Habersham, as light, wet snow falls on this Feb. day.

As the sun creeps behind Turley Mountain to the west, NS 76G prepares to take the first of two cuts of mtys under the loadout. The loadout consists of three frontend loaders and takes six hours fo... (more)

NS 83E westbound smokes out of the twin Huger Tunnels with a load of mtys.

NS coal drag awaits a fresh crew at Lomax, below War WV as mtys return northbound on the Dry Fork. Spring is in the air on this busy day on the Dry with redbuds just beginning to show their color.

SU92 struggles to Lester, almost having to stop at Surveyor and double over the hill to Mullens on the P-D moments earlier.

Q539, a daily mixture of tankers, grain, steel coil, and lumber, splits the signals on the way up Duff Mountain at Oakes, TN on a beautiful Spring day.