Amtrak Train 21 makes its station stop at Poplar Bluff on the UP Hoxie Sub. at 03:48, which was 4 hours, 6 minutes late. The train had quite the inflated consist tonight with 3 units, 15 cars, 8 revenue cars and 7 private cars which were being moved to Fort Worth for the Iowa Pacific Holdings' High Iron Travel "Front Range Explorer" rare mileage special. The train was to depart FTW on May 31st, arriving in Minneapolis on June 6th, but the guests already onboard wound up with nearly 200 rare miles before the trip even officially started, being that the line via Dexter hasn't seen regular passenger service since the 1960's.
The Texas Eagle is detouring via the UP Chester and Hoxie Subs. between St. Louis and here due to continuing track work on the UP De Soto Sub., the train's normal route. The conductor's radio died during the station stop resulting in what wound up being a quintuplet spot and a shove back for passengers and UP Pilot Crew members by the time the issue was sorted out.
Here the train is about to shove north a few car lengths to allow coach passengers to disembark and board, under the direction of the Amtrak Assistant Conductor controlling the move.
Both former Frisco cars came from P-S lot #6769, and in this photo are only two blocks from where the Frisco cut through Poplar Bluff prior to 1965. The depot still stands, and today is home to the Mo-Ark Regional Railroad Museum.
Not
just heritage schemes, not just commemorative schemes - this album is devoted to some of the world's most interesting paint schemes, past or present.
A continuously growing album of photos that IMHO reveal the awesome and seldom-seen beauty of the railroad world from the dimming of day to dawn's early light! From dusk to dawn, trains roll on! (I'm still finding gems of sunset-to-sunrise surprises!)
