Heritage 441 - 30th Anniversary Planner

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The Heritage 441 Run - 30th Anniversary Edition

The Asheville to Cass Scenic Railway Route, day seven

(Friday, 23 August 2013)
From Asheville, we'll head toward West Virginia and the Cass Scenic Railroad for a two night stay. I say toward because we cross into Virginia first, planning to follow the New River Gorge as far as we can, then cross over the New River on I-64, then follow US19 back over the New River on the tallest steel arch span bridge in the US.

From there we'll head to Cass Scenic Railway, to take the railfan trip to Bald Knob, with a Shay engine to pull us through the multiple switchbacks, and up insane grades to the top, at an elevation of 4,842 feet. Well, it's not quite the top, but it's close enough at 4,700 feet, to the third highest point in West Virginia. We'll spend the night in a restored company house, set out to Bald Knob and back by train the next day, then the Dinner Train that evening, and back to the company house for another night.

The Revised Asheville to Cass Route...

(Friday, 23 August 2013)
Well, the best laid plans... Knowing we have to check in by five, or call ahead to inform them of our late arrival, we have to modify our plans to exclude the New River portion of our trip. Not only does it add nearly two hours, but Ann is already having problems with driving much longer than five hours or so before her eyes and her shoulder let her know it's time to stop. I try calling as we fuel up for the last leg, and get a busy signal, over and over again.

When I finally do get through, I get an automated system, and have to leave a voicemail. Not very comforting, and we're worried the gates will be closed and locked when we get there, mainly because it's a state park. Back on the road, Ann begins to worry that we should call them again, once we have a cell signal that is. When I finally can call them back, I get a real person, and she reassures us that there are no gates to close and informs us that our keys will be waiting for us at the office in the large gray box by the door.

Most state parks we know of have gates and a policy of closing them for the evening at a certain time. Not here. I am assured there are no gates. WV66 runs right past the station and through the little town of Cass, right in front of the company house we're staying at. A nice little two story, with a living room, a dining room, and a full kitchen downstairs. Upstairs are three bedrooms and a small bathroom. I'd like to say it will sleep 5 - 6 people, but the bathroom is the limiting factor here. Not a big deal since it's just the two of us.

I'm speaking from the stand point of having already arrived at our destination, but I'm leaving out the 130 miles of mountain driving Ann has to do to get us there. And she thought the 30 miles of Hellbender 28 on the last trip was bad... This time I'm trying to explain how to use engine braking to save her regular brakes, but she's not listening, and getting upset with me as if I'm impuning her driving talent. Or maybe she's just concentrating on driving. Dunno. Not pushing it at this point and just letting her drive how she feels comfortable driving.

Our original thought was we'd be there by 5:30, but we're thinking Google Maps doesn't take into account the driving conditions, only the speed limit on the road since we get there a bit after 7:00? Ann is exhausted. The company store at the railroad station is already closed, but the country store right across the Greenbrier River is still open, so we pick up a few things we need and get a couple of grilled sandwiches to go. That's it, we're in for the night!

The sandwiches are good, and the rest of the 18 pack we're not allowed to have in the state park is even better. We have no cell coverage, due to Green Bank Radio Telescope and the restriction on cell towers in this county. We do have satellite TV and free WiFi, but the connection is as slow as the old dial up modems. We watch a little TV and call it a night. Not much else we can do. The laptop can barely get anything from the "slow" internet, and tethering is out of the question with no cell service.

There is a short video on the "quiet zone" for the Green Bank radio telescope and how people get along just fine without those fancy cell phones. To the point where only diesel power is allowed because even the spark plugs of a gasoline powered engine interfere with the radio telescope. Very interesting. If you're looking for a place that's a throwback to the old ways, away from WiFi and the hustle and bustle of everyday electronically connected life, check out Green Bank and Pocahontas County WV.

West Virginia, day eight

(Saturday, 24 August 2013)
We get up and get going early this morning, shooting for 9:30 breakfast at the Last Run restaurant over by the station. We walk there and arrive around 9:45. Breakfast hits the spot and we have a quick look at the company store goods. No short sleeve shirts in the style we want. We talk with a lady about it and she tells us another shipment is due in today and to check back later. So we head to the station to pick up our tickets and wait for our train.

When I first looked at the Cass site and the train schedule, I thought our train was the only train, which stopped at Whitaker Station, then proceeded up the mountain to Bald Knob. Not so. There are two trains. The Whitaker train leaves earlier, and only goes as far as Whitaker Station. Our train leaves later, will stop at Whitaker Station, then proceed up the mountain to Bald Knob.

This gives us more time to explore and gives me time to get some great pictures and videos of the Whitaker Train and engine No.11, both arriving and departing. We talked about getting on the last car of our train, but because I wanted to get videos of our train arriving, I couldn't get back to the car in time and Ann was waiting on me instead of getting a spot. No biggy. We decide to sit in the enclosed car, which turns out to be a good decision.

The train fills up quickly, but we are able to keep our seats to ourselves, not having to share them. There are so many people that want to ride the train today that they have to add a couple more cars. It's a good thing our engine No.6 is one of the largest Shay engines ever built. We're going to need that extra power. It's kind of neat. They push the train out on the mainline, break the train apart a few cars from ours, pick up two more cars, recouple the train, and we're on our way to Whitaker Station.

What a wonderful trip! These Shay engines aren't built for speed, but rather for power. Power to climb and descend steep grades up and down the mountains with loads of logs, giant steam powered skidders, or other logging equipment. Their top speed is around 11MPH. The sound of the steam whistle echoing through the mountains is the best part, for me anyway. Ann relaxes and closes her eyes, enjoying the slow pace, and after yesterday's drive welcomes the fact someone else is driving.

We get to the first switchback, stop briefly as the switch is thrown, and are now going the opposite direction toward the second switchback. Switchbacks are a means of quickly gaining altitude in a minimum of space and low cost. The trade off is steeper grades than standard locomotives can handle, which is why logging railroads use the Shay engine design. All the wheels are geared, and therefore locked together by a drive shaft, minimizing, if not eliminating wheel slippage altogether.

At the second swithcback on our way up, we meet up with the earlier Whitaker train, on its way down. Our train pushes all the way back to the end of the stub of the switchback, allowing the Whitaker train to also occupy the stub, then head down, clearing the track above and our way up to Whitaker. Once there, Ann stays on the train while I hop out and explore Whitaker Station. There are a number of stub sidings, where various pieces of steam powered logging equipment sit, including a steam shovel and a steam powered skidder - its 85' boom laying on the ground behind it.

After a 20 - 25 minute stop, we're on our way up the mountain toward Bald Knob. We stop again, maybe a third of the way there, to take on water from a tank filled by a mountain spring. Once we're topped off, we make the rest of the trip up to Bald Knob. There are a number of clearings on the way up, where you can see out across the mountains. Once there, Ann stays on the train again, and I head out to the observation platform and get a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape, mountains, and valleys.

This time we get about a 45 minute stop for lunch. People pour off the train, heading either to the observation platform to take in the surrounding beauty, or picnic tables to enjoy their lunch. I take a couple vidoes of the engine blowing off steam while I wait for the crowd on the observation platform to clear a bit before I head that way to take it all in and get some pictures. The engineer toots the whistle, signalling it's time to leave, as I'm heading back.

It appears this catches a lot of the picnickers off guard as they hurry to get a few last bites in as they quickly pack up their belongings. Ann had already eaten her box lunch on the way up to Whitaker Station, and I ate mine as we left it, so we didn't have to worry about missing the train. At both stops, there are cabooses (or is that cabeese?) spotted on sidings that visitors can rent and spend the night in.

As much as I'd like to check it out, there are too many kids in and out and playing on the caboose for me to get ahywhere near it. I'd like Ann to see it too, but she's still exhausted from yesterday, so I let her stay on the train and relax. It's not like we'll be spending the night in it tonight, or any other night for that matter. Not our cup of tea so to speak. Besides, we have the entire company house to ourselves, not cramped quarters and limited facilites. While the company house seems like a "step down" compared to our previous accommodations, it is still better than a caboose...

On the way down, each car has its own brakeman, who applies the car's brakes manually, using the brake wheel, in addition to the engine brakes. The occasional screeching and squealing of flange noise on the way up is replaced by constant brake squeal on the way down, plus the ratcheting of the the brake wheels as they are turned. While we made probably 7MPH up, we're doing about 9MPH down... I know, blazing speed, right? Like I said, these things are built for power, not speed.

We both sit back and relax on the way down, and having already taken pictures and videos, aren't up and down all the time like we were on the way up. We stop to take on water again on the way down, and are soon through the switchbacks, Whitaker, and heading to the Cass Station. I miss my opportunity to video the dinner train we are about to ride, misunderstanding which side of the train we are about to pass by it on. Kind of bummed, but I took enough videos today that my phone is pretty much dead by now anyway.

We quickly hop off the train and head up to the company store to check and see if they have our T-shirts out on the rack, and they do! Ann stands in line to pay while I run out to try to get a video of our dinner train pulling in, having just heard what I thought was its whistle. Nope. Our train pulling out. So I run back up to the store to meet Ann just checking out. We head back down to the station and wait for our train to pull up. I get my video and quickly head back around to wait to board.

We decide to sit in the very first car, next to the engine No.4 that will be taking us back up to Whitaker Station. From there, I'm able to get some good videos of the engine before my phone finally dies. We sit and watch as others in our car are up and down and moving all around us, posing for pictures, taking pictures, stepping on our feet, you name it.

Upon our arrival at Whitaker Station, we're one of the last cars to empty out, so we're one of the last in line for our buffet style dinner - BBQ sandwiches, green beans, cole slaw, corn salad, and cake with cherry topping. We grab a cup of sweet tea and find a picnic table to sit at to enjoy dinner and the blue grass band that's playing. A couple fiddles, a standing bass, a guitar, and a banjo. Ann got a video of them playing as we were waiting in line.

Once we're done eating, Ann and I wander over to the massive steam powered logging equipment I had looked at before. We head back to the train to await our departure and the whistle sounds about five minutes later. We board and head back down to Cass. By now, everything is closed up, so we walk back to our company house and settle in for the night. All in all, a very pleasant experience, having been on a train and in the mountains all day.

As with the night before, we turn on the TV to relax a bit before bed. I try to upload a video of the steam engine, but the connection here is so slow, it takes hours, literally, then fails. Well, guess I shouldn't have tried to fool Facebook into thinking the video was really a picture. I try again using the upload video option, and again, hours later, it finishes. At least it uploads this time. That's it, it's already after 1:00, I'm going to bed!

Well, after I lay there for awhile, I'm a bit parched and need some water. I head back down to the kitchen, grab a mug from over the sink, and start to fill it as I look out the back window. I notice someone has put one of those plastic deers in the back yard... wait a minute, that's a real deer! She realizes I've spotted her and darts back up the hill, past the gravel road behind our house, to join her friend. Now they're both looking. Is he still there?

I just shake my head and start for the stairs, but something stops me and tells me to go back and have another look. Well, they're still standing there, but have traded places. They're still looking. Is he still there? One of them starts grazing while the other keeps looking. Is he still there? I chuckle to myself and go back to bed. Big day tomorrow, we're heading to Ohio!

The Ohio route, day nine...

(Sunday, 25 August 2013)
We get moving early this morning, on the road by a little after nine. The route zig - zags us up US219 to meet US33 in Elkins, over to I-79 then over US50 to I-77 into Ohio. From there, it's just a short while down US62 to US183 and my brother Matt's house. Ann makes really good time, arriving about an hour ahead of what we figured.