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Join us on a trip through time - the Gulf Coast Eagle On the Friday evening I drove over to the Burlington Northern yard off Homestead Road and the North Loop to get my instructions for working as a volunteer on the Gulf Coast Chapter of the NRHS latest excursion train excursion out of Houston. It was June 9, 1995, and the following two days would see a frenzy of activity around Houston's railroads. Chief organizers for the Gulf Coast Chapter were Bill Waldrop and Jim Leuders and they had spent many a weekend (and a few weekdays) planning these trips down to the minutest detail. Assisted by the Chapter membership, the weekend was to be the highlight of the calendar. For the Union Pacific "Challenger" No. 3985 was coming to town. The largest operating steam locomotive in the world (and also the longest, heaviest, etc.) would be taking fare paying passengers on two trips. On Saturday I would be a passenger on the Gulf Coast Eagle excursion from Houston to College Station and Hearne, traveling along tracks previsously operated by the Missouri Pacific (MoPac). Then on the Sunday I would be working as a volunteer on a continuation of the excursion to Bay City and back. And this was why I had driven over to the yard early. Well, in truth, I got there early in the hope of catching sight of No. 3985 for the first time. And there she was:
Challenger No. 3985 - a short description Parked a little way over from the rest of the Union Pacific Streamliner consist, and with her two additional water tenders full for the day's journey, she was quite simply the most magnificent steam locomotive I had ever seen. With 97,350 lbs of tractive effort available, No. 3985 is nearly two and half times more powerful than the most powerful British steam locomotive (which is generally considered to be the GW "King" Class with 40,300 lbs tractive effort). Challengers were not the largest Union Pacific locomotives. These were the aptly named "Big Boy" class with two extra driving axles and perfectly designed for hauling heavy freight trains over the eastern Rockies from Cheyenne Wyoming to Ogden Utah. The Challenger class was designed to be less route specific. They were seen over a wide area of the UP system. Primarily freight locomotives, they also pulled passenger services, particularly over the mountains. The wheel arrangement, 4-6-6-4, means that there are two axles (with four wheels) at the front, two sets of three axled driving wheels (literally the engines), followed by two trailing axles. Of the twenty wheels in contact with the rails, twelve were powered, the other eight being load-bearing wheels only. The rear bogie (as it is called) supports the huge firebox and grate. The locomotive's original tender holds fuel oil and water and is supported by a total of twelve wheels. Modern railroads do not have facilities for topping up steam locomotive tenders, so the Union Pacific has built two addition water carriers that are always seen attached when on the road. The Consist The Union Pacific excursion train consists of a range of passenger cars that were retained from the 1950s "streamline era" and have been carefully restored. They are primarily used by senior management for inspecting the railroad but are also used for public relations and whenever possible for excursions. These require a lot of organization and cooperation and it is no surprise that such events are becoming less common in the United States. As I write this (January 2006) the UP web site states that there are no excursions planned for 2006. Hopefully this situation will improve. I should have made the effort and taken a photo of every car in the consist, but as it was I concentrated on the special ones, the classic domeliners. One of them, the City of San Francisco, had been our home for a day in 1994, on the Katy Flyer excursion. This is a tail end dome lounge car and I would be working in the bar on the Sunday.
The Harriman dome business lounge car was an unexpected addition to the consist and I would be fortunate in having a seat in the dome. The Harriman was named after Edward Henry Harriman, President of the UP from 1904 to 1909, and one of the railroad tycoon "greats". He turned the UP from a bankrupt company into one of the great railroads of the twentieth century. The Harriman dome lounge car would normally only be expected on a senior management inspection train so we were delighted to learn that it would be included in the consist. The outward appearance of the Harriman is much the same as any other domeliner, but inside the fittings match the boardroom image. First the exterior:
And now a view inside the dome with co-organizer Jim Leuders and friend Willa Jepsen taking a quiet moment as the passengers de-trained for a photo opportunity run by:
Houston to College Station and Hearne Saturday morning was fine but a little hazy, certainly not a glorious day for photography but at least it wasn't raining! The train was waiting for us with the locomotive attached to the consist and pointing west in the direction we would be taking. The route was an interesting one, starting out on rival BN tracks, then making a sharp turn to the north on UP (ex-Missouri Pacific) tracks to Spring where another sharp turn west would take the train on towards College Station where the MoPac joined the Southern Pacific at Navasota for the run north to College Station and the turning wye at Hearne. This interesting cross country trip takes in several of the founding Texas railroads and many of the communities along the way owe their origins to the railroad. The train first had to back out onto the BN main line. This link will take you to a Google Map scene that illustrates the starting point. (These images are centered on the featured location. Although the temptation to wander over the map is great, don't forget to return to the story - or, if you have a tab browser, simply open the google maps in separate tabs!) It took a few more minutes to reach the junction with the MoPac line that runs almost due north out of Houston. This link will take you to a Google Map scene that illustrates the BN/MoPac junction. Readers familiar with the Hardy Toll Road to and from Intercontinental Airport will know this track well as the toll road shares the right of way. At Spring, an old railroad settlement that is now in the northern suburbs of Houston, the train took a sharp left turn to the west, taking the single track line that was originally built by the International & Great Northern Railroad (I & GN RR) as part of the 19th Century network from Galveston to Waco and beyond. Now part of the UP system, the line was previously owned and operated by the Missouri Pacific. This link will take you to a Google Map scene that illustrates the junction at Spring. A few miles along this quiet scenic route, the train stopped at the Texas Renaissance Fair Ground site near Plantersville. This had been selected as the first run by location. Everyone who wanted to watch the Challenger in action detrained and lined up in the grassy area on the south side of the tracks. The train then backed out of sight and we waited, cameras at the ready. Most railfans like a photo without their comrades visible but I decided to try to capture the scene as it really was and here is the result:
The constable was part of the onboard team and his presence certainly assisted in creating law and order along the trackside - not to mention the safety aspect. The run by was quite magnificent. I think that the engineers, Steve Lee and Bob Kreiger, probably put a little extra No. 5 fuel oil into the fire to create the atmospheric photo opportunity! Here is a close up of the cab with Bob Kreiger at the controls and a lucky footplate visitor simply enjoying the ride:
College Station and Turning a Train We arrived in College Station in time for lunch. The train stopped at the Amtrak Station (no longer in use since the Houston arm of the Texas Eagle was discontinued). Then it ran out north to Hearne, an old Southern Pacific junction with perfect turning facilities. This link will take you to a Google Map scene that illustrates the point. College Station is the home of Texas A & M University and close by the station was the university museum as well as Kyle Field, the college football stadium so revered by all Aggies that many graduates name their boys after this holy of holies! I mention this because the stadium features in the next photo. This was taken from the station platform as Challenger No. 3985 slowly eased back into town:
The return journey to Houston was just as good and we had time to stop again for a run by at Pleasantville. Two more photos show No. 3985 in action:
Challenger No. 3985 is really belching out the smoke this time. And another of the footplate and cab:
The Final Drama At this stage of the journey we learned that the locomotive had a problem with one of the four cylinders. With most modern day machinery that would mean failure and the need to bring in a backup. But in the case of a steam locomotive the operators decided it would be safe to continue with the offending cylinder essentially disconnected from the drive train (quite simply done by adjusting the valve gear). So everyone boarded the train and off we went to Spring and the main line into Houston. The main line allowed Steve Lee to open up the controls more than had been possible earlier in the day and, with a very slight downhill run along straight track, the massive locomotive clocked a maximum of 62 miles per hour. How do I know? Well, the Harriman dome has a special speedometer fitted for senior management and we were sitting next to it!
And, remember, the locomotive was pulling a full consist with only three cylinders! (Maximum rated speed for the design was 70 mph). And so, our return to Houston had a little drama. As the passengers reluctantly left for their cars, many of us lingered around and got to watch the repair work get underway.
While many more just paid homage to a great steam locomotive!
Post Script That night the UP Steam Crew were assisted by welders from an oilfield supply company and repaired the damaged drive train. And so it was that I returned on the Sunday morning and found myself in charge of the bar in the belly of the City of San Francisco dome lounge car. This was a volunteer work day so the camera was left behind and I set to brewing coffee. Good heavens! The only coffee we had was decaf! Needless to say no-one wanted decaf coffee early on a Sunday morning, so a little white lie was introduced and we claimed that this was "Challenger Coffee" with extra lead! Strangely, no-one complained and everyone seemed to think we got the day off to a good start! Maybe it was the sugar in the donuts. . . . Sunday's route took an opposite direction from Houston, down the Missouri Pacific line to Bay City and back. I have to admit I really don't remember much about the trip at all! Post Post Script Special thanks to Bill Waldrop and Don Kendall for jogging my memory over a few of the details! Add a Comment or an Update on the FocalplaneTravelblog |
