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This WAS (and I suppose still is) a wonderful railroad. Thanks Andy Muller for saving 40 plus miles of track from abandonment. Actually Andy managed to save (last I counted) about 5 railroad lines from abandonment. This one is the "Blue Mountain and Reading" which runs the 40 or so miles from Temple to South Hamburg in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately most of BM&R's equipment is busy hauling coal these days, so passenger service is, at best, occasional. Andy also owns the Reading and Northern, as well as the Pottstown to Boyertown branch.

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Another totally wondeful railroad. The Wannamaker, Kempton, and Southern is about six miles of track saved from abandonment and operated entirely by volunteers. It is truly land-locked, with no access to a single stick of track for many miles. But they run these little tank engines and pull passengers on the weekends. The road is named after two of the tiny villages it spans. The "southern" I guess means they have some hopes of expanding southward, although not realistically in the near future. You can find the line about 10 miles north of Kutztown University, about 15 miles west of Allentown, PA onUS 222.

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This old Alco can be seen in Denver, PA. It is owned by John Nolan, who saved the Denver branch from abandonment by Conrail. The line runs about 10 miles from Sinking Springs, PA, to Denver in Lancaster County. John also owns East Penn railway. These lines are presently freight only.

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The Strasburg Railroad is probably the best known of all of the Pennsylvania tourist roads, operating in the heart of Lancaster County. It operates about 6 miles of track from Strasburg to Leaman Place Junction in a village called Paradise.

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Go south and ride the Wilmington and Western, in Delaware. Also run entirely by members and volunteers, This group managed to save a good number of miles of track from being ripped up. The road is shaped like an inverted U in northen Delaware.

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This 100 foot high viaduct over the east fork of the Brandywine Creek in Downingtown, Pennsylvania was once the main line of the PRR. It was used up until about September of 1990.

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Go north to the Green Mountain Railroad in Bellows Falls, Vermont. What a great ride. We were there for the "Easter Bunny Express" in April of 1998. It was very scenic, but with no leaves on the trees that early in the spring. Recognize these guys? They are the same three guys as in the top photo.

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In seeking a new job, I lived in Massachussetts for one year from 1997 to 1998. I rented a motel room on the Wachusett Reservoir. Here, in West Boylston, trains from Guilford (Maine Central) would run through to Worcester. I would also see Conrail general freight and auto rack trains.

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Ever wonder what it's like to own property along a railroad track? It's great. This scene was from behind our lot in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. We moved there in 1985. We would see 5 or 6 main line freight trains in each direction daily. Then Conrail began routing freight through Black Rock Tunnel in Pottstown, making this route unneccessary. It was relegated to scrap metal trains of the BVRY (Brandywine Valley Railway) in 1989 and abandoned shortly thereafter. It was time to move out. We sold the place in 1991.