Additional Toledo District photos - Southern Pacific and Milepost 420 (5)

            About a week ago, I got a text from fellow Flickrite Matt Batryn-Rodriguez, asking if I would like to accompany him on a photo safari. Matt was looking to go after the Portland & Western's Toledo Patch, which runs from Toledo, Oregon to Albany on Saturday mornings. It is the only weekend operation on PNWR's line to Toledo west of Corvallis. I thought it sounded like a great way to spend a Saturday.

When Genesee & Wyoming started operating on the former Southern Pacific Toledo Branch in 1993, service over the 75-mile-long line ran daily. Aside from some 35 mph running in the Willamette Valley between Albany and Corvallis, the vast majority of trackage over the Coast Range and down the Yaquina River watershed had a 20 mph speed limit. Crews regularly made the roundtrip in 9-10 hours on duty. 

Today, most of the trackage on PNWR's Toledo District is carded at 10-12 mph, outside of 25 mph in the valley (down from 35). The train to Toledo only runs five days a week now. It is called at Albany around 8 pm on Monday through Friday evenings. Since the crew can't make the roundtrip on their hours of service, a patch crew is called around 4 am to bring the train back to Albany. The Saturday morning Toledo Patch is an Oregon railfan staple, as it usually gets out of Toledo between 6/7 am and makes a daylight trip to Albany. 

Matt and I met in downtown Vancouver, Washington at 5 am on Saturday morning for the drive to Toledo. We intercepted the train near Elk City at 7:30, and chased it all the way to PNWR's ex-SP yard in Albany. These are the photos from the trip. 

Locals in Summit, Oregon have adorned a signpost as milepost 420, honoring the local recreational drug of choice. The former Southern Pacific chip cars in the background are known as "Medford Aces," as they were built with the tight clearances of the Siskiyou Line in mind.

Taken in: United States / Oregon / Summit (show map)

Taken on: April 9, 2022

Tags:

PNWR

Portland & Western

Railroad

Railway

Trains

Train

Oregon

Coast Range

Toledo District

SP Toledo Branch

Summit

chip car

Freight car

Freight Train

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Sets appears in: • Shortlines • Portland & Western/Willamette & Pacific more » • Trains « less

Groups appears in: • Oregon • Railway Express Agency more » • Genesee & Wyoming • Your Very Best Railroad Photos • Railway Photographers • RailwayWorld • Western Railroads • American Rails • Pacific Northwest Transportation • LIFE ON THE RAILWAYS • Steel Rails Across North America. • North American Railroads • U.S. Shortlines • Railfans Of America • Trains of the U.S.A. • U.S. Railfan Pictures • North American Freight Trains! • Freight trains • Railroad Shooters • Small Railroads of Oregon • Genesee & Wyoming Lines • Railroad Traffic • High Quality Train Pictures • Pacific Northwest Railroad Photography • North American Railfaning • Railroad Sightings • Railfan Atlas • Wide World of Rail Transportation • Shortlines & Regional Railroads of America • Rail Pictures North America • Worldwide Railfanning (WRP Flickr) • World Of Trains Americans Usa Trains • flickrailroad • Shortlines, Regionals, and Industrials! • Canon Railfan Group • Oregon and Washington Railroads « less

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark IV, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec, 40mm, ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
Lens:	EF24-105mm f/4L IS II USM
Aperture:	f/7.1
Exposure Time:	0.001 sec (1/1000)
Focal Length:	40mm
ISO:	400
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Shutter speed priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Elements 15.0 (Windows)
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