Down the hill is what I'll call the lower yard. The static displays have had cosmetic work done from time to time, so most of it looks very good, and it's well set up for pictures. Compared to our slides from twenty years ago, I see the trees are bigger and the landscaping has been improved.
The 1621 is, of course, a Frisco Russian Decapod identical to the 1630. We saw this in one of the slides from 1995.
B&O #50 is one of the earliest main line Diesels, and a valuable artifact in displaying mechanical history.
These should look familiar: an IT Class B and a NYC S motor.
The Silver Charger from the General Pershing Zephyr is the only surviving shovel-nose Diesel (not counting the power cars on the Pioneer and Mark Twain).
And the Milwaukee Road bipolar is the only one of its type in preservation.
Next to it is this.
The bizarre paint scheme on this loco actually has an educational purpose. All the parts are color-coded.
The C&IM Mike is being worked on.
Nearby there are miscellaneous forms of transportation: a Panama Canal mule, a tugboat, an airplane, and so on.
There's also the antique auto museum. I took several pictures there and I suppose I could post them if there's sufficient popular demand.
Next up, though: the electric car barn (and the Aerotrain)!
While I like the E5, it would be very cool to have the shovel nose for the Zephyr. The MOT has a nice collection, but it is a shame that they really can't run very much. It's an interesting location, but simply not the best to experience the equipment.
ReplyDeleteAnd I think that is the huge selling point for IRM -- while there are plenty of static displays, you get to experience a wide variety of equipment in use.
The Silver Charger also keeps company with the power car from the Flying Yankee. In all that makes 4 shovelnose cars, not a bad selection !
ReplyDeleteRandy Stahl
The Silver Charger and the Bi Polar would had looked nice to have at IRM. Shame that they can't build a demonstration mainline like IRM to run some of these fine engines.
ReplyDelete