Unique hobby!

[digimark]

On our next planned trip to Ohio from Maryland (I've informed my wife) that we're taking the turnpike instead of I-68 this time and we're going to stop outside of Breezewood and walk for a bit along the old TP alignment. I'm not sure if we'll be able to walk as far as the Ray's Hill tunnel (about 1 1/2 miles from the entrance) but I've printed off Russ' triple-point picture to see if we can find it.

[southpennrailroad]

This is what you should look for as you turn east onto route 30 less the 1/4 mile from the turnpike/Breezewood. Let me know when your in the area and I will let you drive the whole route.

Let me know when your going to be traveling to Ohio and I will give you a driving tour on the whole route. Leave a little early and I can even get you to camp on the route some time.

What a thrill it would be to be able to drive what hasn't been driven since 1968. Two tunnels and 8.5 miles of the old turnpike. I have driving privileges to explore and camp on this old highway.

[southpennrailroad]

My web page which has been down for some months is finally back up with some interesting photos if your interested.

Thanks

http://southpennrailroad.com/Photos

[hotrod]

My web page which has been down for some months is finally back up with some interesting photos if your interested.

Thanks

http://southpennrailroad.com/Photos

cool stuff!!!

[southpennrailroad]

I'm making a second page on the photos as we speak. Especially wide angle shots.

[southpennrailroad]

Page 3 is ready to go up. Will do that today.

[southpennrailroad]

Well the day started off good but went sour about mid way. Sky was blue but clouds rolled in. I drove up the Chestnut ridge and I can see what the surveyor was doing but could not see it all. Couple of roads I could not get up into unless I had 4x4. No I don't have that.

You can check out my research page on my web page for that area in question.

I love when I see peoples faces when I talk to them and tell them that their house is on a future railroad right of way then hesitate and then tell them if it was 1882.

Trust me I look to see if they have a gun nearby first. When I show them the map they are shocked and then become interested. Got two like that today. Oh when I show the map they recognize the landmarks/landscape.

[southpennrailroad]

Here is a forum that I have been contributing to on Trains about the South Penn. It starts out about the Rockville Bridge in Harrisburg, Pa but it sort of got hijacked with permission as others thought it was filled with interesting information about my railroad.

When I was contributing to this forum I was also doing the Trains one. Multitasking. 37 pages of interesting information about the Turnpike's Railroad that I research.

http://cs.trains.com/TRCCS/forums/t/63663.aspx

Hope you enjoy it. It saves a lot of copying to two forums.

[southpennrailroad]

http://southpennrailroad.com/images/Bed ... stitch.jpg

I went out this weekend and photographed this historic hotel built in the late 1700's and has been home to the only Pennsylvania President as his (Camp David) James Bucannon. He as the president before Lincoln. Polk, Eisenhower, Reagan, Taylor and a few others stayed here. The South Penn was to have serviced this s the Pennsylvania which actually is five miles north never expected another railroad to service this area and therefor rejected a line to this site. Make them walk or use buggy service was there view.

This was scheduled to be demolished but now is a beautiful hotel.

Have an extra $230.00 per night to spend. Judging of the amount of cars some people do. Golf Course flanking this site and are nearby.

[southpennrailroad]

To the observer from Australia who collects tea pots on their web page. Here is an original picture/web site of the original site where the teapot/coffee pot use to be b4 it was donated and moved and redone.

http://www.bedford.k12.pa.us/C12/Histor ... feepot.htm

[southpennrailroad]

I now have a forum of my own for the South Pennsylvania Railroad. if interested check it out. Thanks

Russ

http://southpennraiload.freeforums.org/ ... -1-f2.html

This way I won't eat up band with here.

[southpennrailroad]

I was just going through my photos I took and found this eerie ghost taken at the abandoned South Pennsylvania Railroad Tunnel in Somerset. Sad looking. Maybe how they felt when the railroad was never completed.

Really they were quit upset that the work they had done would stop abruptly. Can you imagine that the friendship that was struck and then losing a friend due to an accident and then the work never got finished. Sad indeed.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[southpennrailroad]

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Here is the map I made showing how the South Penn was to manage the Chestnut Ridge west of Donegal. Studying the railroad maps I located 15 on the ground landmarks that I found on the railroad map and on today's maps as well. The Pennsylvania Turnpike is the green line starting at the bottom right hand side and crossing the ridge to west New Stanton.

[southpennrailroad]

By spennrr at 2011-06-15


By spennrr at 2011-06-15

Here is how I locate South Penn railroad in places it was to be built but wasn't begun. Each frame has a actual South Penn map on the right with a fifty year later aerial of the same site as that of the railroad.

Can you see where the railroad should have been built? Pay close attention tto the property lines in each frame. This is what I do in my spare time after work and when ever. Then go out and do foot work to acquire photos.

Not your normal rail fanning right?

Enjoy!