Re: OETM 1967 Cajon Trip-Lee Hower
Author: Lee Hower
Date: 02-20-2010 - 21:58
It was May 1967, and OETM had another inexpensive excursion from LA to Bakersfield and back. But instead of an entire train, they added the single SP coach 2401 (a Golden State coach) and the OTEM's 599 to the back of 51, and return on 52. Seems like the round trip fare was $8.75 or something like that. Of course, the most difficult part of this whole run to Bakersfield was that 51 left LAUPT at 5:40am. No wonder we couldn't fill a single 44 seat coach!
When we arrived in Bakersfield, the cars were held in front of the depot, can't remember for sure, but I don't think the cars were turned. A couple friends and I wandered over to the Bakersfield roundhouse, where no one said a word to us. Alas, this was back before I had a 35mm camera, and shot 620 film - on this trip Ektachrome slides! Have a few blurry photos of the trip around here.
Still, it was quite the experience racing back towards LA as we came down the hill into Mojave in a cloud of brake shoe smoke!
Lee