Last Friday, after aborting my chase of the California Northern, I went to Modesto to chase the M&ET. In this age of point to point commodity railroading and double stacks it is very refreshing to spend time chasing a well run profitable industrial switching railroad. The 70-tonners may be gone. But, even if only because the owners take pride in running a railroad, the M&ET remains a blast from the past. It was great watching a real life engineer working with real life switchmen to spot cars.
Also, the Railpower locomotives are reportedly going away after the balance of M&ET gensets are delivered. So, this phase too shall pass.
All photos shown here were taken from public roads. Comments and/or corrections are appreciated.
~Steve Sloan