Re: Railfan trip in late June to Spokane area. POVA
Author: Throttle Hogg
Date: 05-28-2012 - 17:13
EWG has migrated to a night operation out of Cheney, frequently meeting the Lind Turn in the late afternoon to take blocks of 36 hoppers out the line. Co-load moves have changed to three blocks of 36 cars as opposed to taking the whole 110 car train at once as they have in the past. EWG operates the Geiger Turn whenever steel loads or locomotive moves are needed on the line. If there are loads of steel sitting in Cheney, its a good bet that a turn will be running soon, and that is usually a daylight move. EWG has been leasing a second tunnel motor (ex-SSW I believe, in UP colors) and a former Utah Southern SD-40-2 as the 375 is laid up for a wheel change. Last time I checked the two tunnel motors are operating as a pair and the Utah Southern unit is teamed up with the 8924. As far as the W&I is concerned, I haven't seen the F-unit in quite some time, last I heard it was for sale. The construction of the grain loader near McCoy should be breaking ground any time, as an old house on the site has been torn down and heavy equipment has been accumulating on the site. Stakes have been placed where the tracks are to go. W&I has been getting loads of poles and lumber off of the former WI&M, and making a few trips all the way to Wilson (near Moscow) with loads of bulk fertilizer. W&I has been running on an anytime anywhere schedule, sometimes in Pullman in the middle of the night or on a weekend.