first half of the train and gave Chuck a highball over the radio to proceed up the hill. The half dozen C420s respond- ed with a roar that soon became almost deafening, bouncing off the rock cuts and forest. It was almost as if the Alcos knew that their days were numbered on the main line and were showing off what they could do best for this visitor who is more accustomed to flat lands. I guess it needs to be put into perspec- tive. One does not usually think that the words “mountain railroading” and “Arkansas” would go together but somewhere inside Winslow tunnel is the highest rail point in elevation be- tween the Rockies and Appalachians. For those 6.3 miles from Schaberg to Winslow the elevation rises, on the av- erage, 100 feet for every mile. It in- creases to almost three per cent maxi- mum grade. I guess this is why they are called the Boston Mountains. Not to be outdone, Mother Nature de- cided to put on a show of her own. Lightning illuminated the track ahead and the surroundings. As we crossed Bridge 3 the frequent flashes of light lit up the valley below making it quite ap- parent of our elevation above the ground. The closer we got to the sum-
mit the more intense this show became. The Alcos and Mother Nature were competing for my attention.
We slipped into Winslow tunnel and
as we exited the other side it had be- come quiet and the rain had almost stopped. The first cut of cars was set out on the siding and we made our way, engines light, down the mountain to Schaberg for the second cut only to be met with rain, but not as heavy as be- fore. Some where in the midst of all this the area had been put under a flash flood watch. The second half of the train made it up the mountain, the Al- cos putting in an encore performance. Lightning was less intense. Our train was put back together and
was once again Springdale bound. The train was up to track speed and the Al- cos were relaxing after the pair of hard pulls into Winslow. Before long the train passed the Springdale yard office. The 56 cars were set out and the power taken back to the office.
I thanked
Mitch and Chuck for letting me ride with them. I was able to get a couple of hours sleep at the hotel before we head- ed home. I was able to get several more hours of sleep as Tim drove most of the way home.
I couldn’t help but think that what I had experienced was similar to the de- mise of steam on the main line back in the 1950s. In much the same way I sensed that a chapter was closing as the last Alco stronghold yields to EMD, and for the present, on the main line. As our group traveled from central Illi- nois to Monett I sensed an urgency to capture these last Alco moments on memory card and video as much as a 1950s steam enthusiast would travel to capture the fading moments of steam on rolls of 120 black and white film and movies. As steam passed the torch to the diesel, the Century now passes the torch to the ACe.
I want to personally thank all of those on the Arkansas & Missouri Railroad for making this trip possible, especially riding the Fort Smith Turn. Thanks to Mitch and Chuck; Ron Lundstrom; Superintendent Randy Campbell; A&M Police Chief Ron “Sparky” Sparks; Passenger Train Operations Manager Brenda Rouse; and all
of the hard
working men and women who make up the A&M family. Special thanks to my son Tim who did a majority of the driv- ing with his trusty Saturn.
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