DAVID HONAN/PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR


W


ASHINGTON STATE IS LIKE A jeweler’s display case of attractive railroad operations. Railfans travel from around the world to take in the towering cliffs of the Columbia River Gorge; Stevens Pass offers a winter wonderland to the adventurous soul; the Seattle– Tacoma metropolis is graced by highly trafficked mainlines set on the shores of Puget Sound. But tucked away in a dusty corner, often ignored by photographers hustling between the towering drama of Union Pacific’s Joso Viaduct and BNSF’s grinding double-track assault of Providence Hill, there sits an unpolished diamond that’s one of my favorite places to visit — Watco’s Palouse River & Coulee City (PCC) Railroad. This unremarked gemstone may not seem like much at first glance, but a closer look reveals a rural railroad of deep character.


Not only does the PCC continue to serve the agricultural communities of Whitman County its rails were built to connect, but in doing so the railroad passes through the Palouse region, home to some of the most appealing scenes the state has to offer. This land of perpetually rolling


hills


features vibrant colors that transition from carpets of green in the spring to seas of gold in late summer. Acres of crops are often interspersed with swaths of the rich brown dirt that help make this one of the most productive agricultural regions in the U.S.; the Palouse is renowned for growing wheat, barley, lentils, and peas, and yield rates here can exceed twice those of Kansas’ top counties. It’s no wonder this agricultural bounty led to the Palouse being crossed by a spiderweb of railroads in the days before engineers paved highways and tamed wild rivers.


28 JANUARY 2017 • RAILFAN.COM


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