April 2021 Work Reports

[Ed Lecuyer]

Anticipated Operations for Saturday, April 10th.
10:30am: Springtime Eggspress with SeaLyon Farm (SOLD OUT)
11:45am: Springtime Eggspress with SeaLyon Farm (SOLD OUT)
1:00pm: Springtime Eggspress with SeaLyon Farm (SOLD OUT)
2:15pm: Springtime Eggspress with SeaLyon Farm (Tickets Available*)
3:30pm: Eggspress pickup
*As of 4/7/2021

Extra assistance is always appreciated - contact crewcaller@traincrew.wwfry.org to sign up, or learn how to be qualified.

We are looking for folks to fill a "Gatekeeper" position - which requires basic computer/tablet/phone skills and a knack for dealing with the public.
(Train handling qualifications are NOT required to assist as Gatekeeper.)

All trains are limited to 50 passengers and all tickets must be purchased in advance.
All passengers and crew must adhere to the COVID-19 Policy published at www.wwfry.org/covid
Visit www.wwfry.org/tickets to buy tickets.

[Stephen Lennox]

Work complete Tuesday and Wednesday April 6-7, 2021.

Tuesday: 

*  Track Work, the run through track was removed, track panel’s stored, ballast stone recovered and
    road bed graded. (Brendan, Fred, Steve L, Brian W, Chuck, Dan)
*  Septic heights cleaned up, old wood cut up.  (Dan, Bryce)
*  Vacuum brake work continues  (Johnathan, Randy)
*  Locomotive #8, oiled, steam chest inspected, switched over to Machine shop, lead #3.
    (Jason, Brian F, Bryce, Dan)
*  Tamper (Wilma) moved to woods track, various function checks made, electrical issue discovered.
    (Jason, Joe F, Steve L, Brian W, Chuck, Goran C, Phil B, Dan)

Wednesday:

*  Tamper (Big Joe) maintenance continued, greased, oiled air line repairs. (Steve L, Chuck Leon)
*  Truck unloaded with more parts for Locomotive #11, stored in container)
*  Survey for the new run through track made,  (Randy, Johnathan)
*  Septic heights work, wood split loaded/delivered to Alna, old track panels recovered.
    (Dan, Brian S, Brendan, Steve L)
*  Coach #9 assembly continued (Eric, Ron)
*  Tamper (Big Joe) placed on Main for function check and tamping, he is back in service.
    (Steve L, Chuck, Dan)

Note:  Various members in out today, Steve Z, Steve P, Zack, Stewart, Dave.
           Always like to point out that work continues through out the week by members on various               
           projects.

[Bob Holmes]

Great report Steve.  What has happened to Monson #4.  It's clearly not there at the turntable anymore.

[Ed Lecuyer]

What has happened to Monson #4.

It is being kept socially distant from the other locomotives until it receives its vaccine. 

Actually, at last report, #4 was parked on the ramp/display track next to the rest room.

[Stephen Lennox]

Bob, as of yesterday afternoon, #4 remains on the loading ramp. I expect she will be there for a while.

[Brendan Barry]

Pulling up the roundhouse lead.

Removing track panels and stacking piles with the Case loader.







Forklift taking a stack of panels to the upper lot.



No. 8 being oiled for the move to bay 3 behind the shop.



Joint bars being pulled and collected.





Track removed up to the switch in the north yard. The dirty ballst was scraped up and piled for use as gravel around the Sheepscot campus.

[Brendan Barry]

Fred wanted to get the turntable girders stored on the right of way across the street from the railroad up out of the mud. Thursday morning we used the loader to pick up one end of the girders at a time and pull the girders up onto higher ground.

[Jeff Schumaker]

The yard area looks a lot different without the turntable lead.

Jeff S.

[James Patten]

Work done Saturday April 10:

* Office: The Apple computer originally in the Archives was turned over to me for my office computer last month. I finally got it set up so that I can use it (it has Windows Parallels so I spent a bunch of Saturdays updating Windows).
* Vehicles: Mike drained the hydraulic oil from the forklift as much as he could.  The oil was white from moisture. 
* Dozing: Mike took the dozer and pushed dirt and stumps around behind the containers.
* Boxcar 56: Marcel got the timbers that hold the draft gear ("cheek" somethings I think) attached.
* Machine shop: Alan was working on getting the small lathe fixed up.
* South ROW: Fred took a chain saw down the ROW south of Cross Rd and picked away at cutting up some fallen tree branches in the ROW (for mowing later).
* Electrical Building: Zack was working on it.

Dwight mentioned it was like old home weekend, as some folks we haven't seen in a while made an appearance.

[Bill Reidy]

* South ROW: Fred took a chain saw down the ROW south of Cross Rd and picked away at cutting up some fallen tree branches in the ROW (for mowing later).

Tick season has begun.  I just pulled one off me after I got home.  I assume I picked it up when I walked down to join Fred.  Temperatures reached the low 70s today in Sheepscot.

[Mike Fox]

The Forklift has a blown hose. I spotted marks in the dirt to the #11 container. I did not investigate because I assumed it was fixed.. Alan says it is underneath behind the hydraulic tank. Had I known or seen it, I would have fixed that too.

A little muddy behind the containers, but only the 2 maple stumps left to move. Little Casey just could not do it.. Also lost a track off. Got it back on in a half hour. Luckily I was not in the mud when it popped off..

[Bill Reidy]

Definitely old home weekend.  Saw several friends today I've missed the past year+, including Dana Deering, Steve Lennox and Steve Zuppa, as well as meeting new friends.  As we inch closer to normal, I look forward to more days like this this year.

Some random photos I took today, as always only capturing a small portion of the work by many.

Brian Whitney (right) discusses the tie inserter with Mike Fox (left).


A distant view of No. 9's steam-up this morning, showing other equipment north and east of the shop building.


A view out the shop bay 3 door (where B&SR boxcar No. 56 is being restored), showing No. 9 being steamed up on the shop bay 4 lead next to B&SR No. 8.


Crew meeting today, led by conductor J.B. Smith.


Mike bled and refilled the hydraulic fluid for the fork lift.


Alan Downey (left) discusses our 10 new car axles (mentioned in our March/April Newsletter) with James Patten (right).


The second return train of the day from Alna Center.


Steve Lennox handles the Sheepscot south mainline switch for the runaround move.


Conductor J.B. provides whoopie pies to the engine crew as engineer Bob Longo looks on today.  Our thanks to SeaLyon Farm for kindly delivering goodies for our train crew today.


Based on James' earlier post, Marcel was working on something cheeky under the B&SR boxcar No. 56 frame.

[Graham Buxton]

Thanks for the photo update, Bill.

Conductor J.B. provides whoopie pies to the engine crew as engineer Bob Longo looks on today.

I'll admit that I had to look up what whoopie pies were ... 

It is made of two round mound-shaped pieces of usually chocolate cake, or sometimes pumpkin, gingerbread or other flavored cakes, with a sweet, creamy filling or frosting sandwiched between them.
The whoopie pie is the official state treat of Maine (not to be confused with the official state dessert, which is blueberry pie).

The world's largest whoopie pie was created in South Portland, Maine, on March 26, 2011, weighing in at 1,062 lb.

More here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whoopie_pie

[Dave Buczkowski]

Mike, I hope you didn’t put the dozer away dirty!

[James Patten]

How can anyone in North America not know what a whoopie pie is?