Re: Catskill NG Relics at Hunter, NY
| December 30, 2014 07:21PM |
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Hi Ed,
This is a really interesting topic which I'm glad you've brought up!
As a fellow New Yorker I'm embarrassed to admit I don't know as much about the several Catskill Mountain narrow gauge lines as I should, despite their location so close to home, and I expect I'm not the only one whose attention has long been directed elsewhere. Like many Northeastern narrow gauge fans my own passion has always been for the Maine Two-Footers instead, three states and 300 miles away, and most SG railfan interest in the Catskill Mountain region specifically is focused on the U&D and the NYO&W (the ROW of the latter now being occupied by NY Route 17).
From Hilton's description of the railroad, the Stony Clove & Catskill Mountain must have been quite a ride:
"Track ascended along Stony Clove 1,273 feet in ten miles to the summit of Stony Clove Notch, from which it descended into Hunter, with a net gain of about 800 feet from Phoenicia. The Kaaterskill Railroad [separately incorporated but operated as a branch of the SC&CM] ascended about 400 feet with a ruling grade of 2.5 percent. The ascent of Stony Clove Creek was in a narrow gorge, and the scenery of the entire system was spectacular. Two passenger trains a day were typically run during the tourist season from Phoenicia to Kaaterskill Station, with cars for Hunter set out for a connecting train at Kaaterskill Junction. The system operated all year-round, mainly carrying forest products."
Sounds like the ROW roughly followed NY Route 214.
It's also interesting to consider how fashions change in terms of summer resort locations, even when the scenery itself is the same it's always been. A hundred years ago the Catskills were the place to be in the summer months, but then the region somehow became unfashionable in the eyes of many New Yorkers. I'm glad to hear it's becoming "cool" once again among the Brooklyn hipster crowd, for whom everything old is new once again
-Philip Marshall
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/30/2014 08:40PM by philip.marshall.
This is a really interesting topic which I'm glad you've brought up!
As a fellow New Yorker I'm embarrassed to admit I don't know as much about the several Catskill Mountain narrow gauge lines as I should, despite their location so close to home, and I expect I'm not the only one whose attention has long been directed elsewhere. Like many Northeastern narrow gauge fans my own passion has always been for the Maine Two-Footers instead, three states and 300 miles away, and most SG railfan interest in the Catskill Mountain region specifically is focused on the U&D and the NYO&W (the ROW of the latter now being occupied by NY Route 17).
From Hilton's description of the railroad, the Stony Clove & Catskill Mountain must have been quite a ride:
"Track ascended along Stony Clove 1,273 feet in ten miles to the summit of Stony Clove Notch, from which it descended into Hunter, with a net gain of about 800 feet from Phoenicia. The Kaaterskill Railroad [separately incorporated but operated as a branch of the SC&CM] ascended about 400 feet with a ruling grade of 2.5 percent. The ascent of Stony Clove Creek was in a narrow gorge, and the scenery of the entire system was spectacular. Two passenger trains a day were typically run during the tourist season from Phoenicia to Kaaterskill Station, with cars for Hunter set out for a connecting train at Kaaterskill Junction. The system operated all year-round, mainly carrying forest products."
Sounds like the ROW roughly followed NY Route 214.
It's also interesting to consider how fashions change in terms of summer resort locations, even when the scenery itself is the same it's always been. A hundred years ago the Catskills were the place to be in the summer months, but then the region somehow became unfashionable in the eyes of many New Yorkers. I'm glad to hear it's becoming "cool" once again among the Brooklyn hipster crowd, for whom everything old is new once again
-Philip Marshall
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/30/2014 08:40PM by philip.marshall.
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488 stops for water at Los Pinos tank on closing day Oct. 1979. Photo courtesy Don Richter
The NGDF was started by Don Richter and is currently operated in his memory by Nathan Holmes and others. Others who have contributed to the upkeep of this board are (in no particular order): Charles McCandless, Everett Lueck, Ted Wilton, Cole Adams, James Bane, John Moellmer, Jon Bentz, Linn Moedinger, lloyd lehrer, Rod Jensen, John Craft, Steven Forney, Herb Kelsey, Bill Ramaley, Russ Sperry (El Russo Loco), Josh McNeal, John West, Jim Armstrong, Bob Bergstrom, Greg Scholl, Blake Forbes Doug van Veelen and Mark Fuller.