L&D Classics Amtk An Old Piece of Concrete

Some things make me crazy. A piece of concrete on the side of the tracks in Lafayette, La.

has worked that magic.

That piece of concrete is a link to the past. 

To me it is  no less than a time capsule or a time machine.

Often bits of history float about. 

Tying them down is often illusive.

The "floating" history in the picture below is the rail alignment..  They've been moved about, 

not much, but enough to make bits of a historic puzzle not fit together easily.

Where there were two, three, four and even five sets of rails, there is only one now.

To fit old puzzle pieces together, a corner must be defined.

In this picture the building in the background is that "corner".

I may or may not get back to this crazy producing project.

Crazy is not where I want to be right now, nor 

was it where I wanted to be this afternoon or tonight.

See, I've been Nurse Stephenie for a couple of days and my white stockings are starting to stink.

Stinking  stockings also make me crazy.

I needed to get out  and chase a train.

Meeting one would do. 

The truth be told, 

I needed a bike ride and the train thing keeps

the boredom of repetitious routes  at a manageable level.

I could manage  a Sunset Limited rendezvous  if she was a little late and I hustled.

I got there as Mz Sunset was pulling into the station.

I even got a friendly toot toot to get off the tracks as it was pulling forward more than I though she was.

Her nose was getting quite large in the view finder.

In this picture the train was still in motion.

Maybe I wasn't exactly on the tracks

but saying so enhances the story.

Let's take a break at this point in the proceedings. I have a confession.

I've started collecting AMTK numbers. Can this hobby get any sicker?

These are my train folders. It seems today was a good one. I added 2 here and a few more lost in my files

found when I was looking for other pictures.

That  makes over 58544 Amtrak  shots.

I didn't have a "79", now I do.

 Nor did I have a "177". I call today's hunt a "2 fer".
Oops, I just flashed on the popularity of Bingo with old people.

 I needed a good picture of both engines. 

Many of my train folders have "Q" as the second engine's number.

Q = Unknown = and that makes me crazy.

I will now be more "second engine" number conscious. The other day there were three.
If you keep up with this blog you know that. If not, you missed it.

Before the next segment of this report makes YOU crazy, the map below is "south oriented".

I had to flip it because I was working with a picture that was.
Ever try matching a south oriented picture with a north oriented map?
It will give you a headache.

The red arrow points to where the last and next pictures were taken.
Still confused?

The yellow arrow points to where the cement block is.

That is Simco St. above it and Cameron St./ Mudd Ave., below.
In the real world substitute "above" with "below".

The rest is "noise" for the time being but won't be shortly.

 Mzs AMTKs X2  were in  the big curve going west, to the right in the map above.
Flipping a map from north oriented to south oriented does not mess with east and west.
I learned that by using a gps. Left is always east and right is always west.
Your brain may fight you but you have to stand strong.

The yellow with red dashes route (rails) is the one with the box car on it, below the shot below.

 This is another cool place in Lafayette for taking pictures. A beer distributor  is just to the right.
 They offer tours and tastings.
Be ready to meet some interesting folks hanging round the tracks.
I'm the one with the helmet on.
Francine is another who wears a helmet.
You can tell us apart. Her boots are lace up.

 In pursuit of  a frivolous carefree train chasing couple of hours, I was getting more crazy.
This is the reason why:

Right here where the historic Alexandria Branch of the Southern Pacific Railroad and the Sunset Route

flowed to and fro, there was a cement slab with railroad stuff sitting on it.
I have to know what that's all about, but,

the sickie at home was still needy and I'd have to rush it up because I wanted to hit the BR branch 

en route back to the hospital.

 I got to the salt mine and low and behold I thought I was seeing a ghost.

OK, the story goes like this, there's this national short line railroad company down in New Iberia.

All of their engines were bought used, I think. If they had a good paint job on them, who cared 

what the name was. They'd let it ride. I once thought management was cool and they were collectors
as there really were some neat pretty ones carrying with them a heritage.
It's my "romantic" side, I know.
 Some are strikingly beautiful if you are into drooling over diesel engines, definitely an
acquired taste.

I considered those special ones my personal favorites along with the engines up in
Opelousas which may not be so pretty,

but their personalities and the personalities of the crews make up for it.
They are a humble and friendly group, always ready to speak and wave.
They really seem to enjoy their work.
Sometimes I don't get that elsewhere, just sayin'.

Let me go on.

I place "Mz" before the former company names in the New Iberia  short line  stable.

There is a Mz Utah, several Mz Mountain Laurels, and of course,
there were several Mz Alleghenys.

Honest, I get the Laurels and the Alleghenys mixed up.

I had heard a  Mz Mt.Laurel had been lobotomized at the paint shop.

When I saw this Mz Allegheny, I thought I was seeing the spirit of the poor erased Mt.Laurel who 

is now wearing the blank stare orange that the rest of the de-personalized ranks of the NI group do.
I'm trying not to get wound up.

Ah ooom, ain't she pretty.

The first time I saw these out of place engines in the lowlands of Louisiana I had a w-t-heck moment, sorta, honest, I rarely say "heck".

I'd seen her sister down in New Iberia when I stopped by the shop.

I had to have an award winning shot of this old girl. 

I run that NI short line's territory from Bayou Sale to Abbeville, down to the 

ports of St. Mary and Iberia and up to Lafayette and of course to Breaux Bridge,

and if I've seen her it's been  just a few times. I did notice that several of the 

regular engines were in the shop. Possibly this is a rotation period for maintenance,

after all they are as old as dirt..

I went to Teurlings and waited. I shot way down into the Vermilion River Valley

and got the usual water paintings from the way too far out digital photography.

I really like what these shots produce.

Now that is spin worthy of the Democratic Party.

That is Mz Utah down there at the near end, Mz Allegheny being on the other.

Mz Utah cannot be missed with her red beak. Some of the Southern Pacific

tugs had the same nose job.

Mile Post 3, you can see the river bridge below.

The salt mine has a little switching sidetrack on the east side of the river.

Really, doesn't Mz Utah look like a bird?

The shots above are for sale in the site store.

I went back to the salt mine.

The little train had headed into Breaux Bridge. 

That would be fine. I'd get my shots there and 

be close to home.

That's the dashboard. You can see him putting a cd into the player. 

For some reason the engineer didn't seem that chippy. A shame.

You know, you come into my town with your big ol' smelly machines, 

make noise for hours, stop traffic run after run and you can't return a wave when you are looking right at me, 

an admirer, a pro railroad guy who has followed your company for years. I was hurt.

LOL's

What the ----? and I'm not thinking "heck".

Possibly it's the pink garb, I'd be less than chippy, also.  

I continued to shoot.  The beautiful engine retained her radiance.

 She would be hours here servicing Enterprise.

I've watched this dance to fruition and it is boring.
Very possibly railroading does not live up to juvenile expectations.
Possibly it eventually sours some people.
I've noticed some "sour" amongst that group.

 I went back later this evening and they were still at it.

 Mz Utah would be upset if I didn't show you a picture of her.
I have much better, you know dear.

Her red "beak", seen in the watercolors, is her signature.

The day they paint her that industrial uglyass orange, I'll kick the dog.

.I can say several things about the Opelousas's Acadiana RR engines:

There are not two alike and all have nicknames and helter-skelter numbers.
That's my kind of railroad.
These guys have fun.
They are putting a M-45 K diesel into an old 1200.
Dude, the sucker will do wheelies when done.

I guess this has gone full circle and hypocrisy is again nipping at my heels. 
As I said right off, I collect AMTK numbers. In fact, while I was looking for the picture

below I found another one in my stash, "AMTK 823".

But, I'm not collecting orange engine numbers. 

At least the AMTK girls  wear pretty colors if they aren't always that clean.
I just read an article of how they are worked.
You'd be dirty, too.

OK, I admit  I  have 5000 pictures of these orange engines and their numbers.
In fact, the company did assign nicknames to them.
That was a nice touch though self serving.
For instance, 1504 is "Patoutville". I call her Mz Patoutville which is much more personal.
The mill at Patoutville is a customer so the honor was profit driven, not that becoming without  the "Mz".
 That's enough. I better quit before I ---- someone off. (---- is not "kiss")

 What do these clones below do for you?  You can't tell where one starts and the other ends.

FYI

Laurel Mt. 1852  is the poor lobotomized victim.

Her older sister seen here, Mountain Laurel 1851, mourned to such an extent she had to be hospitalized.
Red and silver to industrial Rust-oleum orange, very sad.

I have seen the post surgery picture of 1852 and it isn't pretty.
The photographer said it was a "makeover".
In others eyes, not mine?  Now she's just another tug.
Her history is gone, erased.
I know, she probably had some rust,
her joints were stiff and she was losing her looks.
All I can say is:
Stay the - --- away from me with your damn orange spray can.

Back to the cement. It is still tearing me up but I'm too torn up over this 

to shift back to a mysterious block in downtown Lafayette.
Nevertheless, if there is "on the ground" research to do, I better move before it's painted ------,
so to say.
If you are interested in the cement block and pages of boring Lafayette rail
alignment history which may be theoretical at best, let me know. 
I have found 3 definitive pictures but I'll have to "check them out"
of someone's personal collection before using them and that's cuts across my grain
as a do it all self reliant individual.

More later.
PS: To all my contributors, tutors and such, I was just kidding.


As far as I can tell, Mz Mt.Laurel
was still with us up until August of 2011.
I am trying to determine when the repaint was done.
I had feared I was raising cane over an orange paint job that was being renewed,
not so. It was done earlier this year, not recently as I  had thougth.
April of this year she was already painted and doing time in Panama City.
This page shows 1852 in the PC operating room 2/9/2012.
The paint job was probably done there.

 In Loving Memory