July 20th marked the debut run for SP 9010 after an 11 year restoration by Niles Canyon Railway volunteers. On a last minute whim I went ahead and purchased tickets to ride on the Pro Railfan Run-By train ride. The morning started out with a short celebration and a bottle of champagne was finally broken on the coupler (on the 3rd try). This photo was from the first of 2 run-by locations near Brightside. The sun came out just in time for this photo and made the paint shine on the beautifully restored locomotive. As the only locomotive left of its kind, hearing the effort it took to bring this locomotive back was incredible. The front engine and traction motors may never run again, but they have high hopes for the rear engine which is currently sitting in their repair shops awaiting a rebuild. They expect the engine to be running under its own power in 12-18 months.
Not
just heritage schemes, not just commemorative schemes - this album is devoted to some of the world's most interesting paint schemes, past or present.
