Touring the Hooch Junction
Monroe StewartDescription
We begin the tour with a string of empty N&W hoppers easing into the Pupino Yard powered by three SD7s. The first two are lettered for the Norfolk Southern. The trailing unit is still labeled N&W. Off to the left is the McClain Equipment Company. Norfolk Southern units Number 199 and 198 leave the empties past a derelict boat yard. In the back you get a glimpse of the cruise ship Princess Daisy.
Next we move into Affluence, a modern bustling city. The SD-7s move Extra 199 to lower Chesapeake Yard. The commercial underpass gets Extra 199 under Affluence. Back at Hooch Junction, a CSX XD-40 leads train 88, another hopper train, out of Pupino Yard. In back is Hidden View Marina. The windows rattle in the engineering company as the XD-40’s rumble past.
Many of these empty hoppers will get dropped at Chesapeake Yard. Upper Chesapeake is the main yard of CSX. Train 88 rolls by Phillips Manufacturing Company before beginning its switching. Most of the empty hoppers will be left here. The brick building to the right is a menswear store. The empty hoppers get placed in Affluence for later pickup.
Norfolk Southern Number 199 has now reached the power plant at West End. It’s preparing for the assault on the 2% grade at Horseshoe. Over at Upper Chesapeake Yard, the three CSX units back to a cut of hoppers and four boxcars. This is the west end of Affluence. The cut from Upper Chesapeake is joined to the hoppers previously set out. At West End Siding, Train 88 picks up an additional caboose.
The whole train rolls past the power plant at West End. In the left background is Train 51, a local freight bound for Daisyville. We find the NS units heading upgrade towards Horseshoe Lake. To continue touring the Norfolk and Southern model railroad, view the full video.