View Obscura

 Photos and Story By Ken Hulsey Yesterday, my travels took me through Lufkin, one of my favorite cities in East Texas. I've been wanting to check out the old railroading equipment at the Texas Forestry Museum, so I made sure to set aside time on this trip to visit. Admission to the museum is surprisingly free, so I was able to stroll right up to their wonderful displays without any issues. I was struck by the number of families taking advantage of the warm spring day to enjoy the museum's outdoor attractions, with some even having picnics on the lawn.

 Photos and Story By Ken Hulsey Yesterday, I took advantage of a free afternoon to explore the grounds of the Southern Forrest Heritage Museum in Long Leaf, Louisiana. The museum is located on the site of the former Long Leaf Sawmill Complex, which was once one of hundreds of mill complexes in the region. While the mill itself is fascinating to explore, on this rainy day I decided to spend my time walking around the old facilities of the Red River and Gulf Railroad.

 Yesterday my buddy Preston and I made the two hour trek up to Shreveport to see the Canadian Pacific 4-6-4 Steam Locomotive #2816 known affectionately as 'The Empress'. We arrived at the CPKC facilities at a little after three, which I thought may have been two early, and found that there was already a large crowd and the parking lot was almost already full to capacity. 

 From Cumbres & Toltec Tickets are now on sale for the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad (C&TSRR) 2024 season. The historic railroad is set to open on Saturday, May 25 of Memorial Day Weekend and will operate through Saturday, October 19, 2024. The new 2024 schedule features additional autumn weekend departures, Friday Express Trains, and an average $20 price deduction for summer Coach class tickets.

For the past couple of weeks I have been sifting through my collection of railroad photographs that I have posted over at my Rails West page on Facebook. I collected numerous images to share here at the Traveler's Guide, but I was puzzled on how I should feature them. Ultimately I decided to organize them by location instead of by date, which was my original intention. I figured that the photos would make more sense if the viewer knew where the images where taken. It would also be much easier on me to group them by location instead of simply featuring a random collection of photos that I would have to write a comment on each one so that they would have context.

 From The Grand Canyon Railway Make Spring Break Memorable With the Canyon Discovery Package Unlock the ultimate spring break escape with our unbeatable Canyon Discovery Package. Dive into a world of savings where adventure and convenience meet, with a 10% discount on train tickets, hotel rooms, a guided motorcoach tour, and meals*. All aboard for a memorable spring break without the premium price tag. Book now and get ready for a vacation to remember!

 From The Texas State Railroad Love nostalgic steam locomotives? We hope you will make plans to join us on March 14th for our Steam Weekend Season Opener!! Don't miss this opportunity to ride behind the magnificent locomotives of yesteryear and get up close and personal with these giants! It is always a fun time and a great opportunity to bring the kids out for an educational and inspiring experience!

 From CPKC Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) is pleased to announce the schedule dates for its historic Final Spike Anniversary Steam Tour, which will kick off April 24 at the company’s global headquarters in Calgary, Alta. and culminate June 4 in Mexico City. The tour will bring the story of CPKC’s uniquely North American railway history and compelling future to life for rail fans and visitors as it travels across CPKC’s network.

 While exploring Metairie yesterday, I used Google Maps to find the old Southern Pacific steam locomotive that I knew was stored nearby. The twisting maze of narrow streets and parking lots led me to the Louisiana Steam Train Association, wedged between two hospital parking lots. This organization's vintage railroad equipment was housed on old railroad sidings.

Photo By Ken Hulsey From Union Pacific: Union Pacific's famed Big Boy No. 4014 , the world’s largest steam locomotive, will return to the rails in 2024 for a tour celebrating the railroad’s deep history and connection to communities, and its employees. The tour is expected to reach all four corners of Union Pacific’s 23-state system with anticipated stops in: Chicago, Illinois Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas Houston, Texas Nampa, Idaho Portland, Oregon Roseville, California Salt Lake City, Utah Union Pacific's Big Boys: The Complete Story from History to Restoration Paperback - $28.99 @ Amazon.com - Order Here “As we move forward at Union Pacific, we remember where we came from; the Big Boy represents the history of Union Pacific and the United States,” said Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena. “When No. 4014 comes to town, we will celebrate with the communities where we operate, our employees and their families. Together, we will marvel at how far technology has brought us.” No. 4014 is the on...

Photo by Ken Hulsey I found out yesterday from Everett Lueck that the former Illinois Central steam locomotive #333 that had been rotting away on the property of the defunct Tioga Heritage Park had been acquired by a group from Ohio for possible restoration to working condition. This news was both exciting and disappointing because on the one hand the locomotive had ultimately been saved but it was my hope that it could had been restored and displayed somewhere here in Louisiana.  Everett posted this to the Train Orders website:   Former Illinois Central 1918 0-6-0 #333 left the closed Tioga, LA heritage museum for Ohio, and a rumored operational rebuild. I have been told that the locomotive was the depot switcher at Jackson, MS before coming to Baton Rouge, LA where the locomotive was donated to the State of Louisiana and put on display at the Louisiana Arts and Sciences Center in the Baton Rouge Yazoo and Mississippi Valley station. When the railroad display was rem...

From Trains Magazine Santa Fe No. 2926 will be under steam to attend New Mexico Railroad Days at Albuquerque’s downtown Rail Yards – a former ATSF facility with sections redeveloped for venue purposes, and future home for the restored 4-8-4 . Organized by the locomotive’s owner, the New Mexico Steam Locomotive & Railroad Historical Society (DBA New Mexico Heritage Rail), the free event is scheduled on Sept. 30 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Oct. 1 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “These events help draw people to areas they may not have been to before and to gain new experiences,” said John Roberts, president of the non-profit organization. “We plan events like this to bring public awareness to our project and our goals, educate the visitors about the history of locomotives, stimulate interest in railroad history, and encourage becoming a volunteer member to help support the current and future needs of the organization.” According to the press release, the 4-8-4 will depart on Sept. 30 at 8 a.m...

Back in August of 2021 the world's largest operating steam locomotive, 4-8-8-4 Big Boy #4014, toured through the South and Midwest stopping at several cities and towns along the way. On the 23rd the famous locomotive ventured into central Louisiana and I fought off Covid symptoms to capture photos of it as it made a brief stop in Bunkie. Despite the grueling heat there was a large crowd of onlookers as the enormous locomotive slowly rumbled into town just after eleven in the morning. Its stay may have been just a brief stopover for maintenance, but I provided the enthusiastic onlookers a great view of this operating piece of American history. Union Pacific's Big Boys: The complete story from history to restoration - $36.62 @ Amazon.com As I mentioned I was just recovering from Covid at the time so my stamina in the blazing heat was extremely diminished. Regardless I had a passion to capture images of the locomotive that I used to sit in the cab of, before the Union Pacific rest...

 From the publisher: Take a trip back to the awesome age of steam transportation. The steam train was once the transportation workhorse of North America. These powerful behemoths belched smoke, steam, and sparks as they roared across the vast virgin landscape. A revolution in transportation, steam engines left in their tracks new industrial towns and the prospect of a bright new future for America. Order Iron Horses for $1.35 to $30.89 from Amazon.com (Free Shipping) Iron Horses relives those days when the mighty steam train carved out a new history for North America. Packed with a superb collection of photographs-both color and early black-and-white-it reveals the history of steam trains and the contemporary preservation movement, which has ensured that although the age of steam is long past, it will never be forgotten. In addition Iron Horses features an up-to-date, illustrated A to Z guide to preservation sites and museums-a must for rail aficionados of all ages. Michael Del V...

A week ago my wife and I took a wonderful trip into eastern Texas and explored the area around Lufkin and Diboll. We were truly surprised by how many interesting attractions there were in this part of the country. Being a true rail buff I had to work in seeing a train on our visit if I could and I was surprised to discover that in the area of Lufkin there were a total of three preserved steam locomotives on display at various sites.   We had just finished having a wonderful afternoon at the Naranjo Museum of Natural History and there was just enough time to sneak in a visit to one of these exhibits. The closest one to us was Locomotive 13 at The History Center in nearby Diboll.  The museum itself is a wonderful collection of historical items pertaining to the once vast lumber industry in the area. There is a similar museum here in Louisiana called the Southern Forest Heritage Museum which is an actual old lumber mill complex including old railroad equipment. This museum m...