More S&A

It had been very quite, heritage wise, for about three weeks on the rail line through Jonesborough. The facing book showed the Savannah & Atlanta was bringing 37Q from Pennsylvania back to Knoxville. The bad news is that 37Q usually gets through here in the wee hours of the morning. I was tracking it through the evening via FB and Twitter posts hoping it would be delayed on it's way into Bristol, but no joy. So I went to bed. 

Then a Christmas miracle happened.

I had inadvertently left my scanner on overnight, about 6:00AM I heard it chirp, and when I went down the hall to turn it off I heard the nice lady call NS1065! Just then leaving Bristol! Most Excellent! I got dressed and made a bee line for the Salt House in downtown Jonesborough even though it was foggy and still dark. I was hoping the fog would roll out and the sky would lighten during the 45 minute run from Piney Flats to Jonesborough.

My plan was coming together ... right up until time the crossing gates dropped. Some person who was obviously not paying enough attention drove their truck right up against the gates, seriously, I think their truck was touching the gate. And all that did was spray light from their headlights all over the middle of my picture ... serious total blowouts right dead center of every picture ... stupid truck.

Oh well, Christmas miracle giveth, Christmas miracle taketh away.

Well, I saw another post on HU.com that the S&A was tied down in Knoxville for the Christmas break. so there's always a chance that it will come back on a different train ... and it did, on 38Q the day after Christmas, but I missed it moving through Jonesborough, again. But this time I had a plan. I had to make a run to mom's anyway, so I drove by the Bristol yard and saw that the S&A was parked next to the cement plant, so I made the trip to Glade Spring and then back to Meadowview to catch it as it came by the new/old train station there. Below is the result of that plan ... not bad, eh?

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I'd seen the S&A once before, so this is not a new Heritage motor for me. I'm still at 19 of 20.

#13  1065  Savannah and Atlanta

#15  1066  New York Central

#19  1067  Reading
#12  1068  Erie
  #1  1069  Virginian
  #8  1070  Wabash
 #16 1071  Central RR of New Jersey
#11  1072  Illinois Terminal
  #4  1073  Penn Central
 #18 1074  Lackawanna
 #17 8025  Monongahela
  #2  8098  Conrail

#10  8099  Southern
  #5  8100  Nickel Plate Road
  #7  8101  Central of Georgia

  #9  8102  Pennsylvania

 #14 8103  Norfolk and Western
  #3  8104  Lehigh Valley

  #6  8105  Interstate

        8114  Norfolk Southern

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This is not a new Special Interest engine for me.
6920 Honoring Our Veterans

6963 GoRail

  630 Southern Railway Steam
1030 The Forgotten Heritage Engine