Norfolk & Western 611: Autumn in the Shenandoah Valley

After six years in limbo, rotating between extended stays in North Carolina and Pennsylvania, Norfolk & Western class J 611 finally returned to the mainline in her native Virginia in the fall of 2023 to head the Shenandoah Valley Limited, a collaboration between the Virginia Museum of Transportation and the new Virginia Scenic Railway. For five weeks in October and November, these excursions ran from the tiny mountain town of Goshen to the city of Staunton along the former Chesapeake & Ohio Mountain Subdivision, now operated by the Buckingham Branch Railroad. After a backing move out of the newly constructed Victoria Station in Goshen, the train would roll northwards through an idyllic mountain valley to the small town of Craigsville before beginning the steep climb to North Mountain, the highest point on the old C&O mainline. Amtrak's Cardinal would be forced to wait there for 611 and the excursion to pass, creating an opportunity to see the past and future of American passenger rail meet as Amtrak has recently begun putting the brand-new Siemens ALC-42s into service. Once over the hill, the train rolled through the Buffalo Gap and into the pastoral Shenandoah Valley to arrive at the historic station in Staunton. Unfortunately there is nowhere to turn the engine along the line, so two Buckingham Branch GP40 diesels would pull the train on the return journey to Goshen. These were a wonderful set of trips, showcasing the "Spirit of Roanoke" at the head of 30 nearly sold-out trains and bringing thousands of people into the towns along the route to ride and watch. By all accounts the Shenandoah Valley Limited was a great success, and I hope this will prove to be just the beginning of a bright future for mainline steam in the Old Dominion.
Behind the scenes, this might just be one of the most frustrating videos I've done. The Buckingham Branch runs through remote territory with few facilities, spotty cell service, and only a single two-lane road between Goshen and Buffalo Gap. South of Craigsville, the road parallels the tracks such that pacers would cause a rolling traffic jam, and even North of there the train ran fast enough that getting ahead of it could be a challenge - I only would get two or three shots on each chase. Outside of the difficulties of chasing, I had planned to do most of my filming over the last two weekends in October. However, my car's radiator thermostat began to fail while I was at the Reading & Northern on the 21st, forcing me to head directly home. The following weekend, 611 was taken out of service for a staybolt failure, so I went up to the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad before finding out that 611 had been fixed, rushing from Brush Tunnel, MD to North Mountain, VA with only seconds to spare to catch 611 cresting the hill. I wasn't able to cancel my hotel in Staunton that weekend so I ended up paying for two rooms. Since I had only gotten six shots over three weekends at that point, I cancelled my planned chase of Southern 4501 and made a final attempt over the first weekend of November. Although the fall colors were fading fast, there were fewer other railfans on the roads and the sunlight was just perfect for getting the remainder of the shots I wanted, letting me end the fall season on a high note. In spite of my frustrations I'm very happy with how the final product has turned out, and if 611 returns in 2024 I've learned a lot of lessons that should hopefully give me an easier time.

[@atsfevan0242]

I'm glad vmt managed to find a place for 611 to run mainline excursions again. I do hope they can continue in the future as I'd love to attend one myself and see my favorite streamlined in action!

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Yes it's a pretty great development, hopefully they can keep it up for many more years.

[@atsfevan0242]

@@SmokyMtnSteam fingers crossed

[@maxwellwalcher6420]

@@SmokyMtnSteam in 200 Steam Locomotives would NYC 5406 5449 5450 and 5429 the Hudsons be in 200 Steam Locomotives.

[@lashendawest7509]

Great catches and awesome video

[@MPT_Productions]

Great video!

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Thanks!

[@oldbigshoe]

Well done!

[@CannRailfanProductions]

Idk where or how you find these majestic waterfall scenes but keep doing it, its so good.

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Usually I search Google for nearby waterfalls and overlooks, but in this case it was just dumb luck that my diversion route to Cass on the 27th happened to go right by Falling Spring Falls.

[@railfanningwithtydan]

Awesome chasing! It was nice to meet with ya in Clarksville! The speed she can get is incredible based how rare it is these days. Great video!

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Indeed, not many places to see steam over 20mph these days. Good to see you too.

[@billyrueckert5113]

They definitely underestimated the need for diesel assist. A GREAT problem, lol. Excellent video as always!

[@AndrewStewart545]

11:16-11:53 Out with the old and in with the new!! Lol 😂 😂

[@joneau261]

Nicely done

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Thanks!

[@valeriebassett3107]

I'm so glad you got this video put together. I think your videos are awesome and they never disappoint. 611 is one of my favorite locomotives. I love to see her and really love to hear her whistle. You made my day. Keep up the excellent work. I'll pray that God gives you an amazing year in 2024! Thanks again for your videos and sharing. I also like your write ups. ❤️🙏

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Thank you very much Valerie!

[@gretchenchadwick8343]

My special needs son is overjoyed to see 611 pulling excursions on a main line again and hopes that it will more often like it used to and hopes that the 2 Canadian 4-6-2 Pacific's 1286 & 1238 will return to Virginia and pull excursions between Charlottesville, Gordonsville, and Clifton Forge like they did in the early 1990s.

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

I don't think that will ever happen as those engines are back home in Canada now, but if the Buckingham Branch and VMT are happy with how things went this fall we might see a lot more excursions with the 611 over this route.

[@gretchenchadwick8343]

@@SmokyMtnSteam Well always remember that with God all things are possible but thank you for your reply we appreciate it God bless you 🙏✡🤴✝️🔥🥀😇👼🦁🐏🐑🕊🦅 John 3:16

[@johnuhelski8613]

Nice vid , one of the best out there on this operation. I liked the run by at 6:20 , that is the spot me and a buddy cut the brush down for an open view. Not too shabby eh ?

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Thanks! You're efforts were much appreciated.

[@drpeerless1]

Great video as always! The shot at the church is probably my most favorite of all. My Dad first shot Jack Showalters operation there in 1993. Those videos are on my channel if you would like to take a look. Once again keep up the great work and thank you for posting!

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Thank you very much! I actually watched the Virginia Central videos you posted while researching the route and stole the church shot.

[@guy_called_Odin]

I was on the trip where the 7 was running solo on the back (the one where the 611 passed the Cardinal with the Amtrak 329 at 11:53).

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

Cool, looks like it was a fun ride.

[@guy_called_Odin]

@@SmokyMtnSteam Definitely was. Got to chase the morning trip that day and the afternoon trip the next day.

[@kellyashfordtrains2642]

On the British side of railway action, I was lucky enough to celebrate the return to steam of one little GWR steamy sister of mine: 57xx Pannier Tank Engine, no. 7754. The ride behind her and the J94 double-heading was very magical, the best 2023 Llangollen Railway highlight for me and many others including one KZbin friend of mine: Phil Clarke and his Son Harry. 7754 will be in proper service next year, I was told by one very kind volunteer named Andy who was happy to give me a tour inside Llangollen Engine Shed. If you'd like to watch those two videos, you'll find them on my channel, Kelly Ashford Trains.

[@SmokyMtnSteam]

That's great! I know the Llangollen has had some issues in recent years, good to hear they've got it running.

[@maxwellwalcher6420]

i have an Idea in 200 Steam Locomotives.

[@funtechxtream8753]

Eggy train