Reunion of Steam 10-05-19: N&W 611 and 475 Photo Charter on the Strasburg Railroad

In the fall of 2019, Norfolk & Western J class 4-8-4 no. 611 traveled to Pennsylvania to meet up with the only other operating N&W steam engine in the world, M class 4-8-0 no. 475, which lives at the Strasburg Railroad. 611's visit was packed with activities, including a variety of photo charters. Like many railfans, I made the pilgrimage to this hallowed line to put on my best O Winston Link impression, and capture these remarkable mechanical beasts in scenes that were meant to look like their final days of service. 611 was given a short period freight consist to haul (a far cry from the streamlined passenger trains it was built for, but accurate, as steam was bumped to lower-priority assignments as diesels took over) and the 475 pulled a mixed passenger train, which doubled as a photographer shuttle. The Strasburg railroad, in cooperation with Lerro Photography, put on a stellar show, balancing three trains on their 4.5 mile mainline with plenty of photo runbys and beautiful Amish farmland backdrops to complement the period freight consists.
Still images are available on my Flickr account at www.flickr.com... or on my website, www.montystrai...
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[@B-LineRailfan]

Very well done! I haven't been on a photo charter yet, but this looks to have been outstanding!