Where Is It?

[ConrailMan5]

Another caboose.

Cmon now. Ypsilanti MI the NYc paimted hack on market street, off cross street in depot town. Very popular for portrait photographers. Has an address but not currently in use iirc.

[MQT1223]

Too freaking easy since I've been down there for the past four days.

Not easy if you don't live in the GR area dude. Kiss my grits. Nice of you to weigh in on something in your back yard.
You should have let the OP give a hint or reveal the location.

Well, I was not excluded from this one and that thus made it open to everyone. Did I maybe go a little overboard now that I look at it? Yes. Kiss your own grits.

[Raildudes dad]

After looking at the aerial view of Padnos, how did this redundant trackage last this long? It doesn't seem to serve any purpose that the other lead into Padnos couldn't handle.

It was the original access to Joe Brown for the Pennsy/NYC trackage prior to 1984. In 1984, the City got CSX and Conrail to consolidate on the west side using CSX. This trackage allowed lots of headroom for Conrail to switch Joe Brown with only adding the connection track.

I don't think GDLK does much business with Padnos, but this relocation allows them access and they still get to the original track access to the yard.

Padnos used to ship a lot of cars via Conrail. They would bring the loads up to Fuller every night with the GRE cars or just to runaround to pull back into the yard so I would see the traffic back in the day when Johnny Benson's dad was the conductor

Interesting story, they hit a piece of debris at 6th St coming north one night and poked a hole in the fuel tank. They realized they were leaking a fair amount once they got to Fuller. They called the tower, told him what happened and said have CSX give us a signal quick SB so we don't leak a couple 1000 gallons on the ground here. They got the signal and went south as fast as they dared leaving a nice spray of diesel on the track bed.

[MQT1223]

After looking at the aerial view of Padnos, how did this redundant trackage last this long? It doesn't seem to serve any purpose that the other lead into Padnos couldn't handle.

Those were the Grand Elk's tracks and NOT CSX. For the longest time this was the way that Grand Elk, NS, and Conrail got into Padnos. Why they didn't use the CSX, Chessie System or C&O lead is beyond me. What gets even weirder is that in the early 1980 this track was heavily rebuilt with 132lb rail and the crossing at Fulton, now gone, was upgraded in 1982. When the tracks leading north to Comstock Park were consolidated, the former GR&I was abandoned while any trains that headed north to Fuller Jct. now had to use the former C&O main to get to points north. The only part of the GR&I not abandoned was this little stretch of tracks, which was also isolated from the owners tracks, whether it be Conrail, NS or Grand Elk. Their main system is south of the Sunnyside Wye, where as in order to reach this trains had to go north on CSX.

It's one really weird setup for sure. I talked to the signal maintainers when I was there collecting stuff and he said that at least once a year maybe twice was when a Grand Elk locomotive would actually travel up these tracks into Padnos. Crews hated these tracks so much that they usually asked the Padnos guys to move their gondola's to the interchange track by the depot with the 65 Tonner. I was stopped at the Fulton St. crossing ONCE for that reason back a few years ago, and the maintainers said that at the most due to the 65 Tonner moving around cars that crossing would get activated maybe two or three times a month.

Talking more to the maintainers they said that a deal has been reached to enter Padnos via the CSX spur and for this reason is why these really odd tracks are FINALLY being lifted. This has apparently been talked about for quite some time so those tracks were bound to finally be abandoned at some point. Most of the equipment and rails being lifted are in really good condition so they will probably see use elsewhere on Watco's railroads.

Funny thing too about the Fulton Crossing, the Eastbound signal that lost it's catwalk. It was apparently hit by a truck some time ago. NS or Grand Elk apparently didn't want to invest the money into replacing a signal that would most likely be removed in the next 5 to 10 years. The maintainer said it was a HUGE fiasco to take and get a special exemption from MDOT and the FRA to allow that signal to remain standing, due to the lack of traffic on those tracks. In order to keep that signal compliant with the special exemption status it received, new lights were put on the mast and the bell which had apparently fallen off was drilled out of the bottom, had a double threaded bolt stuck in it and was put in a hole that was drilled in the top of the mast. That's why for years this bell was always leaning on top of the signal. Had this happened on CSX and an E-Bell would've for sure went on top of that signal!

I know that at least three people on this board have saved things from those signals. I got the Conrail DOT sign, Bell, A gatelight and the lock from the ladder off of the Westbound signal which was still in one piece. Another member on here got at least one gatelight and another got the rigged bell off of the broken Eastbound Signal. The maintainers were really cool and friendly. Had I gotten there earlier on Tuesday the maintainer said he would've powered up the signals for me and fired them up, and by then the tracks were already gone! He had cut the power just minutes earlier, but the signals were grounded out so they could only be activated via the relay case. The beauty of modern cellphones allowed me to document the removal of that crossing for the four days it was being ripped out, and anyone following me on Facebook can see the pictures unless I take the time to resize them and put them on here.

Overall, a very weird little situation regarding those tracks. If I am wrong on anything someone can definitely correct me.

[Raildudes dad]

Too freaking easy since I've been down there for the past four days.

Not easy if you don't live in the GR area dude. Kiss my grits. Nice of you to weigh in on something in your back yard.
You should have let the OP give a hint or reveal the location.

So what if the kid posted the correct answer. It had been up for 32 hours without any guesses. He posted info on the current removal of that track that has been speculated about for a couple days on the other board.

[Michael]

[AARR]

Is this between Detroit and Toledo?

[Michael]

Is this between Detroit and Toledo?

It is West of Detroit not South

[AARR]

Is it near Ann Arbor?

Is this between Detroit and Toledo? It is West of Detroit not South

[James Sofonia]

You are at Laurence Ave. & W.Michigan Ave. West of Jackson on the NS line.

[James Sofonia]

Although this view shows a crappy bridge, it is actually a very nice area.

[Michael]

You are at Laurence Ave. & W.Michigan Ave. West of Jackson on the NS line.

Nailed it

[Michael]

Although this view shows a crappy bridge, it is actually a very nice area.

It looks likes one of the remaining bridges over the Dequinder Cut now rail/trail. Is that area very nice? It is improving I assume.

[MQT1223]

Although this view shows a crappy bridge, it is actually a very nice area.

It looks likes one of the remaining bridges over the Dequinder Cut now rail/trail. Is that area very nice? It is improving I assume.

I was gonna say the Dequindre Cut as well, but it looks like their might still be rails underneath unless I'm seeing wood and not rails.

[James Sofonia]

Although this view shows a crappy bridge, it is actually a very nice area.

It looks likes one of the remaining bridges over the Dequinder Cut now rail/trail. Is that area very nice? It is improving I assume.

Yes, correct. Here is a streetview shot from the bike path (from a bike?) No rusted rails here!

[MQT1223]

Michael did the Dequindre Cut a while back.

[James Sofonia]

There is an abandoned rail grade at the bottom of this ski run.

[MQT1223]

There is an abandoned rail grade at the bottom of this ski run.

Boyne City and Boyne Mountain? BCG&A?

[Michael]

There is an abandoned rail grade at the bottom of this ski run.

Boyne City and Boyne Mountain? BCG&A?

That is a great guess even if you are wrong

[Michael]