The Big Boy was at Steamtown for 2 weeks, and we decided to visit the site on the third to last day it would be on site. There would be a long drive ahead of us, but this would be our last chance to see the last operational Big Boy before it leaves for Philadelphia to celebrate America's 250th birthday.
But first....
RQS and I decided not to go to church today. It would be a no-brainer for us, as the church is not air-conditioned, and we wanted to be as comfortable as possible before arriving at Steamtown. Waking up at 9 am, we were out the door by 11:30, knowing that we'd be on the road for 2.5 hours. It would be an exhausting drive for me, but I didn't know it before I started out.
Normally, I avoid the "Goat Path" (a twisting mountainside road near me) leading to the Bear Mountain Bridge. Today, I had to take this road to the bridge, and then take a long, boring drive along the Interstate to reach Scranton, PA. There are very few landmarks between Middletown, NY and Scranton, PA, and I was driving with only 5 hours of sleep. It was an effort to stay awake, as I needed to walk around to keep my blood flowing and make sure that I'd have the energy to finish this 125 mile drive. But, we made it to Steamtown by 2 pm.
One can usually enter the park without reservations, and unlike many Federal Historic sited, without an admission fee. (Steamtown's management decided NOT to charge admission fees, as 85% of these fees would go into the collective Federal budget. Instead, Steamtown gains revenue by selling excursion rides on steam trains, where they get to keep 100% of the ticket sales.) I remembered to buy tickets ($1.00/pp) for this event, and I was able to drive into the park after showing my ticket. And then the fun began....
I was a little over dressed for the day (wearing a shrug to cover my shoulders) so I was very warm while at the park. Since there was a 300' line to go inside the engineer's compartment of the Big Boy on permanent display, we decided to first go to the main building and see the exhibits there. Following that, we went outside to see the Big Boy that would be here until month-end. We spent 90 minutes at a museum to see a living relic, a machine built in 1941 that was brought back to life by a corporation who wanted to preserve its heritage. We consider ourselves lucky, as this would be the only time in my life that 2 Big Boys would be in the same place at the same time. Sadly, this might be only time this great locomotive might get this far east, and it was well worth the effort to get here to see it being prepared for its next move.
Around 3:45, we were back on the road again, and I heard a weird noise coming from my car. Could something have gotten stuck in a tire? Who knows? But it was Sunday, and I didn't want to call AAA for roadside help, and then have to make it back home with either a "Donut" (temporary use tire) or by other means of transit. Instead, I kept my car in motion for 2 hours until we crossed the Hudson river. The noise had thankfully gone away on the trip back, and we were able to fill up the gas tank and stop for dinner before driving the final 30 minutes to my house.
It was a long day, but well worth the effort to get out of the house.
PS: The song for today is Harry Chapin's "30,000 pounds of Bananas." Anyone who has driven in to Scranton on one of the long hills coming in to town will understand why I bring up this tune.
