May 17, 2003
Run Day


 
Please click on picture to enlarge.
Doug Blodgett and Vance Nickerson fire the Mikado No. 1209.
No. 1209 is pressed into service.
Tom Smith and his son Andrew engineer the 18-wheel Hi-Railer.
David Hannah leaves the station with a full train.
Passengers wait on the platform for the next train.
Conductor Doug Gillory flashes a big smile.
Stationmaster Barry Tobias takes a few minutes to rest between shifts.
Greeting visitors is Marge Leventon.
When the Diesel has trouble, the Mikado does the job she's capable of doing, pushing the crippled locomotive into the station, in addition to the full load.
Dwight Rogers pulls the Mikado into the station.
Smiling Passengers!
HALS members, Doug Blodgett, Vance Nickerson and Ken Smith
Since the first time we laid track at Zube, we have had constant companionship of the nesting Killdeer. We even named a loop after them. The eggs are laid between the rails, below the top of the ties so that we continue to ride over them without physical damage. Usually everytime a train comes, the female will run off to the side looking like she's hurt to draw you away from her eggs. Today, something was different. She wasn't doing the "Broken Wing Dance." Instead she would stand on top of her nest and refuse to move, even once causing the engineer of the 1209, after repeatedly blowing his whistle, to have to get off his locomotive and physically push her aside so that he could pass over. What was it that was different today? Why would she stand defiant on her nest, allowing me to get so close (photos left and center). Soon we discovered why....SHE was the HE. The female came back in photo right and he flew off. She ran over and nestled down over her eggs, and did the "Broken Wing Dance" when anyone approached. Case solved.