Hi all,
The South Fork Timber Company recently acquired Shay #9 and after a complete shopping put it to work on the high run. I had some time today so I drove out to Hyampom to see if I could get some pictures as she came through.
I got there just in time to catch her coming out of the South Fork Mountain tunnel. Looks like a fuel tanker just behind the Shay, probably fuel for the Donkey engines in the woods.
Yea, definitely a fuel tanker and it looks like a new tractor on the depressed center flat. South Fork is in the process of changing over from there last “high lead” operation to an all “Cat” show so I doubt we will see many more loads of fuel for the Donkeys going into the woods.
Hmmmm, a load of timbers on a Shasta Pacific car, they must have come up from the mill at Hay Fork, wonder what they are for. Wow, look at that, the old Crane Lake Lumber Company crew hack #6, man that is really old. I didn’t think it was even operational anymore, things must be busy to hafta’ drag that old wreck into service.
I love this spot for train watching because you can catch them coming out of the tunnel then turn around and catch them crossing the old timber bridge over the south fork of the Trinity River.
Hey, That’s “High Pockets Pelfrey” he has been woods boss and and conductor for the SFTC for about a hundred years. Checking his watch as usual, never was a turn of logs or anything else that was ever fast enough to suit him, you might say that he is the original company man.
Well I found out what the timbers were for they stopped the train and were getting ready to shift the flat load of timbers onto the siding here at Hyampom for refurbishing the bridge, it does look a little rickity, any way it gave me time to scramble down into the canyon and get this shot. You can just see old South Fork #1 still laying in the river bottom, I would have thought that the flood waters would have buried it or moved it down stream by now, I mean it has been nearly 25 years since the bridge cave in.
