Adirondack rail buffs get rare access to scenic train routes

Activities included historic train rides, runbys and a night photo shoot

By Tom French

Full confession – I’m a rail buff. I have been since I was a kid with an HO oval on a piece of green-painted plywood. It’s in my blood – both my paternal grandfather and great-grandfather worked for the St. Lawrence Division of the New York Central, and my other grandfather traveled by train between Clayton and Saranac Lake when he was living with his older sister, Corinne Everett, during the school year. He graduated from Saranac Lake High School in 1932.

I’m a member of the Norwood Model Railroad Club, and I’ve biked various sections of the new Adirondack Rail Trail, ridden many old railbeds throughout the Adirondacks (see here, here, and here) and explored Remsen to Tupper Lake on a speeder. 

So when I heard about a new D&H Railway Historical Society, with ties to the Adirondacks, I clicked the links. Thegroup markets itself as “the first ‘digital first’ railroad historical society.”

According to Rudy Garbely, treasurer and one of the founders, the goal was to create a digital space so D&H artifacts, photos and records could be widely available to the public.

“We are the first organization within the preservation community to be totally digital,” Garbely said. “Our goal is to get younger generations interested in history by presenting on a platform they’re familiar with.”

An in-person gathering of rail enthusiasts

The D&HRHS hosted a railfan event in mid-May in partnership with the Saratoga, Corinth & Hudson Railway (SC&HR), their first event since forming in 2023. Almost 100 people gathered for a number of excursions that began in the morning and extended until after dark. I left Potsdam at the crack of dawn in order to attend some of the festivities.

The first was a “Work Train with Side Dump Demonstration.” Riding a “working maintenance-of-way train powered by an ALCO end-cab switcher while a side dump car is filled and dumped” sounded cool to me.

We headed south from the Corinth station toward the yard at Hanfield, built special in 1912 for the Hudson River Pulp and Paper Company (later International Paper). I was a little disappointed when the hopper was filled using a bucket loader, but hearts jumped when a hydraulic line burst just as the bucket was over the hopper, slamming down onto the railcar. 

I thought our ride was over, but the driver of the loader simply reversed and yanked it off, at which time another hydraulic blew its gasket.

With the excitement over, the train continued south. Although chilly, most people hung out on the open-air car and enjoyed the ride, views and occasional history. 

Hal Raven, owner and president of the SC&HR, pointed out some equipment on the sidings awaiting restoration and a hole in the ground from a long-lost turntable.

He also indicated where Teddy Roosevelt’s train stopped to take on water during Roosevelt’s journey from Mount Marcy to the presidency. When a station agent saw the train, he walked toward it in the dark with his kerosene lantern. A Secret Service agent yelled, “Halt!” The station agent said, “I’m with the Delaware and Hudson. I’m supposed to offer assistance.” The Secret Service replied, “Son, we don’t need any assistance.” 

Eventually, we reached a location along the tracks that needed fill. The side dump car detached and moved into position. Us railfans crowded the back of the observation car to watch the half load of sand being dumped. 

The railroad timetable for the day called for our train to “take the hole” at White Siding by 11 a.m. while the scenic train ride “with photo runby” passed on the main line. It was also where those participating in the side dump demonstration could transfer to the scenic ride. Almost every passenger had a camera, camcorder or tripod, and they jostled for positions to film the two 1950s-vintage ALCO RS3 locomotives pull six passenger cars into the yard. Several climbed a steep embankment to an abandoned two-story loading dock previously used to dump sand into hoppers. 

As Ed Cox, a member of the board of directors for the D&HRHS, explained, “They’re real fans, and photo runbys are a big deal. They take pictures for themselves, and a lot share them online.”

Cox’s father was an engineer on the Adirondack branch when a train derailed south of North Creek. Someone neglected to clear ice and snow from around the rails at a crossing.

“A heavy ore train hit this one crossing, and one of the high nosed RS11s (a locomotive) went on her side,” Cox said. “The engine behind her went off in another direction. And the third engine put its coupler right into the fuel tank of the one that was on its side.”

The lingo amongst true train aficionados flies fast and furious. A lot of it is over my head, which makes me wonder whether I’m a railfan, a railroad buff or just a trainspotter. 

Rail line overview

The rail line through Corinth starts in Saratoga Springs and reaches all the way to the High Peaks at the former National Lead Company mine in Tahawus. It was the first railroad into the Adirondacks, built by Thomas C. Durant and reaching North Creek in 1871. Teddy Roosevelt went through in 1901. Skiers rode the Snow Train from the 1930s until World War II when the line extended to Tahawus for titanium as part of the war effort. The last regular passenger service was in 1956, and the last ore train left Tahawus in 1989. International Paper used the line from Corinth south until it closed in 2003.

The scenic ride ends beyond the SC&HR’s normal operations – “inaccessible locations along remote portions of the branch – including the famous rock cut.” Several passengers were hoping to disembark at the rock cut, but Raven informed us that “There’s no good place to take a photo except for in the middle of the tracks.”  We drove through slowly instead.  

I returned home after the scenic ride, but the real railfans stuck around for the dinner train and night photo shoot.

Over the last 30 years, different tourist operations have plied the rails of the Adirondack Branch. It was also embroiled in controversy in 2017 when Iowa Pacific Holdings attempted to use its leasing rights to store derelict oil tank cars between North Creek and Tahawus which includes the forest preserve. Currently, the SC&HR offers excursions out of Corinth and Revolution Rail has a number of trips within Warren County. 

Photo at top:The recently formed D&H Railway Historical Society hosted its first railfan event with the Saratoga, Corinth, and Hudson Railroad based in Corinth. Several excursions included opportunities to disembark and take pictures as the trains performed runbys. Photo by Tom French