About Tim Rowland

Tim Rowland is a columnist, author and outdoors writer living in Jay.

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  1. Boreas says

    I like both ideas – at least on the upper N.C – Tahawus section. My thoughts would be to wait on the trail until the tailings are gone AND the mine reclaimed and naturalized. But I would also stipulate it must be done in say 5-10 years at which point that section would be re-purposed as a trail. Don’t leave it open-ended so that it sits unused as it is now. The corridor is too useful to be collecting dust.

  2. Launce Erickson says

    Iowa Pacific before storing empty clean tank cars there . Should have gone on a public education program.

  3. Kenneth Friedel says

    I have ridden every train that I could over the years at North Creek. I was sad to hear how bad Mr. Ellis was treated. The tailings pile at these old mines are worth a lot of money. That is why your short lines what to get involved. Follow the tracks that lead to Newton Falls. A steel company has purchased an option on the old J an L property. The have an operating blast furnace in Geneva, N.Y. An also, The Bessemer and lake Erie is set to operate the line from Montreal to the finger lakes railroad. Another short line, of approximately 400 short lines nation wide. I have only bits an pieces of information to bring to the table. There is a big picture here, very few people can see it.

  4. Curt Austin says

    Ironic that the debate is now between trail advocates and people in charge of a bankrupt railroad. I’m not aware that any rail trail has declared bankruptcy – let’s go with success.

    I also wish we could dispense with the reclamation idea. The stone-by-rail investment plan is to establish a very large gravel pit that will operate indefinitely. The highly visible “big pile” of stone is not the only target. It is dwarfed by many, much larger piles — not so visible since they’re covered in trees. Adirondack conservationists should prefer that Nature continue her efforts.

    • LeRoy Hogan says

      All rail trails are bankrupt failing to ever make a profit with an absence of the trail users paying for trail usage. In the Catskills, Catskill Mountain Rail Road pays a lease to Ulster County and funds their own rail maintenance.

  5. Worth Gretter says

    We need to find some company that is serious about hauling the mine tailings by rail instead of truck. Then we can get that temporary culvert crossing, that connects route 25 to the mine, out of the Hudson River. It is an abomination in a wild river.

  6. Dave Whitbeck says

    Don’t you all think if a rail operator saw any profit in hauling the tilings out of the old mine they would have done it by now using the rail. Iowa Pacific couldn’t make it happen, so why would anyone else try. It’s been a unused rail line since the mine closed YEARS ago. Iowa Pacific tried to run a scenic railroad on part of it & THAT FAILED. Time to move on & convert it all to a trail

  7. LPG by Rail says

    While I’m not well versed in the geological formations in this region, but what if the area (the mine) were to be re-purposed into an underground cavern storage for hydrocarbon products (i..e..propane). Hell will freeze over before pipelines are laid in the NY/New England area, but a “mobile” pipeline like rail opens up a HUGE potential for quality, good paying jobs, and an even bigger reward with clean, affordable energy. Although remote, this would still be an ideal distribution point to serve many areas within ~4/hour trucking run, or loaded LPG could go back out by rail from this point. Bath, NY is a similar example in this case.

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