Fall Ride
Luke & the "Yellow Wing"
03 Nov 2002 - Sunday

Temps are in the low 40's with mostly overcast skies.  I met up with Luke for lunch at Sycmore IL.  After lunch we road up McGough Road.  It differs a bit from depicted on the map - this is a through road with no stops between the route markings.  Each turn is a nice sweeper.

 


 


 

A bit later - on the way back home - Walker Road North of S.R. 72 (West of Hampshire):
Anybody know what these markings are for? (e-mail me from the main page)
They are seen on new asphalt roads.  Most common are boxes - almost always five of them on the diagonal.  Sometimes 1/2 boxes (L shapes) are used and rarely are oblonged circles used.  The markings are such that the paint wears off after a short period of time.  Are they to mark imperfections?  To mark where one asphalt batch / truck emptied and another started?

 

Then on over to the road / R.R. bridge construction site in Genoa.  The old underpass / bridge was a tight S curve with a center median / support.  The new bridge will allow for a straighter, wider, no-center median underpass.  To allow for train traffic to run during construction the road was closed to all auto traffic and a bridgeless R.R. bed was constructed.  To keep the tracks at their desired level a bed 10 to 15' above the surrounding ground level was needed.  To create this elevated re-route steel 'walls' were driven and then filled in between.  Some of the pictures show the re-route with cuts in the straight sections of track.  When the job is complete the re-route will be removed and train traffic will again pass straight through.  Unlike the map - which shows a siding - there has been no siding at this location for some time.  Single track operation.


 

The roadway used to pass from the left to the right - way over by the white construction wagon.  Over by the white wagon it would have a tight S under the railroad tracks.
(click image for a larger view)

 

Standing at the right of the new bridge (as from above) looking down the tracks.  The first 'cut' in the tracks was where the old bridge was (now removed and the area filled).  The second cut is where the tracks are re-routed around the construction.

 

Turning around looking W/NW.

 

One of the steel walls, filled with re-route tracks on top of the fill

 


 

The re-routed tracks - note a shorter fill wall (5 to 10') on the right.

 


 


 


 


 

Still more work to do

 

Victor is this one of the wing walls you were talking about running up?.
Victor is a buddy who is a carpenter that made the forms for the concrete work.

 


 

Just West of the construction site is this old water tower (which I believe is still in use).  I had to stop when I noticed the hardware store aluminum extension ladder - extended out to its maximun extension - resting way up there!!  A couple ropes (with a generous amount of slack) kept the ladder from being blown off of the tower.  Anyone care to volunteer a climb??

 

This is an OLD water tower in fairly poor condition - note the piece under the center of the bucket that is cocked on an angle  - it's not supposed to be like that.