Railfanning

Nevada Northern Railway Winter Steam Photo Spectacular Gallery

Back in January, we told you about the Winter Steam Photo Spectacular, hosted in Ely, Nevada, by the Nevada Northern Railway.  We invited you to attend and we told you we would be there.  We also said that we would be sharing our photographs from the event in our March dispatch.

March is here, and so are the pictures.  We hope you will enjoy these photos and the glimpse they provide of Nevada’s railway heritage.  The Nevada Northern claims that they offer time travel, an opportunity to go back in time about 100 years.  After viewing these pictures, you might be inclined to agree with them, we certainly do.

This year’s Winter Steam Photo Spectacular was blessed with a very nice blanket of snow.  Around 30 inches of snow fell on Ely about 10 days before the event, and most of it was still there when the event kicked off on Feb. 12.  It was the most snow on hand for the event in recent years; thank you, El Nino.

When we first told you about the Winter Steam Photo Spectacular, we described it as the premier annual railfan event in Nevada.  After participating in this year’s edition of the event, we think we were right on target with that claim.  It was two and a half days of smoke, steam, snow, and vintage locomotives pulling equally venerable rolling stock over rail lines that were laid 110 years ago.  The event was well planned and it was choreographed with an eye toward producing the best photos and video possible.  With that thought in mind, let’s move on to the pictures.

— John Gaffney

Locomotive No. 93

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 pulls a train of ore cars past the iconic coal and water towers that dominate the railyard in Ely, Nevada. The railroad was established to support copper mining efforts in the Ely area. Locomotive No. 93 was built by the American Locomotive Company in 1909 and served more than 50 years with the Nevada Northern, being donated to the White Pine Public Museum in 1961 as diesel locomotives took over the job ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Rotary Snowplow B

Attendees next got a look at Nevada Northern Railway Rotary Snowplow B which had recently undergone a cosmetic restoration. The snowplow appears to have steam up in this picture, but that is an illusion created by a steam locomotive behind it. A complete restoration to operational capacity would cost about $300,000 ...
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, welcomes 25 railroad enthusiasts, photographers, and videographers to the 2016 Winter St...

Mark Bassett, executive director of the Nevada Northern Railway, welcomes 25 railroad enthusiasts, photographers and videographers to the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular, held Feb. 12-14, 2016 at Ely, Nevada. Attendees came from Nevada, California, Utah, Colorado, Montana, and as far away as Pennsylvania ...
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Locomotive 93 and Snowplow B

Held Friday evening, the night photo shoot is perhaps the signature event of the Winter Steam Spectacular and allows attendees to photograph Nevada Northern Railway equipment in a scene that has been specially staged and lighted with studio lights. Here, Locomotive No. 93 and Rotary Snowplow B stand by as crewmembers discuss the the job ahead. The conductor maintains watch on operations as a passenger train moves through the railyard in Ely prior to departure on Saturday morning during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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Passenger Car No.5

Marker lights on Passenger Car No.5. This car served as the travel platform for attendees during events on Saturday which occurred at locations along the rail lines east and west of Ely. A railroad car with a mail slot? Yes. As we mentioned, the baggage / railroad post office car was an official government post office, complete with a mail slot ...
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Locomotives No. 40 and No. 93

Locomotives No. 40 and No. 93 are seen at the road crossing on the east side of the railyard. The crossing is guarded by a distinctive "wig wag" crossing signal ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train past an ore tipple near the Lackawanna Crossing on the north side of Ely on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016 during the Winter Steam Spectacular. Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train out of the railroad tunnel on the west side of Ely during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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Railfans await a train “run by” at Moser Cut in the Steptoe Valley, east of El...

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 pulls a wreck recovery train onto the "wye' near the copper mine in Ruth, Nevada. A wye is a triangular arrangement of track used to turn around trains. Railfans await a train "run by" at Moser Cut in the Steptoe Valley, east of Ely. Trains performed multiple run bys at each photo location so photographers and videographers had ample opportunity to get desired shots ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 pulls a wreck recovery train

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 pulls a wreck recovery train onto the "wye' near the copper mine in Ruth, Nevada. A wye is a triangular arrangement of track used to turn around trains. Railfans await a train "run by" at Moser Cut in the Steptoe Valley, east of Ely. Trains performed multiple run bys at each photo location so photographers and videographers had ample opportunity to get desired shots ...
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A brakeman keeps watch from the rear platform of Nevada Northern Railway Passenger Car No....

A brakeman keeps watch from the rear platform of Nevada Northern Railway Passenger Car No. 5 as two trains make their way to the next photo location in Steptoe Valley during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train during a "run by" for railroad enthusiasts at Moser Cut, in the Steptoe Valley east of Ely,on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016, during the Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 takes its turn with a "run by" for railroad enthusiasts at Moser Cut, in the Steptoe Valley east of Ely, during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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Nevada Northern’s steam-powered wrecking crane

The first event in the weekend's activities was a demonstration of Nevada Northern's steam-powered wrecking crane which was built in Bay City, Mich., and purchased in 1907 at a cost of $16,015. Seen here, the 100-ton capacity crane recovers a flatcar that had derailed in heavy snow in the railyard. The Ely area had received 30 inches of snow just days before the event, requiring plowing of the railyard and rail lines ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 brings an ore train in the railyard

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 brings an ore train in the railyard. The locomotive was designed to pull ore trains and has disproportionately small driving wheels to allow it to exert maximum tractive effort ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 pulls a train of ore cars into the railyard

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 pulls a train of ore cars into the railyard at Ely, Nevada, during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular. Locomotive No. 93 was built by the American Locomotive Company in 1909 and served more than 50 years with the Nevada Northern, being donated to the White Pine Public Museum in 1961 as diesel locomotives took over the job ...
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Marker lights on Passenger Car No.5

Marker lights on Passenger Car No.5. This car served as the travel platform for attendees during events on Saturday which occurred at locations along the rail lines east and west of Ely ...
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Close view of an ornamental stained glass window in Passenger Car No. 5

Close view of an ornamental stained glass window in Passenger Car No. 5. The car was built in 1882 and served in the Union Pacific Railroad Pullman Car Pool before being acquired by the Nevada Northern Railway ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train out of the railroad tunn...

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train out of the railroad tunnel on the west side of Ely during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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Two Nevada Northern Railway trains “pose” for a photograph at Hi Line Junction...

Two Nevada Northern Railway trains "pose" for a photograph at Hi Line Junction, in the Steptoe Valley east of Ely, during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular. The trains were specially staged in this manner for the Nevada Travel Network. Mark Bassett, executive director of the railway coordinates the photo shoots and is very receptive to special requests for pictures during the event ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train off the High Line and on...

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 leads a passenger train off the High Line and onto the main line at High Line Junction as the trains prepare to return to the railyard in Ely at days end on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016 ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93, wreathed in steam

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 93 is wreathed in steam as it waits to roll out of the enginehouse for the start of rail operations on Sunday, Feb. 14, 2016 ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40, steamed up and ready to go

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 is steamed up and ready to go prior to rolling out of the enginehouse on Sunday morning for Winter Steam Spectacular rail operations ...
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Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 rolls out of the enginehouse

Nevada Northern Railway Locomotive No. 40 rolls out of the enginehouse on Sunday, Feb. 14, 2016 for rail operations on the final day of the Winter Steam Spectacular in Ely, Nevada ...
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View from the caboose on a Nevada Northern Railway freight train

View from the caboose as a Nevada Northern Railway freight train makes its way northward through the Steptoe Valley on Sunday, Feb. 14, 2016, during the Winter Steam Spectacular. Departure for this run was delayed for two hours while a brake system air leak was sorted out. Eventually, the leak was traced to a sticking valve in a rail car that had been built in 1912. You have have to expect that occasionally 100-year-old equipment will give you a bit of trouble ...
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Arriving at the prescribed location in the scenic Steptoe Valley

After arriving at the prescribed location in the scenic Steptoe Valley, the freight train makes one of several run bys for rail enthusiasts and photographers. After the run bys were complete, the train took event attendees back to the depot in Ely for a catered lunch ...
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A double-ended freight train, with steam locomotives at the front and rear ends

A double-ended freight train, with steam locomotives at the front and rear ends, is prepared to back out of the Nevada Northern Railway yard during the afternoon of Sunday, Feb. 14, 2016. This unique train was featured in the final event of the Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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A doubled-ended freight train approaches Lackawanna Crossing

A doubled-ended freight train approaches the Lackawanna Crossing on the north side of Ely, Nevada during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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A doubled-ended freight train approaches Lackawanna Crossing

A doubled-ended freight train approaches the Lackawanna Crossing on the north side of Ely, Nevada during the 2016 Winter Steam Spectacular ...
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