| Muleshoe. Here is an original photo that I took at the Muleshoe Curve on the New Portage Branch line west of Duncansville, Pennsylvania, on 17 October 1965. Shown here (L to R) is Pennsylvania Railroad engine #5898 and three more units whose road numbers are not recorded. All are EP-22's built by GM-EMD and rated at 2,500 horsepower each. #5898 was constructed in March of 1951. They're pulling the "Horseshoe Curve Excursion" that was sponsored by the Lancaster Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society. The ten-car Excursion departed Lancaster bright and early on a Sunday morning, following the PRR's mainline through Harrisburg to Huntingdon. There, it switched over to the Petersburg-Hollidaysburg Branch line and followed the undulating Juniata River to Hollidaysburg ~ where the train stopped so that passengers could take guided tours of the PRR's Samuel Rea Shop. After leaving Hollidaysburg, the Excursion passed WYE Tower in Duncansville and took the New Portage Branch line via the Muleshoe Curve up the Allegheny Mountains to Gallitzin. There, it passed through the westbound Allegheny Tunnel, navigated the wye at Gallitzin, and passed through the eastbound New Portage Tunnel on its way back down the Eastern Slope of the Alleghenies. At the Horseshoe Curve, the Excursion stopped to allow the passengers to visit the PRR's K-4S "Pacific" #1361 enshrined there. After all were safely back on board, the train continued down the Mountains to Altoona and the return trip to Lancaster ~ a round trip of over 350 happy miles! |