In another thread, JHamilton mentioned that BGRM has now opened their track from Versailles all the way to the Kentucky River. There were some wood trestles that had prevented travel over them for a number of years. This is very good news in that it brings the train right up to Young's High Bridge, a wonderful old wrought iron structure that Norfolk Southern took out of service quite a while ago. I wonder what the plans are for allowing riders on trains to disembark to at least be able to view the Bridge. Mr. Hamilton states he is no longer a member at BGRM, but perhaps he, or someone who IS a member, might be able to comment on future plans.

Thanks.

Les

I was down there this last week and drove the line to the river. It looks like they have done TONS of tie work and cleaned up their right of way. I saw some equipment already down towards the high bridge. I volunteered there in the mid 90's when I was in High school and college. I am glad to see that they are making some major headway into preserving their stuff. They've acquired quite a few new pieces and have what I am told is a good working relationship with RJ Corman. Here's hoping they keep moving forward. I just wish we could get KRM to do the same with their stuff.

Joe

For information, here is a photo of the bridge:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/21953562@N07/5626026056/

Built in 1889 for the Louisville Southern Railway, it is a cantilevered deck truss bridge, 1659 feet long and 283' high. The center span is 551' long. It has never been modified or strengthened. U.S. Highway 62 also spans the Kentucky River in the vicinity, but at a lower height. At one time, there were plans to make Youngs High Bridge (also known by some as Tyrone Bridge) into a walking trail, but I don't know if those plans are still alive or not.

Les

The plan is to allow passengers to disembark and approach the gate, at the top of Young's High Bridge.

As time allows, as I believe the cost is low enough to build in stages, a walkway and boarding platform will be built from the train stopping point to the overlook.

I don't believe that permanent platforms will be in place for the beginning of the 2012 season, but the train will be going down and stopping there.

James

Here is a rundown of what we’ve been up to at BGRM for the past couple of years.

The biggie is that work has been ongoing to get our entire 5.5 miles of track back into operation and to get trains back to the river at Young’s High Bridge. This started nearly 5 years ago with volunteers getting rails back onto trestle 2 at Milner Rd, then they chopped their way through the years of growth by hand down to the river, eventually making several passes and opening the line enough for hi-rail equipment to start spraying the line again to control growth. While we worked just to get access back to Tyrone the process was ongoing to get approval for a TE grant to fund rehabilitation of the line. Once that was approved a multi-year headache of seeking further approvals, engineering studies, bid request, etc. was completed and in 2011 actual work on the mainline began. Trestle 3, the one closest to Tyrone, was rebuilt in fall of 2011, and the washout at Locke Hollow was repaired and improvements made to the area in the way of better drainage and erosion prevention so the area that has long been a headache for the LL sub should provide years of reliable service now. With our big access issues fixed the focus turned to tie replacement. This started in early Feb. of 2012 and is ongoing as I type this. When that phase is finished 4500+ ties will have been replaced along the 5.5 miles of mainline. Coming up next is a mechanized brush cutting and cleanup along the entire mainline. This will make our ride much more scenic as you’ll actually be able to see past the overgrown honeysuckle to the scenery along the line. Unsightly downed trees, old ties, and junk in general are also being removed by Hinkle and their subcontractors. After the cleanup several thousand tons of new ballast will be placed along the main and the track raised to rest on this instead of the old dirt and wet cinders that currently aid in the quick demise of ties along the line. Alignment and surfacing will be the final step for the mainline rehabilitation. This is all scheduled to be completed before our 2012 opening and of course we are excited to offer our first rides back to the river in many years.

But wait folks, that’s not all! The TE grant required a 20% funds match. Obviously BGRM didn’t have pockets deep enough to match the grant, but what we did have was materials on hand that once installed counted toward the match. Volunteer “in kind” hours also carry a certain value, and hours put to use by museum equipment, or equipment Woodford Co donated for use at times also counted for “in kind” values. Knowing all this we went to work installing a new siding that extends several hundred feet from the west end of the Versailles property all the way into that nice new station platform. The siding serves several purposes. It allows trains to access the station platform giving us easier boarding for passengers with difficulty boarding the train from the ground, it will offer a more authentic “feel” about the whole experience of taking the train as well and we can now offer operations where the train actually comes into the station to board passengers. Having that station siding also means our operating consist no longer requires use of the mainline though the Versailles yard area, so we just gained a lot of extra track space to get equipment out of Milner and Tyrone and into Versailles where it can be better secured from vandalism, stabilized to prevent further deterioration, and eventually rehabilitated. The new siding also has two switches installed in it, one running out east where two more display tracks will be added to the Versailles yard. These will run to the west wall of the station and become display tracks for equipment. Many of the pieces placed on these tracks will also hold more indoor museum displays once the cars have been properly prepped to do so. The other switch leading out westbound will for allow for placement of a dedicated RIP track, and hopefully an engine barn in the coming years so all that rolling stock will have an indoor facility for repairs. It’s also worth mentioning that ALL of the construction of the siding, short of the dump trucks spreading the ballast was done by volunteers, by hand. No special equipment, nothing fancy. Just determination, pry bars, and big hammers. In the past couple weeks Hinkle was kind enough to allow use of a hydraulic spike driver, but before that the thousands of spikes holding the siding together were driven the old fashion way. The rail was placed and aligned by hand, and hours spent on tamping ballast under ties. The job was by no means perfect, but it was effective. Right now that siding sits full along its length with rolling stock while ties are replaced on the mainline beside it. Luckily for weary volunteers the final tamping and surfacing will come from the contractor’s machines as they work the mainline.

It’s also worth mentioning that one will be able to ride this season in A/C bliss if so desired. I’m a winds in your face kind of guy myself, but for those who like a little disconnect from those harsh summer days the museum acquired a 44 seat coach just prior to Thanksgiving 2011. We spent a few months replacing glass, cleaning her up, and getting the HVAC serviced before she was put to use in 2011 for our 4 Santa trains. It and the other 4 coaches were all sold out for each run. With the additional available seats BGRM hauled its largest number of ticketed passengers ever for a single excursion in 2011 at 365 paid fares. We are also currently seeking another climate controlled car to add to the excursion consist. Every year for the past 5 we’ve been steadily increasing our annual ridership, even during these hard economic times. No small feat and something I personally believe shows we are doing things right at BGRM to provide a stable financial situation for the coming years through increased revenue from fares. We were fortunate to receive the TE grant, and are making good use of it, but grants are not something to count on and we want to make sure we continue to increase our yearly revenue to provide the ability to keep all of our line open in the future, and to allow funding for more museum displays and restorations of equipment.

It’s been an exciting 5 years for me at BGRM. In that short time I’ve watched us regain so much that was lost, and add things never before had. We still have lots of work to do and still have lots of room for improvement but BGRM is doing well for itself. Despite what those who carry old baggage may try to say, BGRM is actually a good organization to be a part of. I’ve enjoyed it thoroughly in my time there, I consider it my R&R despite the blood and blisters my time there often produces. I’d invite anyone who’d like to see what it’s all about to join me sometime.

I’ll call it quits for now. I need to get some sleep before I head back to Versailles for more of that R&R. Anyone who would like more info on BGRM, from someone who is actually involved there and not the rumor mill, feel free to contact me anytime at joenugent986@yahoo.com . I promise answers without sugar coating or favoritism, just the facts.

Joe Nugent
BGRM Director and volunteer.
joenugent986@yahoo.com

Joe -

Thanks for the report. Sounds as if you guys have been doing a great job.

Les

The big question everyone wants to know but no one will ask - now with operations returning to the brink of the high bridge, any long range thought to rehabilitating the high bridge itself for use as part of the excursion run? Possible operations into Lawrenceburg?

Christopher -

As I understand it, at the end, the Norfolk Southern assigned their lightest locomotives (EMD SW-1's) to this line and when the train got to the bridge, the crew disembarked, and the train was sent across at a slow speed. The crew boarded a company truck and went across the Kentucky River valley via the paralleling U.S. highway 62 bridge and reboarded the locomotive when it reached the other side. They then continued on their way. Remember, the bridge is wrought iron and was never rebuilt, modernized or strengthened. A complete rehab for train travel is almost certainly not with the reach of BGRM.

Les

There are absolutely no plans to ever extend operations onto, or beyond Young's High Bridge. The bridge is still today as it was constructed, never upgraded, and was never suitable for anything but the light engines and rolling stock of its day. The rail has already been removed from the bridge and into Lawrenceburg by a scrapper who bought the line. We looked at estimates just to re-deck the bridge for pedestrian traffic and that alone is in the millions. There are very few things I say we will never do at BGRM, but crossing Young's is one of those things. It's simply not something that can become a reality. The cost of liability insurance alone to own the bridge was why the museum didn't accept it's donation from NS years ago, they even offered up a locomotive to take it.

The Rails to Trails groups have long looked at this bridge and a path to Lawrenceburg. We'd be more than happy to support those efforts and work with them, but taking on the bridge and its issues is not something BGRM can accomplish without running finances into the ground. It's just not obtainable, or sensible.

We will however be building facilities soon in Tyrone at the property line for loading and unloading of passengers to allow them the opportunity to view the bridge and learn of its history and significances. The bridge owner has also expressed willingness to allow an elevated viewing platform to be built alongside the bridge out from the hillside for better viewing, but none of that is confirmed or finalized. We'll keep working on that over the next few months.

Joe Nugent
BGRM

Who owns the bridge now? NS? The scrapper? What became of The Tyrone Bridge and Rail Company? Has the bridge not been scrapped because of the cost to take it down or does the owner actually have any plans for it? I presume the bridge is getting no maintenance.

Young's High Bridge and the one at Cedar Brook are now owned by the scrapper who bought the line from NS. Not sure of the current situation of the Tyrone Bridge Company. Depending on whom you ask the bridge is still standing because the cost of taking it down isn't worth the effort, it's too unstable to work from (but when the rail was removed a couple of years ago several pieces of heavy equipment worked on the bridge), or its status as a National Historic Landmark protects it from demolition. I did actually talk to a man today who bid on taking it down in the mid 80's. That bid was made to NS and was in the 850k range. They turned down the offer obviously, not sure how many others were made or what other estimates would have been.
Joe Nugent
BGRM

Thanks for all the info, and great job on getting your line back in operation to the bridge. I will try to get down there to ride this year as I would like to see the bridge in case it does not last much longer.

I can tell you that National Historic Landmark status can only prevent damage to historic fabric when federal dollars are involved. Private dollars are not restricted by it.

Perhaps with trains at the bridge, other options may appear for it.

A listing for the bridge on Bridgehunter.com for the interested:

http://bridgehunter.com/ky/anderson/bh36662/

That's wonderful news on the railroad. I was there during the....1995? TRAIN convention to Louisville. At that time the line was still open to the bridge but the line condition was deteriorating rapidly.

I think the High Bridge is just a phenomenal asset. When you figure that the Kinzua Viaduct up here was commanding around 120,000 visitors a year to the State park they built around it.... (and that was before K&K was running excursions there) it was a legitimate attraction.

We miss it economically. Although the stabilization of the end piers is a help, it still isn't the way it was pre-tornado.

If anybody down there needs any kind of economic data on the Kinzua Viaduct history for getting the High Bridge project moving, give me a holler. Also look at Poughkeepsie, that's been incredibly successful for a similarly 'impossible' structure to retain for non-transportation use.

High Bridge is probably the scariest-looking bridge I've ever personally seen. The more I study it, it just gives me chills. I'd walk over it, but nothing more, and it's an "E" ticket ride just for that.

One major issue facing Young's High Bridge is access. On the east end of the bridge, it's only accessible by rail. On the west side, it's property of Wild Turkey distilleries. The only ground view of the bridge is near a rock quarry.

A State park would be a great idea, but without places for public access, I have no idea how it would work.