Simon, I'd like to second this. If you think you can't afford it, definitely check out the scholarships. I was able to attend RailCamp in 2007 back when they still had sessions at the Nevada Northern Railway and it was absolutely one of the best summers I ever had. It really gives you a good idea of several different fields of railroading and can help you decide if any of these seem appealing to you. I was able to attend thanks to the scholarship and even wrote up an article in the NRHS newsletter about the experience (though I can't remember which one).

WELCOME to RyPN, Simon !!! Like the fine folks that have already answered you, I am very glad to see more young folks get involved. I think you will meet some more like yourself here, if there's any justice in the world.

You're already getting good advice, but I would place the most emphasis on SAFETY. You not only need to follow all the applicable rules, but DON'T BUST YOUR ASS. If you do, you will end up like me, an old man with a busted ass !!!! Even though you're young and enthusiastic, keep in mind that TRAINS KILL. GO SLOW. Test your handholds and footholds before committing your weight. Wear your protective gear, and try to avoid smacking your head. Those head injuries add up over time, that's probably why so many of us loose our marbles as we get older...

Take Care & WORK SAFE !!!!

Actually, it's the county name.

Maryland has awesome county names based on the English aristocracy, like Prince George's and Anne Arundel. Gotta love it!

Don't intend to derail the thread, but here's the answer:

That car is an ex-ARMY baggage car. In the middle was a diesel generator for the dinner train, and in the far end was our tool/shop area. The near end was our TENDER! We had no $$, so went around telling folks we'd get rid of their old 275 gallon fuel oil tanks for FREE!......which we did. We cleaned them out as best we could, and set about 6 of them on end in the baggage car, and piped them together with PVC 2" pipe and valves. The flexible hoses came out the end door, and Ta-DA! we get an extra 1650 gallons of water to supplement #3's 1200 gallon tank. The loco was set up for a tender at Wilmington & Western, so the piping was still in place. We ran forward 9 miles on the "tender", then ran around the train and ran back on the engine tank. I think the whole mess cost about $100.00??

Welcome. This is a fine hobby to get involved in. Sometimes dirty and exhausting but oh so rewarding!

Later!
Mr. Ed

Thank you all for you kind words! Sorry it took me so long to reply, as I was spending the last days of my summer vacation with a friend up in Maine.
In regards to the Queen Anne’s Railroad Society’s project, I’m attempting to take a seat closer to the back to watch and learn. While I am using the project as a learning tool, this does’t mean I’m not helping to try and get it done. I’ve put in several suggestions and plan to help out with fundraising and social connections.
I do like constructive criticism on what I do, but I have met one member of the organization who proved a disliking for my actions and ideas during our annual Christmas festival. Things got so bad that I had to take a step outside for a while. I was later offered from the society’s secretary for him to go talk to him about his actions. However, I decided that, as Rick has mentioned, he was helping me develop a “thick skin.” I denied that offer.
Although not rail preservation, working with the steam tractor at the Museum of Eastern Shore Life has really shown me the value of hard work. I’ve spent countless hours of degreasing, power washing and then re-greasing the ol’ girl. My mentor (Who is also a major player in QARRS) was a Navy Man, so he likes to keep her nice and clean. We recently put a nice large crack down the cast wheel hub, so I see some mechanical work in my future as well. And yes, I do keep a log for my time working with her and at the Walkersville Southern Railroad, which I need to find and update.
As for the NRHS rail-camp, I had always thought that this was for younger teens than me. I did make a mistake in my original post, I am going into my Senior year of high school at the age of 17. I know they do rail-camp at Strasburg, which is only a two hour trip from where I live. I’ll have to look into it and see if I’m still at the right age.

I see some of you developed an interest in the Queen Anne’s Railroad. The original Queen Anne’s Railroad was formed in 1894 using the name of Queen Anne’s County in Maryland and provided service from Baltimore, Maryland to Lewis, Delaware. For most of the railroad’s existence as the Queen Anne’s Railroad, ferries would be utilized from Baltimore to Love Point, Maryland where passengers would be taken by train to Lewis, Delaware and Rehoboth Beach. Most of their business was with tourists going on vacation. Eventually the Pennsylvania Railroad would begin to control the line and “merged” it with the Baltimore Chesapeake & Atlantic Railway, with rail service now terminating in Ocean City, Maryland. The real final breath of the line was as the Baltimore & Eastern Railroad in the 40s and 50s, hauling mostly small amounts of freight. The Baltimore & Eastern would use D16 locomotives from the Pennsylvania Railroad, being the last real holdout of these engines. This includes PRR 1223. It’s existence on the line is a major reason why the locomotive is preserved today. The last real job for the railroad was supplying materials for it’s replacement, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Hurricane Hazel would destroy the railroad’s access to Kent Island and Love Point in 1954. Penn Central would utilize some of the line, but Conrail killed most of it off.
In the 70s, the Ocean City Western Railroad would run a small 1 hour long tourist railroad along some of the BC&A to Ocean City. They would utilize a small 2-6-0 for passenger service and a SW-1 for freight service. The Queen Anne’s Railroad name was reused for the Royal Zephyr Dinner Train in the 90s on a 20-mile trip from Lewis to Harbeson, Delaware. Of course they used that snazzy looking US Army tank, which never actually ran for the original Queen Anne’s Railroad. It currently sits outside of a Mexican restaurant in Ocean View, Delaware taking in the... salty sea air...

Ditto on the welcome, Simon. Hope you find some useful info and advice here. As for thick skin, you'll develop that over time. Mine runs about 1/2" to 3/4" thick nowadays. Not many pointed barbs get through this tough old hide.

You could make a fortune off that! A boiler that grows in thickness the more pressure it experiences over time! ;)

Simon,
this web site is an offshoot of the now defunct magazine Locomotive & Railway Preservation.

You might ask some of the older folks in your club if you can borrow or got to a public library to look at the old issues published in the 1980s.

The publication was full of articles about the length and breadth of railroad preservation. Heavy on steam less so on traction or Diesels.

I treasure my copies; I think you can learn a lot from them.

Ted66

I hope that when you were in Maine that you visited some of the great museums here in the state! Maine is the epicenter of the American 2’ gauge world. And there are projects to preserve depots, and standard gauge locomotives such as the 470.
Maine Narrow Gauge Museum, The folks at the Sandy River Museum, the Boothbay Railway Village and the Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Rwy. Museum. Then one of the pioneers of the railway preservation movement, dating back to 1939....the Seashore Trolley Museum.
Lots to see and do here.

Keith

Unfortunately, I only got to see a boxcar and a refrigerator car at the Machias Depot. However, me a few friends might take a trip up there to visit the WW&F in the near future.