I drove through eastern OR on Interstate 84 and was surprised to see a nice three car set of RDCs sitting in an industrial switchyard at the mouth of a canyon. Looking to be in perfect condition with a blue stripe, I was assuming they were on some kind of excursion. They may have been simply in storage, as they are apparently owned by the state after use on a Portland to Astoria excursion program. Links below are dated, does anyone know the full provenance of the equipment and what may be planned for them?
http://www.lcbo.net/traingo.html

http://www.brian894x4.com/LewisandClarkExplorer.html

Olin--

The three Lewis & Clark RDC's were being used on the Eagle Cap Excursion Train, which operates over the publicly-owned Wallowa Union Railroad.

RDC-3 #31 was built in 1956 as GN #2350. To Amtrak #33. Renumbered to #43. Sold to BC Rail as BCOL #31. After the CN merger and end of BC Rail passenger operations, sold to Oregon as ORRX #31 for use on the Lewis & Clark Explorer between Portland and Astoria over the former SP&S. After the Lewis & Clark shut down in 2006, stored in Brooklyn Yard in Portland. Later transferred to the Eagle Cap operation.

RDC-1 #10 & #11 were built in 1956 for the Pacific Great Eastern. Later to BC Rail as #10 & #11. After the CN merger, sold to Oregon for the Lewis & Clark Explorer. After the Lewis & Clark shut down in 2006, stored in Brooklyn Yard. Later transferred to the Eagle Cap operation.

In 2013, the three RDC's were in the process of being transferred from the Eagle Cap operation to the Thunder Mountain operation in the consist of a freight on the UP main, when the train derailed. The three cars were initially parked in Durkee, OR, and have since been moved a few miles east to Nelson. I do not know what the current plan is for these three cars, whether to move them back west to the Eagle Cap or move them east in another train to their initially planned destination. Based on photographic evidence, it appears that the three cars were not damaged in the wreck, but I don't know for certain if that's the case (I haven't found any closeup photos that would reveal damage to the trucks, draft gear, center/side sills, corner posts, etc.).

I had the opportunity to ride the Lewis & Clark Explorer in the spring of 2005. The original plan was to have the three RDC's ride over the busy BNSF main to Portland Union Station to pick up the waiting passengers, but this fell through at the last minute and we boarded a bus for a short ride on US 30 to far northwestern Portland, where we boarded the RDC's on the ex-SP&S line out to Astoria.

The ride along the Columbia River in both directions was enjoyable, and I did not spend the time in between lulling about the closed SP&S passenger station. I used the time available to ride the Astoria Riverfront Trolley, which uses a San Antonio car on long-term loan from the San Antonio Museum of Art. The line does not utilize an overhead wire, instead the car is powered by a towed generator.

Regarding the Eagle Cap Operation:

The line dates back to 1890, when the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company constructed a branchline between La Grande and Elgin in Union County. Under Union Pacific ownership, the OR&N mainline over the Blue Mountains, through La Grande and the Columbia River Gorge to Portland was transferred to the Oregon Short Line subsidiary while the Oregon-Washington Railroad & Navigation Company subsidiary extended the branchline from Elgin into Wallowa County, reaching Wallowa, Enterprise, and Joseph.

The line was owned by Rio Grandé Industies (D&RGW/SP parent) between 1993 and 1996 through the Idaho, Northern & Pacific Railroad.

Following the 9/11/1996 merger of SP and UP, Wallowa and Union Counties made a successful joint bid to purchase the eastern section of the line between Elgin and Joseph. The transaction was completed in 2002 and excursions began the next year.

The IN&P, now a subsidiary of the Rio Grandé Pacific Corporation, still operates the western section of the line between the UP main in La Grande and Elgin. The IN&P also operates the ex-UP line between Payette and Cascade in Idaho, the route of the Thunder Mountain Line excursion trains.



*******DISCLAIMER*******

The information above regarding the Wallowa Union Railroad, the Eagle Cap Excursion Train, and the Idaho, Northern & Pacific Railroad has been collected from pages found on Wikipedia. Accuracy is in no way assured or expected.

***END OF DISCLAIMER***



Links:

1. Astoria Riverfront Trolley info on the APTA Heritage Streetcar website: http://www.heritagetrolley.org/existAstoria.htm

2. Astoria Riverfront Trolley website: http://www.old300.org/

3. Thunder Mountain Line website: http://www.thundermountainline.com/

4. Eagle Cap Excursion Train website: http://eaglecaptrainrides.com/

5. Eagle Cap Excursion page on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_Cap_Excursion_Train

6. Wallowa Union Railroad page on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallowa_Union_Railroad

7. Idaho, Northern & Pacific page on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idaho_Northern_and_Pacific_Railroad

Photos:

1. Photos of #10: http://rrpicturearchives.net/locoPicture.aspx?id=129738

2. Photos of #11: http://rrpicturearchives.net/locoPicture.aspx?id=121011

3. Photos of #31: http://rrpicturearchives.net/locoPicture.aspx?id=121010

God bless Wikipedia...IN&P is a Rio Grande Pacific company, not Rio Grande Industries...no direct connection between INPR and DRGW/SP, at least that I know of.

As for the cars- there's a discussion over on the Altamont Press forum about these cars. According to one of the threads, Wallowa-Union Rail Authority received a grant to help them buy some additional passenger equipment, and they were more or less cajoled by the State of Oregon into using that grant money to buy the RDCs from the state.

The cars did receive some damage in the derailment. They remain where they are until the lawyers get done sorting out a number of legal issues that came up surrounding their movement and role in the derailment. Once that is settled they will continue their trip to the IN&P, who are reportedly anxious to get them, as they have some plans requiring their use.

Jeff Moore
Elko, NV