Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
This was a Blue Water NRHS Excursion on the then-Grand Trunk former DT&I mainline. The trip started just south of Oakwood Jct. in Allen Park and went all the way to Springfield, Ohio. Most of the route is recorded save for gaps for tape and/or battery changes, although toward the end there were some more gaps (again, likely to save battery or tape...this was recorded across four two-hour tapes). The camera faced to the west as to avoid being pointed into the sun for most of the trip, so unfortunately the yards at Flat Rock and Ford Park aren't really seen.
I'm aware this video is quite long, so it might be better to watch it at double speed or scrub around to highlights such as towns or crossings with other railroads.
19:23 - "Penford" crossing of Conrail's Lincoln Secondary
40:06 - Woodhaven and Flat Rock
1:16:18 - Carleton (crossing CSX Saginaw Subdivision)
1:28:38 - Maybee
1:38:58 - Diann (crossing Ann Arbor Railroad)
I couldn't discern an obvious location of Petersburg Junction where the DT&I line from Toledo to Petersburg crossed. Same with the NYC Monroe Branch that would've been in the same area.
2:15:26 - Metamora
2:35:06 - Delta
2:49:04 - Liberty Center...at the time the former Wabash 1st District was operated by Indiana-Hi Rail (since abandoned and diamond removed)
3:06:40 - Malinta
3:22:31 - Hamler (CSX Garrett Sub crossing)
3:43:33 - Leipsic (NS Fostoria District crossing).
At XN Tower just south of Leipsic we get on CSX's Toledo Sub. Starting in the late 1960s the B&O and DT&I consolidated their parallel tracks from just south of Leipsic to a point on the north side of Lima called DT&I Jct. Since we're running on signal indication our speed is a tad higher than on the unsignaled Grand Trunk.
3:54:11 - Ottawa
4:16:19 - Columbus Grove (at one time the AC&Y crossed on the south side of town at CG Tower)
4:26:19 - Cairo
4:34:49 - Re-entering GTW tracks at DT&I Jct on the outskirts of Lima. We also parallel CSX's Robb Ave. Yard in Lima for a little while.
4:43:59 - Lima.
Since Ford Park yard was on the opposite side of the train it wasn't seen. One substantial change in the 30 years since this was taken is the connections at former SJ Tower used by Conrail are gone.
5:13:19 - Uniopolis
5:20:29 - St. John's
5:28:39 - Geyer
5:39:09 - Jackson Center
5:48:19 - Maplewood
6:00:44 - Quincy
6:15:15 - Rosewood
From here on the countryside wasn't constantly recorded I'm assuming to save battery and/or tape.
6:17:25 - St. Paris
6:19:05 - Thackery
6:21:25 - Maitland...at the time Grand Trunk trains to and from Cincinnati would change crews at this location.
The remainder of the video is going through Springfield, with the trip concluding at Junction Yard with a conveniently parked DT&I caboose. The next day the train would return to Detroit.
For lineside views of this train, check out the following video by Paul Geiger, whose red Chevy Blazer makes several appearance in this video.
youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=aumx-_qJXoA
This was a Blue Water NRHS Excursion on the then-Grand Trunk former DT&I mainline. The trip started just south of Oakwood Jct. in Allen Park and went all the way to Springfield, Ohio. Most of the route is recorded save for gaps for tape and/or battery changes, although toward the end there were some more gaps (again, likely to save battery or tape...this was recorded across four two-hour tapes). The camera faced to the west as to avoid being pointed into the sun for most of the trip, so unfortunately the yards at Flat Rock and Ford Park aren't really seen.
I'm aware this video is quite long, so it might be better to watch it at double speed or scrub around to highlights such as towns or crossings with other railroads.
19:23 - "Penford" crossing of Conrail's Lincoln Secondary
40:06 - Woodhaven and Flat Rock
1:16:18 - Carleton (crossing CSX Saginaw Subdivision)
1:28:38 - Maybee
1:38:58 - Diann (crossing Ann Arbor Railroad)
I couldn't discern an obvious location of Petersburg Junction where the DT&I line from Toledo to Petersburg crossed. Same with the NYC Monroe Branch that would've been in the same area.
2:15:26 - Metamora
2:35:06 - Delta
2:49:04 - Liberty Center...at the time the former Wabash 1st District was operated by Indiana-Hi Rail (since abandoned and diamond removed)
3:06:40 - Malinta
3:22:31 - Hamler (CSX Garrett Sub crossing)
3:43:33 - Leipsic (NS Fostoria District crossing).
At XN Tower just south of Leipsic we get on CSX's Toledo Sub. Starting in the late 1960s the B&O and DT&I consolidated their parallel tracks from just south of Leipsic to a point on the north side of Lima called DT&I Jct. Since we're running on signal indication our speed is a tad higher than on the unsignaled Grand Trunk.
3:54:11 - Ottawa
4:16:19 - Columbus Grove (at one time the AC&Y crossed on the south side of town at CG Tower)
4:26:19 - Cairo
4:34:49 - Re-entering GTW tracks at DT&I Jct on the outskirts of Lima. We also parallel CSX's Robb Ave. Yard in Lima for a little while.
4:43:59 - Lima.
Since Ford Park yard was on the opposite side of the train it wasn't seen. One substantial change in the 30 years since this was taken is the connections at former SJ Tower used by Conrail are gone.
5:13:19 - Uniopolis
5:20:29 - St. John's
5:28:39 - Geyer
5:39:09 - Jackson Center
5:48:19 - Maplewood
6:00:44 - Quincy
6:15:15 - Rosewood
From here on the countryside wasn't constantly recorded I'm assuming to save battery and/or tape.
6:17:25 - St. Paris
6:19:05 - Thackery
6:21:25 - Maitland...at the time Grand Trunk trains to and from Cincinnati would change crews at this location.
The remainder of the video is going through Springfield, with the trip concluding at Junction Yard with a conveniently parked DT&I caboose. The next day the train would return to Detroit.
For lineside views of this train, check out the following video by Paul Geiger, whose red Chevy Blazer makes several appearance in this video.
youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=aumx-_qJXoA
