Passenger trains on my branch line

My layout is very freight-car oriented; nearly all car movements on my fictitious branch line to Santa Rosalia, and most mainline action, are exclusively freight. When passenger equipment is operated, it is ordinarily on the main line, often a “deadhead” move balancing passenger equipment between Los Angeles and Sank Francisco. I’ve discussed this several times (for an example, see: https://modelingthesp.blogspot.com/2021/05/mainline-passenger-cars-on-small-layout.html ). 

But there are exceptions. Regular passenger service on a branch like this would have been abandoned in the 1930s. But a passenger movement that happens occasionally on my layout is the operation of a passenger extra train, presumably an excursion and perhaps a  railfan event (though such trains were still rare in my modeling year of 1953). An example of this kind of passenger extra is the train that ran up and down the length of several branch lines, allowing fans to “collect miles,” as it was called. 

Such an excursion might operate, for example, from Los Angeles or Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo, along the way running the length of the Lompoc Branch and return, and, why not, the Santa Rosalia Branch, before connecting with passenger schedules at San Luis for the passengers to return home northward or southward.

Approaching Shumala, then, from the south, the train might make a station stop at the Shumala depot, as you see below in a train using a former RPO as a baggage car (see: https://modelingthesp.blogspot.com/2023/06/small-project-old-brass-sp-baggage-car.html ), trailed by a 60-foot coach. Power here is Southern Pacific Ten-wheeler 2344. 

The train has stopped with its consist clear of Chamisal Road at right, because the locomotive will cut off and run around the train on the siding. Below we see the run-around in progress, as 2344 backs down the siding past the depot. 

Then with 2344 behind the consist, the train is ready to be pushed up the branch to its destination. When it’s time to return, the locomotive would then be leading, though tender-first. The 60-foot coach here is Golden Gate Depot’s SP 1972, Class 60-C-5.

But railroaders usually preferred to have the locomotive leading the train at all times if possible. If the passenger excursion heads up the Santa Rosalia Branch with the locomotive at the front of the train, there will then have to be a run-around somewhere up on the branch, given the lack of locomotive turning facilities on the branch.

The photo below shows 2344 starting its run-around in front of the Santa Rosalia depot. In this instance, the train is coach SP 1581 (a kit-bashed Roundhouse model), Class 60-C-4, and postal storage car SP 4263, pressed into service as a baggage car for the excursion (modeling SP 4263 was described in a blot post: https://modelingthesp.blogspot.com/2014/07/modeling-sp-head-end-cars-part-7a.html ). 

In one instance, the excursion train had two coaches, and only ran as far as the Ballard depot, as you see below, before performing the run-around and returning to the main line at Shumala. Power again is Ten-wheeler 2344 (Precision Scale brass). 

Since ordinarily the Santa Rosalia Local freight train is alone on the branch, any such passenger train requires a whole bunch of train orders to arrange a meet at either Ballard or Santa Rosalia, and for the excursion train to return to Shumala.  

Whether the operation of such an excursion train requires turning back at Ballard, or at Santa Rosalia, the important point is the lack of turning facilities. That in turn means that turning back involves the locomotive running around the train and pulling it back to Shumala with the tender leading. This has been an interesting complication for the normally unhindered local freight train operating in the same territory. Usually that increases the fun of an operating session.

Tony Thompson