FL9

On the morning of April 10th back in 1987, I left Springer, OK early in the morning to railfan the Katy north from Durant.  I arrived in Durant about sunrise, then checked with the always friendly operator and got a figure on when southbound freight #103 had left McAlester as that would be the only train for awhile.  I made my calculations and drove north to the small town of Caney about halfway between Caddo and Atoka.  At one time there was a depot and other small businesses near the tracks, but now only a few old buildings and houses remained in town at all, and it was deserted and quiet down by the tracks.  I set up just south of the Caney station sign, and before long I could hear the distinctive chord of a Leslie S5T.  The Durant operator had given me the power for the #103 as being three SD40-2’s, and what I was hearing confirmed that as the Katy’s SD40-2’s and GP39-2’s were delivered with this distinctive five chime.

The morning was still, and I could tell from the distant horn I was hearing him pass through Tushka about ten miles further north.  Soon I could hear the growing rumble of a fast train approaching, and SD40-2 #632’s headlight appeared around the curve about a mile away.  I snapped the picture just after he passed the station sign, the lower half of the units still partially obscured by early morning tree branch shadows.

His passage was swift, and indeed the Katy itself would not be around much longer.