A very cold, icy day at the Brinkley, Arkansas Depot Museum on Saturday, January 9, 2010. There were a good amount of trains too, running slower than normal. The old Cotton Belt/Rock Island depot (which is the museum) was hard to keep warm with it's high ceilings. But we managed to keep warmish with the addition of space heaters and warm-hearted staff. The flooded field and pond on the north side of the depot was frozen over and I got some photos of the staff standing on the ice (not me!!). While driving through the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge on my way home to Little Rock, I noticed the flooded swampy areas frozen over as well. You could ice skate around the centuries-old Cypress trees!!

Included today:
1) UP 7772, 7364, 4584, 3781, 6842, 8094, 8243
2) UP/CNW 6721 Operation Lifesaver
3) CSX 7928, 8783, 5256, 8582, 8628, 8081
4) NS 9802, 6766
5) MKT 14047 red coil car
6) Flesh fly
7) Frozen pond and frozen staff

CLICK ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE Or, to view all images in a larger format, click on: http://thundertrain.org/trains-ice-010910-bb.html

Very light snow was falling with gusty winds. We're lucky it didn't really accumulate here, but it was flowing dry snow around the streets. Temperature was 16, wind chill -10.


RIGHT-You can see the light snow falling. I finally figured out that I need to use a high shutter speed in order to see the flakes. In this case, I used 1/400th second.


LEFT-These little piles of snow were blowing in the wind. RIGHT-UP 7772 and CSX 7928, 9:28 a.m. Note the dusty snow being blown around by the train.


LEFT-I accidently got this shot of MKT 14047 carrying a coil of some sort. Is this a 'real' former Katy car? Is the red beam part of the car or just attached to it?


LEFT-UP 4584 and 7364, 9:36 a.m. Note the snow on the locomotive's steps. RIGHT-UP 3781 off the Brinkley Sub (from West Memphis) at 10:11 a.m.


LEFT-UP 3781, 6842, 10:12 a.m. RIGHT-UP/CNW 6721, the Operation Lifesaver unit.


LEFT-About the cross US Highway 70 heading south. RIGHT-CSX 8783 and 5256, 12:28 p.m. of the Brinkley Sub.


LEFT-Another southbound at 12:48 p.m. RIGHT-Sharp-looking CSX 8582 and 8628, 12:49 p.m.


RIGHT-'Lake Depot' in its' solid state.


LEFT-Museum Director Bill Sayger and secretary Terri at the edge of the Arctic Tundra pond. This photo op was my idea, but was met with mixed feelings on their part. RIGHT-Bill standing on the frozen pond.


LEFT-One more of Terri at the frozen north forty. RIGHT-UP 8094 and 8243, 1:14 p.m.


LEFT-CSX 8081. RIGHT-CSX 8081's icy trucks.


LEFT-CSX coil cars. RIGHT-Closeup of a fly inside the office. According to a lady I know who used to work for Terminix, this is a flesh fly. She continues "I know it sounds weird. That means they have something dead in or under the building or raw meat somewhere. If you look around sometimes you can find their pills. They are red looking and they hatch out of them - its the larva. Yuke right. Do a google on them it really interesting. " (End of my educational lecture for the day).


LEFT-NS 9802 and 6766, 1:30 p.m. RIGHT-Through the bay window.


LEFT-Suddenly the clouds dissipated and the sun came out at 2:17 p.m. RIGHT-Frozen swamps inside the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge on my way home.




There's a Bald Eagle nest on top of the third tree from the left in the distance. Once in a while I'll see a Bald Eagle circling.

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