The Morristown & Erie Toys For Tots Train 2014 12/13/14

At last, the time had come for the Morristown & Erie Toys For Tots Train. This year, the train ran in the opposite direction, starting at Rockaway in the morning and making its last stop at Flanders. Norfolk Southern GP38-2 5620 and GP40-2 3010 were in charge of the train, which consisted of the same equipment used for the NYSW Toys For Tots Train(PRR baggage car 9286, NYC 43, and the Hickory Creek).

Starting off at Rockaway, we see GP40-2 3010 pulling the train across East Main Street. At this point, the train was running push-pull style, with GP38-2 5620 bringing up the rear. The stop here was about 30 minutes long, during which I was able to get a short shot of the moon and the Rockaway River. Soon enough, it was time for the train to start heading west.

After leaving Rockaway, I made my way over to the Carroll Street crossing in Dover to wait for the train. It took a suspiciously long time for the train to show up, which turned out to be a result of 3010 being moved to the west end of the train behind 5620. After a brief stop at the Lakeland Bus Depot, the train passed Carrol Street. I then beat the train to Morris Avenue, where I saw it again as it prepared to make its second stop. After this, I spotted the train crossing Richboynton Road, then got a shot of it running alongside Dewey Avenue in Wharton.

Once the Toys For Tots Train pulled onto the Chester Branch, I was able to see it passing Berkshire Valley Road, then again at the second Berkshire Valley Road crossing on the High Bridge Branch as it prepared to stop at Kenvil. Next, I got a shot of the two NS Geeps pulling the train into Ledgewood to make its stop at Sleepy's. Because the train was running in the opposite direction, 5620 and 3010 had to be uncoupled from the train so that they wouldn't block the Route 10 crossing. This also happened at the Kenvil stop in order to avoid blocking traffic on Route 46 for too long.

Rather than linger at the Route 10 crossing to see the two engines hook back up to their train, I instead set up at the Righter Road crossing. This is the only crossing on the High Bridge Branch to have gates, and is actually one of only two gated crossings on the Morristown & Erie system. I also caught the train crossing Pleasant Village Drive in Succasunna and arriving at Flanders.

After the hour long stop at Flanders, the Toys For Tots Train ran down to the end of the line so that the two engines could be run around to the other end of the train. When it returned, I saw that baggage car 9286 was also moved to the other end of the train, now positioned in front of the Hickory Creek. From here, the train would make its way to the Chester Branch and down to Kuiken Brothers next to Route 10 and Horseshoe Lake. I caught this movement at Carey Road in Succasunna, Route 46 in Kenvil, First Street in Roxbury, and finally at both Main Street and Route 10. Once the train backed across Route 10, it was tied down for the night.