Thank you for making this video! I volunteer at the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum and our goal is to preserve this railway. I'm glad to see a really good and in depth video on our "impossible" railroad!
I love how this channel feels like an OG History Channel or Discovery show. back in the late '90s/ early 2k's . Even the intro gives it that vibe. Keep up the amazing work
This line would make for a killer set for Western movies or even a western experience of riding a steam locomotive on portions of it, having an authentic Western town built on the line near Dos Cabezas, riding horses everywhere else, and having a drink the saloon. I would pay to get brought in on a Steam train and spend a weekend hanging out in a town like that.
In 2015, I was traveling through Cadillac, MI, and something caught my eye just off the U.S 131 Business Route, so I pulled onto a side street to check. On a railroad siding on the north end of town, was a series of Chicago Metra train cars. Don't know why they were there
Wow - I do remember the design of these Chicago cars... way back in 1989/90 I was in the Navy and stationed at Great Lakes, IL. I and my shipmates would ride in these double level cars down to Chicago to out and experience the real world and then come back to the station by the base. So many of those mates are gone now... thanks for the story of what we were riding and where they ended up!
@@genevarailfan3909yeah my line has the new cars during rush hour but on the off peak rides they still have the older ones with the leather seats. The new ones kinda look like airplane seats
*Just* took a METRA train for the first time ever about 30 minutes ago, great to see a video here on them. Such an interesting experience to ride on the second floor.
Those bi-level cars were formerly owned by the C. & N. W. then became property of METRA. All of the other Budd bi-level cars, I believe, such as on the C. B. & Q, were stainless steel sided cars.
@@axlealex3352 They may well have. They had a lot of those old dinosaur single level coaches for years after Budd introduced the bi-level cars. I think it was Ben Heineman, former CEO of the CNW, who got together with Budd to make the bi-level. He wanted to streamline commuter operations to stem the losses but did not or could not get rid of commuter service so he tried to make it more efficient.
IIRC didn't Amtrak operate Budd bi-levels for a time as well on some routes (I THINK out of Chicago)? Not sure if they were from the C&NW or CB&O though.
Thank you, Ryan, for all the history. I knew about the cars, I knew about line and trestle, but I didn't know all of that... As someone who really likes trains and train history, I really appreciate it. You know, I think we got some of those old metro cars around here. I believe those are the same class of chicago metro cars that I got to ride in a time two. I believe they're the same type as the one's Iowa Interstate bought for their IAIS 6988 & IAIS 7081 2-10-2 "Santa Fe" Chinese steam locomotive... I went for a ride in them a couple of times back in 2011 once round trip at Rock Island Train Fest, Rock Island, IL to Walcott, IA I believe and once at Planes Trains and Automobiles, fest. Geneseo, round trip from Geneseo, IL to Annawan, IL. I'm not sure if they're still making any runs with those old locomotives or not. 🤔 I think they are, I'm gonna have to look it up. I would sure love to go on another ride sometime. I wish they'd still have that trained festival in Rock Island, that was a one time in history awesome amazing event.
You should try to make a historical on the city of New Haven, CT my hometown. It's got tons of history. It's the hometown of Yale University. This city is rich with history. You might like what you find.
I don't know if you knew this Ryan but those Metra trains were based in Joliet and were on the former Rock Island line. The service went threw off of the southwest suburbs. I took it from Joliet to Downtown in my first solo trip into the City when I was 13 and many times more afterwards. I loved those double decker cars and durning the week they were always packed with commuters going to and fro . It used to cost 1.00 for a ride and you better have had your ticket for the Conductor to punch or they'd make you buy another. Those were fun days. Always wondered what happened to them because there were a lot of them.
Nope….the car number was shown in the video - 7773. That’s not an ex-Rock Island car, rather a Chicago & North Western car. A little research finds that these are all former green & yellow C&NW cars.
I remember those cars well. They were putting together a tourist and dinner train and running the train as a test. There was also a dining and kitchen car (Amtrak?) attached to that consist. They left the cars sitting on the track and vandals somehow released the brakes. The cars rolled downhill and derailed on a curve. The kitchen car overturned. We hiked there a couple of days after the derailment, and I marveled on how fast they repaired the tracks. I thought it was strange that they even re-used the old spikes in making the repair. Shortly after that the dining and kitchen car were removed and the other cars left on the siding where they remain today.
Ya know? I don’t remember subbing to your channel. I know of you guys due to Indie N. and his Great War series. Honestly you’ve become on of my favorite channels. So many different topics that one would never know of. Love it!
Very interesting and well done, thank you. It's a shame that they are abandoned, train history should be preserved. I know I wouldn't mind having one or two car.
Love all the different stories tied to Chicago you find. Keep it up 👍 We also have on old Metra train (Nashville Star) here in Tennessee but it still runs.
No what you have are some old Metra Passenger CARS When they were planning the Nashville Star system Metra actually gave them to them or sold them for $1 each because they were going to another Transit Authority. At about the same time they purchased some retired BN Metra E Unit Locomotives to pull them. By the time the Nashville Star was about to commence operation Amtrak had made available some retired F40 Locomotives that were much newer than the BN E Units which were then sold off. However one was kept for the RR Museum in Downtown Nashville. I lived in Nashville at the time.
Excellent video! We released a Goat Canyon Trestle video last week. Great minds think alike! Such a fascinating site. Anyways, always love your excellent research.
I was so excited because I saw your video last week and was curious about these cars but Google didn't give me much, so when I saw the It's History video on my feed this morning it was a instant play.
Love all the effort that Ryan puts into these videos - but a simple mispronunciation kinda takes the shine off them, especially when repeated multiple times.
I remember those trains paint schemes. I don't think they use the bright orange seats anymore but I remember being a little kid when they did. They had the seats that can flip so you can face either way. I would sit up top and the conductor could walk around the bottom and reach up for the tickets. I remember being given a big stack of used ticket stubs once. (I've in Peora for the past 10 years now but this was back in the early 90's.)
I also volunteered at PSRM back in the late '80's to mid '90's! As a docent you had to study the history and lead the tours. It was fun. Hiked this section of track a couple times from Jacumba to Dos Cabesas. Some Chinese labor was used in the construction of the line. I remember there was a good Chinese restaurant in Tecate when we took a tour train there. Some Chinese settled in the area after the line was completed. There was also a Chinese architecture style house on hill in Jacumba. Italian and German prisoners of war were housed at Camp Lockett which is adjacent to where the PSRM Campo museum is located. Some Italians stuck around too after the war was over. There was an Italian restaurant in Tecate called Passetto's I remember. Descendants of the POWs ran it. Love history. Thank you Ryan.
12:10 Interesting at around this time, I was working for Nippon Sharyo USA. We were in the test-build phase of manufacturing the new Cal-Trans cars. However, these cars failed the FRA crush test, despite the cars being of a new design, and being tested several times. As a result, Nippon Sharyo USA lost its Cal-Trans contract. Rumor had it that a train building company in New York took over the project. It should also be noted that when Nippon Sharyo USA opened, there was mass protests at the Nippon Sharyo plant in Japan. During the first at round of Metra passenger cars built at Nippon Sharyo USA, the price per unit was inflated, so when the first project was completed, the property was paid off. As a result of a lost Cal-Trans contract, Nippon Sharyo USA shut down, and no longer exists.
I was there just over a year ago. Didn’t see the Goat Canyon trestle bridge but did see the abandoned rail cars. They are really neat to see and easy to get to.
Those cars were sent out there because they are full of asbestos. A Coaster engineer and a Metra engineer were talking and the Coaster engineer said, "Hey, maybe you know about this, there are a bunch of Metra cars in the desert..." The Metra enginner said, "So that's were they went. Metra had a bunch of cars with asbestos and one day they just vsnished."
I rode my bicycle out to the trestle on the hottest day of the year, over 120 degrees. Stopped and walked through the train on the way out. There is a nudist camp close to the start of the ride.
Although I will probably never have a chance to hike this railroad, at least I can drive a train along the line in Trainz Simulator. Definitely do a video on Southern Pacific’s Tillamook line in Oregon and it’s eventual demise.
10:05 this is a British freight train homie. I will say, there has been a big improvement of using the correct photos/videos for the subject. Almost there.
Fascinating! You mentioned Wisconsin And Southern Railroad, I watch videos from Roman's Milwaukee Roads , he has excellent footage of that railroad. Greetings from Port Saint Lucie, Florida.
These appear to be early Metra repaints of CNW equipment. Metra has sent these type coaches to the annual "Galesburg Railroad Days" held in June. I rode them there in the 1990s, and in Chicago as well (Northwest Line 1978-1989). Would never have believed they could end up sitting in a southern California desert. Museum yes, desert no. Thanks for the video!
I love Carrizo George. He lives near the Carrrizo Gorge, right? Just south of the San Juan Gorge (or is that San Juan George? So hard to read and write English, especially for professional narrators).
It is sad to see such a railway in which a huge investment has been made, how it sits abandoned instead of being lost in the tourist circuit. A pity of such splendor
I commuted into Chicago for a good few years in trains that look exactly like the one in thumbnail. Very strange to see where they ended up. I probably didn't ride in those exact cars, but I could have.
Lived in chicagoland area (1996-98) and took the Metra daily from North Suburbs (Des Plaines/Park Ridge/Evanston) to Union Station (Downtown). These look like some of them. Cool story.
Weird. I’ve lived in LA for 20 years. I moved here from Chicago. About 30 years ago-until ‘96- I worked on Canal Street. What is now Ogilvie Station yard runs past the back of the building I worked in. My work space was at the back on the 2nd floor. My window looked out onto that yard. Those Metra trains in that paint scheme-light grayish white, muted brownish stripe and muted rust orange stripe-ran in and out of that station yard, within mere feet away, past my office window.
Chicago and NorthWestern first introduced the "gallery" design circa 1956; it then spread to other Chicagoland commuter roads which were merged into Metra in 1984. The design spread to San Francisco, where SP operated them for what became Caltrain, and Montreal, Canada for CP, whence they passed to what is now Exo. Today the gallery design is largely out of favor; it's limited to low platforms, is not accessible, and cannot easily be made so. Starting with Toronto's GO Transit in 1977, cars with 2 full decks became the norm.
That bridge prob needs to be a brick built concrete filled viaduct or a steel lattice deck atop concrete pillars, last 100 years come rain or shine with little maintaining needs.
I enjoy your blurbs but this one did not seem to answer the Q - how those cars got out there. Why/when did Metra sell them? How did they get out there? What was the plan? Did someone actually anticipate enough passengers on this route? Why not mothball them, like passenger jets parked out in Arizona desert?
My god, I have seen the metro cars sitting outside the Wisconsin Southern yard in Horicon, WI. Did not realize they were connected story to those in California
Carrizo Gorge has a railroad, their 3 locomotives (2 F units with the big "SPIRIT" text and 1 alco unit), they're all stored at Jacumba Yard, they rarely try to repair something on the SD&AE railroad nowadays. Bonus Fact: There's a VHS video on UA-cam showing the arrival of the Chicago Metra's train cars.
Metra is moving traffic from weekends and rush hour to mid day. The passenger traffic pattern is changing to mid week shoppers from early morning office workers.
The passenger cars of which some were set on fire, were sitting on a spur track back from the main track. Someone released the brakes and some if not all of the railcars rolled down and across the main track derailing. This most likely would have damaged all of the trackage and railcars making it nearly impossible to salvage anything.
Not in this sense,but yes in heraldry. Used here, it is a set of repeating twin legs with horizontal crossbeams, all joined together to form the complete structure.
The "G" word you couldn't pronounce in the scenic railway's name is "Gorge," which is a geographic feature. "George," on the other hand, is a proper noun and not a geographic feature.
From the Southern Pacific Railroad for their San Francisco-San Jose commuter line, though they were manufactured by the same company. The cars was sold to the producers after the state took over the commuter line. I believe all the cars used in the movie were broken up after a tourist train plan went bust.
Uhh.... I hate to be the guy that goes "actually" to you, but the comment at 12:45 is a perfect example of you NOT doing actual in depth research in regards to the railroad. It does still exist, and is actively working to re-open the line. There were setbacks due to Covid, yes, but work continues, which includes completely replacing bridges, and upgrading trackwork to modern standards. The bridges being replaced with metal bridges, in place of the old wooden trestles. I would hope a history channel would actually research a subject, but guess this is youtube and it's too difficult to actually do anything the correct way.
Very informative, however the trestle was constructed of wood as it was more cost effective and easierto transport to the remote location. It has nothing to do with the hot climate, and the curvature was simply the alignment of the right of way not for stability due to wind.😮
Thanks for the video. It was good to hear about Mr. George. Maybe he needed to hire more good operators. 😂 I am sure you have heard about the George thing enough, and Jacumba. Thanks for pronouncing Baja right though, that might have did me in. A little info for you. A train isn't a train without a locomotive. Those would just be cars, or passenger cars, or rail cars, or train cars. Think of it like a Semi. A trailer isn't a semi, but it can be a semi trailer. Also, a locomotive by itself isn't a train. Sadly, the three Montreal metro cars, TPHX 801, 817, and 835, that are on a siding further up the line have been set on fire. It is sad the difference in a video from 12 years ago to a video from 1 year ago. 12 years ago they appeared to be in great condition, now they are just scrap.
i live near here in san diego, i remember when i first started hiking in the desert near these cars they were pristine, north of Jajamba. but the moved them further north near the nudest colony and then the word was out. covered with graffiti ever since. careful, it is CA desert. i almost got shot there but could not convince sherifs to intervene.
So sad that some people feel a compulsion to deface abandoned historical things with their amazing graffiti. Yeah, I know it can sometimes be artistic, but c'mon - not every single thing needs to be a canvas. I wish they had a little more respect.
I saw a special on Huell Howser California gold that showed that line and those cars being used for a day trip from a San Diego train museum to the Tecate beer factory in Mexico.. Also I believe those cars were going to be bought by the failed. X-train project from LA to Las vegas. Then the entire project fell through. Just going by best recollection. Maybe it was on another SD rail line, not sure.
Great video. Lots of abandoned railcars all over the country which have outlived their usefulness exist. These cars have a very interesting story. The Metra cars, known better as "Gallery Cars," aren't the most favorable cars.
Thank you for making this video! I volunteer at the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum and our goal is to preserve this railway. I'm glad to see a really good and in depth video on our "impossible" railroad!
Thank you for all your efforts!
Thanks
I hope we can preserve this bit of history because I'm looking forward to visiting the trestle bridges again. It's a fascinating site to see.
"Impossible" being the key word?
Carrizo George was frequently mentioned. What a character he must have been!
It was a deep George too.
Costanza!
Yeah, I cringed every time he mispronounced "Gorge."
@@AegisDivision01 What about Jacumba?
@@casinoboyeric "Ha-cum-ba"!
I love how this channel feels like an OG History Channel or Discovery show. back in the late '90s/ early 2k's . Even the intro gives it that vibe.
Keep up the amazing work
This line would make for a killer set for Western movies or even a western experience of riding a steam locomotive on portions of it, having an authentic Western town built on the line near Dos Cabezas, riding horses everywhere else, and having a drink the saloon. I would pay to get brought in on a Steam train and spend a weekend hanging out in a town like that.
We can dream, but that’s about as far as it will go.
Real life west world lol
In 2015, I was traveling through Cadillac, MI, and something caught my eye just off the U.S 131 Business Route, so I pulled onto a side street to check. On a railroad siding on the north end of town, was a series of Chicago Metra train cars. Don't know why they were there
Wow - I do remember the design of these Chicago cars... way back in 1989/90 I was in the Navy and stationed at Great Lakes, IL. I and my shipmates would ride in these double level cars down to Chicago to out and experience the real world and then come back to the station by the base. So many of those mates are gone now... thanks for the story of what we were riding and where they ended up!
A handful of those bi-level cars are still running on Metra, and several have been modified to carry bicycles.
My line mdw are still doubles
@@GodBlezzAmerica Yes, all Metra cars are bi-levels. I was referring to that specific type of bi-level car--the former C&NW ones with smooth sides.
@@genevarailfan3909yeah my line has the new cars during rush hour but on the off peak rides they still have the older ones with the leather seats. The new ones kinda look like airplane seats
@@GodBlezzAmerica I believe those are actually old cars with new seats. Hopefully new cars coming in a couple years won't have airplane-style seats!
Hearing you pronounce gorge (hard G) like George (soft G) is grating to listen too. Other than that it is a really interesting and informing video.
Thanks for the helpful feedback and thanks for watching our new video! - Socash
I'm starting to think he purposefully chooses a word to mispronounce in his videos so as to drive engagement in the comments.
I think so, too. It seems like every video has at least one or two that really stand out.
Like wearing goofy hats?
Carrizo George is Yosemite Sam's cousin, I guess.
*Just* took a METRA train for the first time ever about 30 minutes ago, great to see a video here on them. Such an interesting experience to ride on the second floor.
Upper deck. 🙂
Neat trains huh? I used to go from otc to Harvard IL regularly.
Those bi-level cars were formerly owned by the C. & N. W. then became property of METRA. All of the other Budd bi-level cars, I believe, such as on the C. B. & Q, were stainless steel sided cars.
Very cool insight
Didn't the Rock Island have some of those types of cars also? I thought I saw some in a couple old videos
@@axlealex3352 They may well have. They had a lot of those old dinosaur single level coaches for years after Budd introduced the bi-level cars. I think it was Ben Heineman, former CEO of the CNW, who got together with Budd to make the bi-level. He wanted to streamline commuter operations to stem the losses but did not or could not get rid of commuter service so he tried to make it more efficient.
@@axlealex3352yes. Rock Island had a bunch of the smooth sided cars. They were painted Red with a Yellow stripe..
IIRC didn't Amtrak operate Budd bi-levels for a time as well on some routes (I THINK out of Chicago)? Not sure if they were from the C&NW or CB&O though.
Love the video, but it's not "George" as in the man's name. It's "Gore"ge.
I’ll try to remember that next time.
Yeah, that mispronounciation surprised me
@@ITSHISTORYhow could you not know how to pronounce “gorge”?
There's an occasional mispronounced word or two but his videos are so good and researched thoroughly I recommend them to everyone !!! 💯
Thank you, Ryan, for all the history. I knew about the cars, I knew about line and trestle, but I didn't know all of that... As someone who really likes trains and train history, I really appreciate it. You know, I think we got some of those old metro cars around here.
I believe those are the same class of chicago metro cars that I got to ride in a time two. I believe they're the same type as the one's Iowa Interstate bought for their IAIS 6988 & IAIS 7081 2-10-2 "Santa Fe" Chinese steam locomotive... I went for a ride in them a couple of times back in 2011 once round trip at Rock Island Train Fest, Rock Island, IL to Walcott, IA I believe and once at Planes Trains and Automobiles, fest. Geneseo, round trip from Geneseo, IL to Annawan, IL. I'm not sure if they're still making any runs with those old locomotives or not. 🤔 I think they are, I'm gonna have to look it up. I would sure love to go on another ride sometime. I wish they'd still have that trained festival in Rock Island, that was a one time in history awesome amazing event.
How interesting, let us know what you discover after looking into this more. I really appreciate your comment.
You should try to make a historical on the city of New Haven, CT my hometown. It's got tons of history. It's the hometown of Yale University. This city is rich with history. You might like what you find.
@@harveystrodejr.0351 If Yale wasn't there, New Haven would be just another hick town in the North East homie.
I don't know if you knew this Ryan but those Metra trains were based in Joliet and were on the former Rock Island line. The service went threw off of the southwest suburbs. I took it from Joliet to Downtown in my first solo trip into the City when I was 13 and many times more afterwards. I loved those double decker cars and durning the week they were always packed with commuters going to and fro . It used to cost 1.00 for a ride and you better have had your ticket for the Conductor to punch or they'd make you buy another. Those were fun days. Always wondered what happened to them because there were a lot of them.
Nope….the car number was shown in the video - 7773. That’s not an ex-Rock Island car, rather a Chicago & North Western car. A little research finds that these are all former green & yellow C&NW cars.
I remember those cars well. They were putting together a tourist and dinner train and running the train as a test. There was also a dining and kitchen car (Amtrak?) attached to that consist. They left the cars sitting on the track and vandals somehow released the brakes. The cars rolled downhill and derailed on a curve. The kitchen car overturned. We hiked there a couple of days after the derailment, and I marveled on how fast they repaired the tracks. I thought it was strange that they even re-used the old spikes in making the repair. Shortly after that the dining and kitchen car were removed and the other cars left on the siding where they remain today.
Ya know?
I don’t remember subbing to your channel. I know of you guys due to Indie N. and his Great War series.
Honestly you’ve become on of my favorite channels. So many different topics that one would never know of.
Love it!
We are honored to have you with the show! Don’t miss the D-Day special we did with the Indie and the guys last month 😎
Very interesting and well done, thank you.
It's a shame that they are abandoned, train history should be preserved.
I know I wouldn't mind having one or two car.
Several are preserved. Metra is still using a handful of that type, and three operate at the Illinois Railway Museum in their original C&NW colors.
Love all the different stories tied to Chicago you find. Keep it up 👍
We also have on old Metra train (Nashville Star) here in Tennessee but it still runs.
No what you have are some old Metra Passenger CARS When they were planning the Nashville Star system Metra actually gave them to them or sold them for $1 each because they were going to another Transit Authority. At about the same time they purchased some retired BN Metra E Unit Locomotives to pull them. By the time the Nashville Star was about to commence operation Amtrak had made available some retired F40 Locomotives that were much newer than the BN E Units which were then sold off. However one was kept for the RR Museum in Downtown Nashville. I lived in Nashville at the time.
Excellent video! We released a Goat Canyon Trestle video last week. Great minds think alike! Such a fascinating site. Anyways, always love your excellent research.
I was so excited because I saw your video last week and was curious about these cars but Google didn't give me much, so when I saw the It's History video on my feed this morning it was a instant play.
Oddity Odysseys - Beth and Drew! I love your channel!
Gorge, not George.
Was going to say something.. Glad I wasn’t the only ne that caught that.
Love all the effort that Ryan puts into these videos - but a simple mispronunciation kinda takes the shine off them, especially when repeated multiple times.
No this is Patrick.
@@phloughtgnarpsehs7263 only one, not only ne.
First G is hard, second G is soft.
I didn't know this recent history of this trestle. So sad. It was a very cool part of RR history.
I miss the Spreckles Factory, the name fits sugar perfectly and the sign on the factory was a landmark. The package design and logo were cool.
In the railroad. We don’t call it abandoned, they are “unused”. Because someone still owns them.
I remember those trains paint schemes. I don't think they use the bright orange seats anymore but I remember being a little kid when they did. They had the seats that can flip so you can face either way. I would sit up top and the conductor could walk around the bottom and reach up for the tickets. I remember being given a big stack of used ticket stubs once. (I've in Peora for the past 10 years now but this was back in the early 90's.)
Amazing story. The Chicago effect is huge. Thanks for sharing. ❤
I also volunteered at PSRM back in the late '80's to mid '90's! As a docent you had to study the history and lead the tours. It was fun. Hiked this section of track a couple times from Jacumba to Dos Cabesas. Some Chinese labor was used in the construction of the line. I remember there was a good Chinese restaurant in Tecate when we took a tour train there. Some Chinese settled in the area after the line was completed. There was also a Chinese architecture style house on hill in Jacumba. Italian and German prisoners of war were housed at Camp Lockett which is adjacent to where the PSRM Campo museum is located. Some Italians stuck around too after the war was over. There was an Italian restaurant in Tecate called Passetto's I remember. Descendants of the POWs ran it. Love history. Thank you Ryan.
I can just imagine a scenic railroad or a railroad preserve society grabs those cars and fully restores them
12:10 Interesting at around this time, I was working for Nippon Sharyo USA. We were in the test-build phase of manufacturing the new Cal-Trans cars. However, these cars failed the FRA crush test, despite the cars being of a new design, and being tested several times. As a result, Nippon Sharyo USA lost its Cal-Trans contract. Rumor had it that a train building company in New York took over the project. It should also be noted that when Nippon Sharyo USA opened, there was mass protests at the Nippon Sharyo plant in Japan. During the first at round of Metra passenger cars built at Nippon Sharyo USA, the price per unit was inflated, so when the first project was completed, the property was paid off. As a result of a lost Cal-Trans contract, Nippon Sharyo USA shut down, and no longer exists.
That's unfortunate, their Caltrain Bi-levels are quite nice
Jacoba springs? It's Jacumba Hot Springs, known to locals as Jacumba(Ha Come bah).
That's not what _Carrizo George_ said.
I was there just over a year ago. Didn’t see the Goat Canyon trestle bridge but did see the abandoned rail cars. They are really neat to see and easy to get to.
Your trademark mispronunciation: it is Carrizo GORGE, not George.
Gorge, not George.. Amazing story. The Chicago effect is huge. Thanks for sharing. .
Those cars were sent out there because they are full of asbestos.
A Coaster engineer and a Metra engineer were talking and the Coaster engineer said, "Hey, maybe you know about this, there are a bunch of Metra cars in the desert..." The Metra enginner said, "So that's were they went. Metra had a bunch of cars with asbestos and one day they just vsnished."
Theres even used to be 3 old amt 800 series cars from montreal. Unfortunatly 2 were set ablaze recently.
I've traveled all over our country and never understood why the people of California "TAG" everything up ?? Even in their parks n nice places.. smh.
Been to Manchester UK lately? Same problem, there is stupid in all countries.
I rode my bicycle out to the trestle on the hottest day of the year, over 120 degrees. Stopped and walked through the train on the way out. There is a nudist camp close to the start of the ride.
It's not nude anymore. They went clothed.
Although I will probably never have a chance to hike this railroad, at least I can drive a train along the line in Trainz Simulator.
Definitely do a video on Southern Pacific’s Tillamook line in Oregon and it’s eventual demise.
Hey it’s dippy fresh
10:05 this is a British freight train homie.
I will say, there has been a big improvement of using the correct photos/videos for the subject.
Almost there.
Fascinating! You mentioned Wisconsin And Southern Railroad, I watch videos from Roman's Milwaukee Roads , he has excellent footage of that railroad. Greetings from Port Saint Lucie, Florida.
We have a FL video coming up soon! I’d also like to do some episodes about WI. Thanks for your support🙏
@@ITSHISTORY I look forward to seeing them.
These appear to be early Metra repaints of CNW equipment. Metra has sent these type coaches to the annual "Galesburg Railroad Days" held in June. I rode them there in the 1990s, and in Chicago as well (Northwest Line 1978-1989). Would never have believed they could end up sitting in a southern California desert. Museum yes, desert no. Thanks for the video!
this is the tracks next to the nudist camp right?
Yep!
Just to the north of the camp! ⛺️
Former nudist camp.
I love Carrizo George. He lives near the Carrrizo Gorge, right? Just south of the San Juan Gorge (or is that San Juan George? So hard to read and write English, especially for professional narrators).
Adam the WOO was here last week
Current Metra cars on the Heritage Corridor line look almost identical. Some of the most uncomfortable seats on all the Metra lines around here.
It is sad to see such a railway in which a huge investment has been made, how it sits abandoned instead of being lost in the tourist circuit. A pity of such splendor
I commuted into Chicago for a good few years in trains that look exactly like the one in thumbnail. Very strange to see where they ended up. I probably didn't ride in those exact cars, but I could have.
Lived in chicagoland area (1996-98) and took the Metra daily from North Suburbs (Des Plaines/Park Ridge/Evanston) to Union Station (Downtown). These look like some of them. Cool story.
Weird. I’ve lived in LA for 20 years. I moved here from Chicago. About 30 years ago-until ‘96- I worked on Canal Street. What is now Ogilvie Station yard runs past the back of the building I worked in. My work space was at the back on the 2nd floor. My window looked out onto that yard. Those Metra trains in that paint scheme-light grayish white, muted brownish stripe and muted rust orange stripe-ran in and out of that station yard, within mere feet away, past my office window.
Very interesting and informative information! T. Y. Too you and all behind the scenes! T00 make this video possible! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Thanks so much! These videos take passion from many people to make!
Great video and great history... Thanks !
As a Chicagoan, those trains look very familiar. It used to be the illinois central line When I was a kid. We called it the I.C.
Chicago and NorthWestern first introduced the "gallery" design circa 1956; it then spread to other Chicagoland commuter roads which were merged into Metra in 1984. The design spread to San Francisco, where SP operated them for what became Caltrain, and Montreal, Canada for CP, whence they passed to what is now Exo. Today the gallery design is largely out of favor; it's limited to low platforms, is not accessible, and cannot easily be made so. Starting with Toronto's GO Transit in 1977, cars with 2 full decks became the norm.
Hi hope all is well with you and your family too. Great video very interesting. Question Did they finally remove that abandoned train? Just curious
I have been waiting for this for a long time.
The television presentation format works on television because you can’t fast forward. Swing and a miss.
That bridge prob needs to be a brick built concrete filled viaduct or a steel lattice deck atop concrete pillars, last 100 years come rain or shine with little maintaining needs.
I enjoy your blurbs but this one did not seem to answer the Q - how those cars got out there. Why/when did Metra sell them? How did they get out there? What was the plan? Did someone actually anticipate enough passengers on this route? Why not mothball them, like passenger jets parked out in Arizona desert?
Think what’s more crazy is these same damn cars are still in operation…
And they feel their age lol
My god, I have seen the metro cars sitting outside the Wisconsin Southern yard in Horicon, WI. Did not realize they were connected story to those in California
Great history and thank you for sharing this video
Thank you for this explanation. I have seen videos of exploration of this canyon and bridge and the passenger cars.
being from this area and watching this is very entertaining
Carrizo Gorge has a railroad, their 3 locomotives (2 F units with the big "SPIRIT" text and 1 alco unit), they're all stored at Jacumba Yard, they rarely try to repair something on the SD&AE railroad nowadays.
Bonus Fact: There's a VHS video on UA-cam showing the arrival of the Chicago Metra's train cars.
Another place where I made my comedy the Stupid Orange and the Flintstones right from that abandoned train.
I remember the seats moved so you could sit facing front or backwards.
13:10 It's 7773, at least that's the number on the train in the picture, not 7774
I wonder how far you could get with a hand rail car?
And the worst part is that Metra could use those cars
Chicago news just said they are cutting service
@@ronsblahblahWhere did you read that? They just announced plans for a service to Rockford today.
Metra is moving traffic from weekends and rush hour to mid day. The passenger traffic pattern is changing to mid week shoppers from early morning office workers.
Yeah there's that west coast flavor I've been craving!
The passenger cars of which some were set on fire, were sitting on a spur track back from the main track. Someone released the brakes and some if not all of the railcars rolled down and across the main track derailing. This most likely would have damaged all of the trackage and railcars making it nearly impossible to salvage anything.
Awsome 😊
A great story, well told.
Sad, but also fascinating story.
Man them international routes must have been quite extensive if they were running BR class 66's on 'em...
Are trestles traditionally tripod supports relying on support from horizontal frames?
Not in this sense,but yes in heraldry. Used here, it is a set of repeating twin legs with horizontal crossbeams, all joined together to form the complete structure.
The vast number of trestles have been wood, even big ones.
THANK YOU SO MUCH.
Well George we have a preserved tressle in damp old UK! In Malden Essex it must be the smallest! And too damp to combust!
Some other RTA semi-bi-levels wound up rolling on the Virginia Railway Express commuter service into Washington DC.
The "G" word you couldn't pronounce in the scenic railway's name is "Gorge," which is a geographic feature. "George," on the other hand, is a proper noun and not a geographic feature.
Me, when I see those cars: Oh hey, those are the cars that were used in "Under Siege 2: Dark Territory" aren't they?
From the Southern Pacific Railroad for their San Francisco-San Jose commuter line, though they were manufactured by the same company. The cars was sold to the producers after the state took over the commuter line. I believe all the cars used in the movie were broken up after a tourist train plan went bust.
Very Interesting..👍👍👍
Uhh.... I hate to be the guy that goes "actually" to you, but the comment at 12:45 is a perfect example of you NOT doing actual in depth research in regards to the railroad. It does still exist, and is actively working to re-open the line. There were setbacks due to Covid, yes, but work continues, which includes completely replacing bridges, and upgrading trackwork to modern standards. The bridges being replaced with metal bridges, in place of the old wooden trestles.
I would hope a history channel would actually research a subject, but guess this is youtube and it's too difficult to actually do anything the correct way.
Was hoping for some videography but cool video
I rode those trains while at Great Lakes naval yraining center.
There are those who would love to have cars like that for railroad projects
Would be some nice drone area footage.
I totally agree
I rode those in Chicago in the 80s.
Very informative, however the trestle was constructed of wood as it was more cost effective and easierto transport to the remote location. It has nothing to do with the hot climate, and the curvature was simply the alignment of the right of way not for stability due to wind.😮
Thanks for the video. It was good to hear about Mr. George. Maybe he needed to hire more good operators. 😂
I am sure you have heard about the George thing enough, and Jacumba. Thanks for pronouncing Baja right though, that might have did me in.
A little info for you. A train isn't a train without a locomotive. Those would just be cars, or passenger cars, or rail cars, or train cars. Think of it like a Semi. A trailer isn't a semi, but it can be a semi trailer. Also, a locomotive by itself isn't a train.
Sadly, the three Montreal metro cars, TPHX 801, 817, and 835, that are on a siding further up the line have been set on fire. It is sad the difference in a video from 12 years ago to a video from 1 year ago. 12 years ago they appeared to be in great condition, now they are just scrap.
They are CARS, not trains.
i live near here in san diego, i remember when i first started hiking in the desert near these cars they were pristine, north of Jajamba. but the moved them further north near the nudest colony and then the word was out. covered with graffiti ever since. careful, it is CA desert. i almost got shot there but could not convince sherifs to intervene.
So sad that some people feel a compulsion to deface abandoned historical things with their amazing graffiti. Yeah, I know it can sometimes be artistic, but c'mon - not every single thing needs to be a canvas. I wish they had a little more respect.
NO STOPS BETWEEN AURORA AND SAN DIEGO! PLEASE NOTE - NO STOPS BETWEEN ...
That's Gorge, not George.
CARIZZO GORGE, NOT GEORGE! ITS NOT A SLICK PIMP FROM THE 70'S.
I saw a special on Huell Howser California gold that showed that line and those cars being used for a day trip from a San Diego train museum to the Tecate beer factory in Mexico.. Also I believe those cars were going to be bought by the failed. X-train project from LA to Las vegas. Then the entire project fell through. Just going by best recollection. Maybe it was on another SD rail line, not sure.
we all love Chicago history even those of us that can't wait for California to fall Into the ocean. Thanks again
Maybe Chicago will slide off into Lake Michigan too!
The "mystery" is why UA-camrs even watch this video beyond the first 30 seconds.
Great video. Lots of abandoned railcars all over the country which have outlived their usefulness exist. These cars have a very interesting story. The Metra cars, known better as "Gallery Cars," aren't the most favorable cars.
I love Metra trains ⚠️👀💯
Passenger travel was replaced. And the Port San Diego didn’t create a container port. Lost business to Long Beach
Interesting John in Chicago
What is the cause or causes of the multiple tunnel collapses? Is the geology of the area to difficult to sustain a tunnel through?
That area is near the San Andrea's fault line i think