| This is obviously not Amtrak #333, but #45 shot in the same location as I shot #333 in the above photo. I had returned to live in CVS and returned to take this shot in late October '23. The westbound Cardinal just came off the NS mainline from Alexandria heading for its next stop in Charlottesville via Gordonsville. Thirteen days shy of exactly 35 years previous (1988) when I photographed F40PH AMTK 333 (see photo above) leading the Cardinal in this same spot, a C&O cantilevered signal tower was in the same location as the current signal mast. Also missing is a switch to a two-track siding where the satellite dish is now. The 1988 Cardinal had 9 cars, today's version has 5. This rail line into Orange provided the original Virginia Midland RR with a connection to the pre-Civil War Alexandria & Orange RR. |