Railfanning the First Coast Railroad at the Amelia Island Swing Span Bridge

I was driving back from Amelia Island to Callahan today and was stopped at the US 17/SR 200 traffic light in Yulee. As I waiting for the light to change my ears perked up ad I heard the familiar sound of a train whistle. I knew I was too far away for it to be a CSX train blowing at the SR 200 grade crossing so I looked to my right and saw the signals flashing at the US 17 grade crossing a couple hundred yards to the North. I railfan the CSX and Norfolk Southern tracks in Nassau County all the time but this was a rare treat for me: Seeing a First Coast Railroad freight train slowly move out of their yard and head east toward Amelia Island and Fernandina Beach. FCR is a 32 mile short line owned by Genesee and Wyoming and consists of two lines branching North and East from Yulee. The tracks were former Seaboard Air Line and CSX lines: The Yulee to Fernandina Beach was part of the original historic Florida Railroad built in 1856 and the Yulee to Seals/Kingsland, Georgia portion was built in late 1880s as part of Seaboard Air Line's main line from Savannah to Florida. Although there is a swing span bridge on the Florida/Georgia State line over the St. Marys River ( a typical narrow girder bridge that is locked in place and can be opened only with 48 hours notice to CSX), the highlight of the short line is the century old truss span over the busy Intracoastal Waterway between Yulee and Fernandina. Knowing the train I was seeing had to soon cross that beautiful half painted steel bridge, I quickly turned down Pages Dairy Road and raced back toward Fernandina. I passed an FCR hi rail truck which I soon figured out was carrying the bridge tenders. I parked under the SR 200 bridge and waited for the slow moving train. After 15 minutes at 10 AM sharp, the bridge tenders I had passed in Yulee sounded the warning horn and slowly swung the bridge into place. A few minutes later a single yellow unmarked diesel engine slowly crawled upon the concrete approach trestle and entered the truss span, pulling a couple of box cars, a lumber car, a tanker and about 20 coal cars headed for one of the paper mills on the Island. Within minutes the trailing black tanker car train had cleared the span and the tenders re swung the bridge back to its open position to much delight of the several boats that were now waiting to pass through the bridge channel. I continued back toward Callahan, pleased I had seen a FCR train in action over the historic span.

Railfanning in Keen and Crawford, Nassau County, Florida

CSX Northbound manifest enters the Crawford Road grade crossing north of the Crawford diamond toward Callahan, Florida

Northbound NS manifest pulls onto the Macon-Jacksonville line and crosses the Crawford diamond headed toward Valdosta and Macon, Georgia

NS southbound combo intermodal/auto carrier races across the Crawford diamond toward Jacksonville, Florida. A semi tractor trailer crosses the US 301 viaduct (built 1932) in the background.

A NS southbound intermodal speeds across the Thomas Creek Road/Ratliff Road grade crossing in Keen, Nassau County, Florida, headed for Jacksonville. Keen was founded in 1900 as a timber stop on the Georgia Southern and Florida's Valdosta to Jacksonville line. it was named for James Mitchel Keen who owned most of timber land in the area.

Some say Friday the 13th is an unlucky day, but as a rail fan today was truly a lucky day. I was on my way to my dad's place with no plans to rail fan. As I crossed the Norfolk Southern's Ratliff Road/Thomas Creek Road grade crossing in Keen, Nassau County,Florida, I spotted a Southbound NS train fast approaching. (This section of the Norfolk Southern rail network was at one time known as the Georgia Southern and Florida Railroad that ran from Macon to Valdosta, Georgia, then branched off into two lines running into Florida, one to Palatka {built 1890} and this one to Jacksonville {built 1900}). I pulled off the road just in time to snap a picture of the long inter modal racing toward Jacksonville. I turned my truck around and headed north on Thomas Creek Road toward Crawford, passing a Northbound NS manifest train waiting patiently on the Crawford siding. I figure I could snap a picture of it as it crossed the Crawford diamond on its way north to Valdosta and Macon, Georgia. I crossed US 301, turned west onto Crawford Road, sped across the CSX Callahan-Baldwin line and stopped a minute later at the NS Woods Lane grade crossing. (Woods Lane is part of the old Baldwin Road that was the main road from Callahan to Baldwin before US 301 was built in the 1930s). As I parked my truck, I was expecting the NB manifest to be slowly chugging under the US 301 viaduct and pulling onto the main line. Instead to my surprise I saw the SB signal still on green, meaning there was another Southbound NS train holding up the Northbound manifest. Sure enough another Southbound NS combination inter modal/auto carrier came racing across Woods Lane and through the diamond. Loud banging sounds echoed through the nearby pine trees as each truck hit the guide rails of the crossing. Finally after about 15 minutes the Northbound manifest slowly entered the main NS line just east of the CSX line. I could feel the power of the engines as it gained speed through the diamond, pulling Herzog gondolas and tanker cars. Thinking my railfaning was over, I turned around and recrossed the CSX line. As I glanced both ways, I spotted a Northbound CSX train on the south side of the Crawford diamond. I could tell by the smoke rising from the engines it was gaining speed and approaching the Crawford Road crossing fast. By the time I stepped out of my truck, the crossing signals had begun flashing. I was able to capture a pic of a short CSX manifest train heading north toward Callahan and the main line out of Florida. Within an hour I was able to capture pictures of 4 trains as they raced through the old logging villages of Crawford and Keen, Florida. Looks like Fridays are hot days to rail fan in Nassau County, Florida.