Multiple loops fever, alive!

You know I have seen some cool odd things on MRH in the past few years, but this is awesome. I feel like I want to run Lionel's again!  

And by the way, Happy Father's day  to all. Don't forget it's OK to run trains in a loop or multi loops anytime.

Great photo Brad. Thanks.

And another thing...

Now I know what to do with that rail bender I have!

I remember the screeching sound of subways in a similar pattern at the Coney Island subway yards and maintenance facility in Brooklyn NY. One could see it from up above on the elevated line. I thought it looked like either a Lionel layout or atlas 4x8 somewhere in my "loopy" perception! Anyway loops-alive....

another 4 by 8 plan , Harlem

another 4 by 8 plan , Harlem Transfer DL&W the Bronx NY.......DaveB

http://members.trainweb.com/bedt/indloco/ht.html

Put some eggs out to rot...

Because I saw that location from a cruise ship on  the other side of the harbor in 2012 and I'm pretty sure those piles are of sulfur... 

Click on the photo for a 1600 pixel wide version. 

Loop de loop

There's a loop de loop grain terminal being built on the sub I model between Winnipeg an Morris. It seems, if there is land available, these circuit style loading yards are becoming popular now.

Another Loop Facility

Rail - Barge coal terminal on Ohio River just west of Metropolis, Il. Includes car shop on west end of loop.

HARLEM TRANSFER

Absolutely Dave. You beat me to it!

Super!

Yet another south of Council Bluffs, IA

Ethanol plant about 3 miles or so south of Council Bluffs

http://www.google.com/maps/@41.1657968,-95.8269367,1918m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

A Couple in Oregon

Paper mill in Toledo Oregon.

Georgia Pacific Paper

Although not a complete curve this place is famous for its sharp curve in Portland Oregon

Portland Grain Elevator

A reverse loop

Hey look, a reverse loop.  Another one of those "no real railroad ever does those" layouts.....

kevin 

Reverse Loops

There is another reverse loop there in Portland right across the river from this elevator that was used for turning passenger trains. Also the compact Gunderson Facility and another industrial loop.

Portland Area

Here is a prototype staging yard with reverse loop.

Vancouver Washington Terminal
 

Reverse Loops....

....are actually quite common at grain and coal terminals. A classic I have enjoyed seeing up close is the Hay Point Coal Terminal and Dalrymple Bay Coal in Queensland.

https://www.google.com/maps/@-21.2901968,149.2834284,3584m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

This location has 3 reverse loops. 2 are parallel for Hay Point and third separate for Dalrymple Bay coal. The terminal is served by Queensland Rail and the trains are electrically hauled. In 2003/4 the combined terminals shipped about 77 Million Tonnes of coal. The trains serving the terminals are 5 to 10000 ton trains. All this is on 3'6" gauge!

Unit Train Loads In / Loads Out

Reminds me of a scheme John Armstrong outlined in "Track Planning for Realistic Operation", where he used two trains (one loaded and an empty that matched) to give the illusion of a unit train being loaded as it passed through the loading tipple.  With DCC, it would be even easier to match the speeds of the two trains.

Georgia Pacific toledo mill

Just across the road from the ethanol plant...

- you have Bunge America with a very interesting track plan - loop. Y and multiple sidings (at least 1x3 roads and 4x2 roads)

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.1579505,-95.7990888,2664m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en 

with probably 200-300+ cars on site hoppers and tankers and another 100+ cars on the Y and loop. 

The original ethanol plant loop is about top left on the screen. 

CN MacMillan Yard Reverse Loop

There's a reverse loop at the Engine facilities at MacMillan Yard North of Toronto as well:

@jeffschultz Ha.. funny about the sulphur piles at North Vancouver. Remember the Ol Factory scents? Wonder if they came in rotten eggs? 

@bill brillinger They are building this loop? Nice to hear to new tracks being laid and not taken up! 

Thanks for sharing everyone.

Interesting stuff!

Interesting stuff!

Here's a combination loop, wye, and reverse loop in East Selkirk, MB.    I used to run the locomotive there switching out 113 car BN coal trains before they went to natural gas.  There's also a Dow Corning plant we served to the West.   

http://maps.apple.com/?lsp=7618&q=50.130297,-96.849023&sll=50.130297,-96.849023

Are they building?

Yes, they are beginning construction on the CWB St Adolphe loop right now.

Apparently there are plans for a new elevator In Ste Agathe too.

The Letellier is getting busier. BNSF just added a 10,000ft siding to the interchange yard in Noyes MN to prepare for the increase in traffic.

Variety of Options in Pueblo, CO

How about the FRA Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, CO? You can mix it up with everything from diesel freight to high-speed passenger electric. ​

https://www.fra.dot.gov/Page/P0153

https://goo.gl/maps/B4gtk

And since someone said Reversing Loops...

Oh, one more, since reversing loops were brought up... There's a reversing loop here in Cheyenne that runs near an industrial area on the west end of the UP Yard. The BNSF (former C&S) runs on a high fill immediately west of it. Puma Steel, Nortrak, and a few other industries could be represented. I heard from a good source that this was once referred to as "Government Yard" back at the end of the steam era. If I had just a little more room here in my rental, I'd probably try it myself in N scale.  

https://goo.gl/maps/Xbr6b

It ceased operation April

It ceased operation April 15th but the coal fired steam plant known as Plant Branch on Lake Sinclair in Putnam County Georgia had what looked like almost a complete loop around the coal pile. At least from Google Earth. There was no way for an unauthorized person to get back in there. They are going to tear the plant down and I have no idea how they will use the land. Hopefully high dollar housing or leisure area as our county takes a huge hit in the property tax base when it's gone.

Michael

How About Miniature Miniature Trains? (Not a typo.)

Finally, after some thought, how about amusement parks? Classic "Loop-type" railroads. 

There is a park train new to Cheyenne within the last couple of years. It's a 15" gauge live steam railroad, which I believe works out that N gauge track is a reasonably close approximation in an O scale world. (Z gauge track in an HO scale world would be representative of closer to a 24" gauge prototype.) This is another idea I've wanted to try, but again, I lack the space for any kind of a loop. (Currently planning on doing a shelf layout.)

In the map, the miniature train is in the field between the Atlas Motel and the Cheyenne Ice & Events Center miniature golf course (c'mon, you know you've always wanted to model a miniature miniature golf course.) If money can continue to be raised through donations, a siding for extra rail equipment and other amusement rides (carousel, small Ferris wheel, etc.) are in the future plans for this place. Again, the location is also very close to the UP four-track mainline just a couple blocks south as well as the BNSF to the west, so you could actually have both sizes (miniature and prototype) if there's room on your layout.

There's amusement parks galore that feature some type of miniature train running in a loop, although going along these lines is probably not as operationally interesting unless you have multiple trains, multiple stations, and/or more than one track at each station, but its certainly something someone could use to cut their teeth on model railroading, and it would be a great lesson in gauge vs. scale. 

https://goo.gl/maps/enUiY

Vancouver Wharves

The facility in the original post is Vancouver Wharves.  They ship sulphur  and other stuff per their information sheet: ( http://www.kindermorgan.com/content/docs/VW_FactSheet.pdf)

Over the years they have had very interesting motive power including Shays (yes, those kind), Hunsletts, ex SP Alcos, various GE switchers, SW1200, SW1500, and more that I have overlooked. I have lots of photos of the various types that I should dig up.  I'll post a few if I find them.

They did a major upgrade in the late 1990s, a good friend is a mechanical engineer that worked on the conveyor system.  He did say his work clothes didn't come home after the job was done due to the sulphur, so I suppose it was a bit odorous.

Marc Simpson

Here's one in 1916 in a small

Here's one in 1916 in a small city Wheeling, WV with a wye tossed in. The B&O line curving to the right side of the picture will eventually connect with the W T RY later in town. The Ohio refers to the River on these maps. Just at the south end of Wheeling the mainline had a loop available that would let the trains reverse direction so the could cross the Ohio River bridge in Benwood and if arriving from Ohio could then go either North or South from Benwood.