Today's Train of Thought: It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! Oct 31st

Despite the timeless appearence of Reading & Northern Baldwin 4-6-2 #425 chugging through the Pennsylvania countryside, this picture was actually taken just over a year ago by railpictures.net contributor Andrew Blaszczyk. Dedicated volunteers painstakingly restored the 1928 ex Gulf Mobile & Ohio 4-6-2 to operating condition in 2007 and the classic locomotive occasionaly sees service hauling excursions for the Reading & Northern out of Jim Thrope, PA- although she gets an assist from some of R&N's much newer SD50s. Here, the blue 425 and a pumpkin patch are the most colorful things in sight on a rainy, blustery Oct 25th, 2008 as she passes through Hometown, PA.

While I'm at it, today's (bonus!) Train of Thought treats us to a glimpse of some west coast pumpkins in their natural habitat (sort of). With about a month to go before they're to be carved up or used in pies, railpictures.net contributor Jared Forcier caught these fine specimens basking in the sun at Encinitas, CA in the early morning hours of September 30, 2009 as North County Transit District F40PHM-2C #2101 hustling past with a commuter train on its San Diego-Oceanside, CA route. The Pacific Ocean is visible in the background.