425 Holiday Trains covers 2 days of Christmas trains on the Reading and Northern with their loud 4-6-2 number 425. There were 3 trips per day originating out of Tamaqua, PA. The first and third trip each day was northbound upgrade to Haucks, then down to High Bridge. A diesel on the rear then pulls it back to Tamaqua. The second trip runs south of Tamaqua then returns, and the third trip is a repeat of the first one. The engine is kept in Port Clinton, so we catch it running light to Tamaqua each morning. We begin the December 2nd trip with a cab ride from Tamaqua. This is a rainy morning, and mostly upgrade, so 425 has to work pretty good. After the cab ride we see a few scenes of the second trip, before shooting the afternoon trip trackside, again mostly upgrade. Sunday December 3rd features great lighting and cool weather as we chase the light engine to Tamaqua, including some pacing. The first trip from Tamaqua features a camera mounted on the right side cab roof, so you see the top of the boiler plus the right side of the line. We mix these in with some nice trackside locations, making this a memorable run. After shooting the second trip we again make the afternoon run to High Bridge. This segment features trackside views, plus some onboard footage from the open window coach. We splice in the two types of scenes for fun viewing, like entering the Tamaqua Tunnel from the train, then from trackside. We also have some nice morning scenes at Port Clinton, as well as the history of the engine. The trips in December of 2022 were the final trips for 425, as it is down for its 15 year form 4 boiler and rebuild work. Who knows when we may see it again, but for now enjoy this show of great steam action.
Customer Reviews
- 5 of 5
In Greg's 3rd & final volume of the Steam on the Reading & Northern Trilogy, the former Gulf Mobile & Northern 4-6-2 is operating on one of the final trips the locomotive operated during the Weekend of Saturday December 3rd & Sunday December 4th 2022 before it was disassembled in pieces for its 15 year/1472 day boiler inspection shortly after these footages were recorded. The Weather is very wet & rainy on the Saturday trips for most of the day, but the next day is 100% clear & sunny with a Go-Pro camera attached to the cab roof, not to mention SW8 number 802 pushing the water tender behind the pacific at the Port Clinton Shops on the Sunday trips. On both days, all 3 of the R&N's RDC Budd cars 9166, 9167, & 9168 are making a stop in Tamaqua while on a trip from Reading to Jim Thorpe & back, as well as being at the Throttle of 425 to the High Bridge at Hometown via East Mahanoy Junction on the first trip of the day while the Blue Pacific is wearing a Nathan 3 chime whistle on the Saturday trips, & a Southern 3 Chime Whistle the next day with a mention of 4501, as well as pacing at Zehners, while over the years, 425 has been wearing Different Whistles. Plus there is footage onboard the coaches on the final trip of the Sunday Specials. Aside from the GSVP camera crew which consists of Brady Sanker & Zac McGinnis, Jim Parfrey of Steam Train Videos was also on the Four & A Quarter's final trips before it was out of service. A Piece of trivia that you may not know, is that the still image of the front cover of the DVD & Blu-Ray Case was photographed by Michael J. Wilson that was shown in a Special Issue of Trains Magazine called Steam Across America. Sadly this was the final GSVP title that Greg himself made before he passed away on December 9th 2023. While there hasn't been any new titles from Greg's family & team in 2024, 2025, & at this point today in 2026, it is likely that some new people will take over Greg's jobs of editing, making DVD & Blu-Ray menus & cases, & even converting what's left of the VHS only titles to today's formats. We will miss the co-creator of the America By Rail video series very much.
Additional comments:
Narration: Could have used more.
Image quality: Excellent!
Value: Good value.
Recommend? "Must Have"!
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