Making Many Connections! By Carl W. Stephanus

The Third in a Series about Travels in Europe

He was nowhere to be seen and the hotel help did not know when he would return! Upon our arrival late last night, he (the manager of the hotel) had volunteered to drive us to the station to ride the first steam passenger train to go out this day.

We continued with our breakfast as the clock ticked away in this nice hotel in Viseu de Sus, a little town with a large lumber mill, in northern Romania. Nearby was a young German couple, whose English was better than our German. They, too, had come to ride on the logging railroad and, yes, they would give us a ride to the station if we showed them the way. I had studied maps and aerial photos on Goggle, and we arrived at the station with plenty of time to spare.

This logging railroad is 760mm narrow gauge with the Romanian name “Caile Ferate Forestiere” (CFF). Because of its steam locomotives, most Romanians affectionately called it the “Mocanita”, which is Romanian for little tea kettle.

A wood-burning 0-8-0T locomotive named “Elvetia” (and numbered “764-421”, built in Romania in 1954) was assembling the 9AM train. It first picked up what they called the “duba”, a box car with a short open-slat section next to the locomotive to carry additional split logs. The rest of the duba carried workers, supplies and refreshments. Setting back two extra coaches not needed, they added a coach after the duba, and then picked up the last car, a flat with railings, roof and benches seating 1 & 2 crossways.

All this switching was done without radios or hand signals! The brakeman used a police whistle, and the engineer acknowledged or warned of movements with the locomotive whistle. Also, no cut levers or automatic couplers! The cars were coupled using three links of a chain. The brakeman, stepping between two cars as they came together, guided a link on one end of the chain into a receiver/bumper and inserted a large metal pin to hold the link in place. Thus, they are called “link and pin” couplers, dangerous and no longer permitted for regular use in the USA (except on some “museum” equipment?).

We bought our tickets and sat on the bench seats in the last car, better to see and photograph the whole train. Departing on time, we soon passed the locomotive shop and servicing area, where we saw another 0-8-0T (named “Mariuta”) under steam. Inside were two serviceable steam locomotives and outside the shop were several out-of-service. As many locomotives had been worn out in years of logging service (and insufficient maintenance and overhaul budgets), CFF now uses diesel locomotives to haul the log cars. “Elvetia” and “Mariuta” are owned, not by CFF, but by a Swiss rail fan association, that brought them here on highway trucks.

For the whole trip out and back, we ran alongside (and sometimes crossed over) the Vaser River. We passed many farm houses, which typically had one cow, one horse (and a wagon) and some chickens. Most houses, regardless of condition or size, had a little digital television signals receiver on them. Going beyond the town and any buildings, we reached areas with no space for both a railroad and a dirt road. Therefore, CFF railroad has several flat cars for hauling logging equipment to where it is needed.

Our destination was a picnic area with several sidetracks at Paltin, 18.2 kilometers up the valley. Stopping en route, the engineer and fireman took a hose off the side of the locomotive to take water from a side creek. At this watering stop and at another point (both going and returning), they also got out the oil cans and lubricated the running gear. At these stops, passengers got off to watch and walk up to the duba to buy drinks and snacks.

Along the way, we stopped alongside a long log train with a little yellow diesel named “Cristina” on the downriver end. “Cristina” took three empty “log cars” off her train and coupled them onto the end of our train. “Elvetia” chugged upriver about a kilometer with our now-longer train and left the “log cars” on the maintrack, where big, long logs awaited loading. So, passenger trains did log train work also.

The “log cars” do not look like any cars you see on other railroads! At each end of a stack of logs is a two-axle frame with one set of swiveling metal arms extending up to hold logs and an end platform with a hand brake. These logs are three times as long as our locomotive and are not tied down! Just good-old gravity holds logs in place, with nothing underneath connecting the “wheel sets”.
We had an hour at Patlin to relax, use the toilet houses and buy beer, soda, or water, grilled meat or sausage for lunch. While we ate lunch, the train crew used gravity to rearrange the train so the duba would be next to “Elvetia”, followed by our open car and the one coach.

However, these last cars two hung up a curve and the train crew had to put their bodies against the cars to get them moving again. Finally, “Elvetia” ran to the downriver end, pausing along the way for lubrication and to again take on water from a creek. Later, several toots by “Elvetia” told us it was time to board for the return.

As all the CFF locomotives face upriver and are never turned, “Elvetia” runs backwards on the return trip. As we moved down the river grade, the train picked up speed. Oh! I almost forgot to mention that the CFF trains (steam locos, passenger cars and log cars) do not use air brakes. Next to a handbrake wheel at the end of our open car, a brakeman sat on a metal chair borrowed from the station café. On all the trains, as speed picked up going down river, the brakemen turned handbrake wheels or levers tighter. Then, they loosen them as the trains slows.

We arrived where we had left the three empty log cars earlier, but could go no farther! For about 20 minutes, we watched log loaders dropping long logs on those cars on the maintrack ahead of us.

No, “Elvetia” did not have to push them down the main. A rubber-tire log loader rolled over the track behind them to give them an initial shove downgrade. And off the three log cars went, two men riding them to work the hand brakes, onto the passing siding downriver.
Asking a young brakeman about riding on the steam locomotives, he replied in perfect English to see “Ioana” in the station at Viseu de Sus. “Ioana” had already left, but the station agent, who also spoke English very well, gave me a business card, which indicated the title of “Ioana” was “Manager In Turism” for the CFF.

We walked about a mile into the center of town to explore the shops and restaurants. While we usually try many traditional dishes, a place whose forte was pizza looked attractive. We had the one type pizza that we have seen in every country we have visited; the “Hawaiian” pizza, with pineapple and ham. After pizza, beer and a couple tall delicious sundaes, we took a taxi back to our hotel.

Not finding a regular telephone in the hotel, the waitress loaned me her cell phone. A pleasant feminine voice answered the cell phone call, identifying herself as “Ioana”. I told her we enjoyed today’s trip, that I had experience with running US and Polish steam locomotives, and I would like to operate one of their steam locomotives tomorrow. What she said next almost “floored” me! She said “that could be arranged but you have to go with one of our engineers.” I quickly replied that would be just fine (while thinking to myself – (word deleted), I would not want it any other way!). As she suggested, I will meet her at the station in the morning.

Wondering what will happen tomorrow, it was difficult to sleep that night     But tomorrow will be Part 4 later!