Cotton Valley Rail Trail Club, Inc.

LEGAL NOTICE: Operation of railway equipment, including motorcars, is governed by Federal, State and Railroad authorities. All rail property is owned by someone.  Operation of any equipment on or around railroad property is only permitted with permission of the property owner or leasor.  CVRTC will assist local, State, and Federal authorities in prosecuting illegal operators of railway equipment.  Railway motorcar organizations now exist in most parts of the world.  Please contact one of your local organizations.  They have access to rail property, equipment information and SAFETY information.  They are always looking to promote the hobby/sport and would love to have your help.
The Cotton Valley Rail Trail Club is an association of railway motorcar owners dedicated to performing volunteer right-of-way and rail trail maintenance in New England.
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2011 Open House Wolfeboro For Sale Photos Links

Work Ride


MP C1(August 14, 2010) Frank, James, Roy and Jon worked on the White Mountain Branch.  This line is owned by the State of New Hampshire, and operated by New England Southern.  Trimming was done around several mileposts, and unexpected storm damage was cleared near Sewells Falls. The crew worked as far as Canterbury, before heading back south.

The weather was great! To the left, the crew clears out around MP C1, near the former Page Belting location. (JWM)

Open House


CVRTC Open House(August 8, 2010) This year's Open House was another great success.  The Club opened up it doors and tracks to not only the local community, but also to visitors from across New England.  Members brought their trackcars, and gave rides from Fernald Station, both west toward Wolfeboro Falls and east toward Cotton Valley. The Club's chefs cooked up hotdogs and hamburgers. In the picture to the right, motorcars prepare to head west. (JWM)

Andover Olde Time Fair


Potter Place (NH)(August 1, 2010) Jon, Roy, Dick, and Hank brought their motorcars to Potter Place to help support the Andover (NH) Historical Society.  Several other members help coordinate rides and provide crossing protection.  This is the fourth year that we have been a part of this event, and once again the weather was great.  To the left, Paul Charpentier's photo shows the four cars, ready to depart south from Potter Place. (JWM)

Day Out with Thomas


Loading on the Turntable(July 16-18, 2010)  Dave says "HOT, HOT, and HOT. These three words says it all as the Club finished up its second weekend of giving rides for Day Out with Thomas at the Conway Scenic Railroad."  While it was very hot, members were very busy giving rides right up to the closing time of 4:30 on Sunday."

Dave states that once again, if it wasn’t for the following hard working and dedicated Club members, he wouldn’t have been able to pull this event off and we wouldn’t be able to ride the Notch on September 12th. Dave would like to thank and recognize the following Club members and families: Stacie Kerrigan and Gordon Wallick gave rides all three days. Jon Miner gave rides for two days and Norman Yeaton, who gave rides for one day. To the following members who stood out in the sun all day long helping load cars, protect the grade crossing, and let us not forget the Bouncy House: Dennis Hefferman who worked all three days.  Peter Legare, Jon’s wife Missy, two sons Ed and Dave, and his niece Shelby who worked for two days. Dick Forde, Frank Judge, Tom Miller, Brad Morrill, Kevin Stevens, and John and Debbie Truman who all worked for one day.

On behalf of the Club, Dave wants to thank all the volunteers who not only worked this weekend and last weekend, a very very heart felt "Thank You."  Both Russ and Paul of the CSRR came by and thanked us for the time and work that the Club puts in for both weekends giving rides.  They also added that we are a big hit with the kids and parents and a big part of the weekends.

Looking forward to seeing and working with all of you next year.  (JWM)

July Meeting


End of Track; Wolfeboro Falls(July 11, 2010) Members and their guests met for a short July meeting.  After the meeting Ron, Jon, Jessie, Pete, Marlin and their guests headed east for lunch at the Miss Wakefield Diner.  There was a good crowd at the diner, but the staff was putting out delicious food quickly, and we were soon on our way back to Fernald.
After crossing NH-109, the group dug out crossings, and battled through deep grass to make it to the end of track at Wolfeboro Falls.  The line really needs to be mowed!
To the left, the group poses before heading back up the hill and east toward Fernald. (JWM)

Day Out with Thomas


CVRTC on the Turntable(July 9-11, 2010) Dave reports "A good time was had by all; even with the very warm and humid weather we had this weekend." This weekend has turned out to be very busy; Saturday seemed to be one of the busiest days we have had in years. While the crew din’t keep count, they estimated well over a twelve hundred riders for the day. If this coming weekend is anything like this one, the CVRTC will make a lot of families very very happy.

A very special "Thank You" to the following club members for helping out this weekend: Bill Catanesye and Stacie Kerrigan who gave rides all three days, John Rives who gave rides for two days and to Russell Hoyt who gave rides on Sunday.

A very special thanks go to the following members who braved the sun and humidity and stood out in the sun helping to load cars and work the grade crossing: Dennis Heffernan who worked for three days, Linda Waldron who worked for two days, and Sean McInerney, Doug Zukowski, John Truman, Dick Forde, Brad Morrill, and Kevin Stevens who helped out for one day.

Without these volunteers the CVRTC would not be able to ride through Crawford Notch this September. While there are enough volunteers this coming week, if you would like to stop by and help out, even if it were for a few hours, please feel free to do so. We would love to see you. Thanks again.(JWM)

Ossipee Crossing Work

Clearing the gravel(July 1, 2010) This week the Thursday Gang tackled the Ossipee Line. Ian joined them with the tractor and assisted with scraping the concrete-like gravel from the rails. Russ comments "it would have taken us all day to do it by hand". (JWM)

 

Track Patrol


Trackcars at Fernald Enginehouse(June 25, 2010) Russ reports that the Thursday Gang patrolled the line, finding it in good condition with little work to do. To the right, serveral Fairmont MT-19 and MT-14 trackcars sit on the mainline, ready to depart East from Fernald toward the Miss Wakefield Diner. (JWM)

Mowing


Fixing the mower(June 17, 2010) Russ reports that working on the mower, the Thursday Gang headed out to mow the line.  To the left, the gang works on the mower deck with the Fernald enginehouse in the background. The mower features a sliding deck which can mow outside of the rails.(JWM)

Valley Railroad

Valley Railroad

(June 12, 2010) Hank reports that he and three CVRTC members attended; thanks to Roy,  Ralph, and Bob for their help.  Also thanks to the Valley Railroad and Brendan for the opportunity to ride  the line.  They had a total of 4 trackcars, 3 open.   Set on was at Higganum  Station MP 17.0 at 9:00 AM.  After the safety meeting, they patrolled North to the end of the line at MP 21.67 with Brendan piloting  in the lead car.  After turning the cars, an hour was spent completely clearing out the siding at MP 21.0.   On the way back they stopped at a few places to clear some brush to widen the ROW, also checked out a nice beach along the Connecticut River.  They proceeded South to the washout at MP 16.5 and then backed up to the set off at about 1:30 PM.  Some Sun most of the morning, and no rain until just before set off.   A 100% safe day, and 99% rain free!  All-in-all it was a great day! (JWM)

Mowing


(June 10, 2010) Russ reports that the Thursday Gang got together on Wednesday, before the impending rain storm.  They mowed one side of the right of way from Fernald Station to the Miss Wakefield Diner.

It's still early in the season, double-check your motorcar and tool box to make sure that you have all the required items, and all the tools you might need on the line. The mower developed a sputter, and without the proper spark plug wrench they could not change the plug.
Missing something? They did find a motorcar part along the way, let Russ know if it is yours.  Plus, the June meeting is this Sunday!
(JWM)

Hobo Railroad Trackcar Meet


(June 4-6, 2010) The Cotton Valley Rail-Trail Club was well represented at the 21st annual Hobo Trackcar Meet. To name a few attendees... Ron, Bill, Frank, Doug, Jessie, Mike, Pete, Hank, Dick... plus others. Jon and Paul helped flag the crossings, making for a smooth and safe ride. The weather forcast for the weekend was disappointing, but the actual weather turned out OK. The heavy rain didn't start until late Sunday after most people were loaded up, chained down and headed home. As pictured, Jessie and Liz enjoy a sunny lunch break at Weirs Beach. (JWM)

Pre-Hobo Shake Down

Pre Hobo Shake Down(June 4, 2010) Dick reports that the Pre-HOBO Run on Friday was a great success. About fifteen cars show up, of which five were 'foreign' cars. Two of those 'foreign' cars, and their new owners, had never been on the rails since the cars were purchased. A lot of ideas were passed around and a lot of advice given. The cars were inspected and defects corrected; adjustments were made. Two leisurely round trip runs were made from Fernald to Wakefield. There were no incidents and only one tow-bar breakdown.

Thanks to all the members who made this event a success: Bill, Pete, Jessie, Hank and Dottie. We're looking forward to doing it again next year! (JWM)

May Meeting


(May 16, 2010) Members and guests met at Fernald Station for the May meeting.  Several members brought motorcars and headed out to patrol the line.  Others worked to clean up the station and enginehouse area after the meeting.
Tree cleanup
A storm had snapped off the top third of a large pine and left it hanging dangerously in a few branches of an adjacent tree. As it was above an area where people park and walk, the logging crew of the CVRTC (Ron and Bill) used their skills to safely remove the broken top and tree.  Other Club members cut up the smaller branches and cleaned up the remaining debris, leaving the area again safe for passage. A job well done, as the tree was in very tight quarters, and had to be dropped precisely to avoid additional problems. Roy's picture on the left, shows the tree top safely on the ground. (JWM)

Wakefield Pride Day


(May 15, 2010) Jon, Dick and Ken spent the day giving motorcar and handcar rides.  People got to see not only the human-powered pump car, but also a 2-stroke and 4-stroke engines.  Jon did a little cutting with his chainsaw to open up the line so they would not be scraping the cars with the bushes.  Edward and David coordinated the puching of tickets, while Bill made sure the releases got signed.  Fun day for all! (JWM)

Thursday Gang


(May 13, 2010) Russ reports that the Thursday Gang got out on the line and encountered a large fallen tree. If your work schedule allows for Thursdays off, it's a great time to get out on the Wolfeboro line.  There's always work to be done!

Make sure you bring your sun screen and bug spray and keep your eyes open for ticks. (JWM)

Track Patrol


(April 18, 2010) Jesse reports that he and Peter patrolled both lines and trimmed and cut trees and inspected the culverts. In a scene that looks more like Christmas time than a week away from May, Peter tosses a fallen log off the tracks (JWM)

April Meeting


Ron hangs up the sign(April 11, 2010) First meeting of the year at Fernald.  Several members brought their trackcars.  After a brief meeting, people headed off to perform some spring cleaning, picking up debris and storm damage from the tracks and trail.  Other members worked around the enginehouse and station area.  Pictured to the left, Ron hangs up the Club's sign with help from Pete and Hank.  Keep your eyes on the Events page, as we're working hard to schedule excursions.  Work rides can be scheduled at the last minute too.

If you haven't already, check your trackcar over... make sure that you have all the required safety equipment and insurance forms.  Check your tool box, and ask your kids and neighbors for any critical tools they might have borrowed over the winter! (JWM)

CVRTC Clothing

(April 5, 2010) Dave is putting together an order for CVRTC clothing. See his posting on the Yahoo Group list for details. (JWM)

Election Results


(March 25, 2010) Here are the election results from the Annual Business Meeting:
  • President: Ron Mitchell
  • Vice President: Wayne Goldthwaite
  • Treasurer: Dave Kotsonis
  • Recording Secretary: Jonathan Miner
  • Membership Secretary: Roy Frendberg
  • Trail Master: Bruce Stuart
  • Lock Master: Bill Wheeler
  • Directors, expiring March 2012: Harry Thayer, Bill McKenney, Bill Catanesye
  • Director, expiring March 2011: Jesse Mazzie

Annual Business Meeting


(March 7, 2010) Next Sunday March 14th is our annual meeting to elect officers and to set the agenda for the upcoming year. It will be held at the Belmont Corner Meetinghouse at 10:00am.

Directions:

If you are coming up I-93, go to exit 20 straight ahead at the light onto Rt. 140. Go about 4 miles to the stop sign in the village. Take a right and the first left. That is Fuller Street. The Meetinghouse is at the end of the street.

If you are coming from the east, Rt 140 out of Alton (about 15 miles to Belmont) At the lights at Rt. 106 go straight thru, left at stop sign and then left onto Fuller Street.

Agenda:
  1. Election of officers. (Roy will have the ballots)
  2. Treasurers report.
  3. Committee reports.
  4. Old business
  5. New business to discuss upcoming events for the year.
If the snow keeps melting, looks like we should be able to get onto the tracks earlier this year. Don't forget to turn your clocks ahead Saturday or you will be late for the meeting! (JWM)

Happy New Year


(February 17, 2010) The webmasters wish everyone a belated "Happy New Year".  A fresh coating of snow has covered everything, and even the Northern Mainline in Hookset was still covered when I passed by on my morning commute.  TC-42 sits idle, wrapped in a blue tarp as we collectively wait for spring.  But we're less than a month away from the Club's Annual Business Meeting, and various members are already working behind the scenes. Roy has been busy sending out membership forms. Dick is getting ready for another pre-Hobo shakedown day.  Frank must be thinking about what new excursions he can work into the calendar. (JWM)

See the archives for postings from 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 2008 and 2009.

CVRTC, Inc.
P.O. Box 417
Wolfeboro Falls, NH 03896

©2003 Cotton Valley Rail Trail Club, Inc.