End Of The Line
Sitting cold at the G&W-Chattooga & Chickamauga Railway's Holiman Yard, and home office is the 66 years old GP7 CCKY 102 soaking up what may be the last of many sunlight on this locomotive career. The 1952 built GP7 have seen every owner from the Chicago & Northwestern, to the Columbus & Greenville Railway (CAGY) to now current owner Genesee & Wyoming Inc. In recent months the GP7 had started to having traction motor issues to a point that it couldn't be operated on revenue service, and as promise by the Genesee & Wyoming, they finally came through, and got the Chattooga & Chickamauga the replacement locomotive CCKY 1700, putting the railroad in a position that they don't need to invest anymore money on the 102. As CCKY 102 is waiting for it's final fate, it also come to mind that this is the last locomotive that is still sporting the Chattooga & Chickamauga iconic blue, and gray paint scheme, and wearing the former owner Columbus & Greenville Railway Company logo on the cab, now bleach by the sun, and showing it's age. It's in fact a end of an era, and also a new day on the Chattooga & Chickamauga Railway in the form of the Genesee & Wyoming Corporate look.