Maryland Thunder: 1309's Inaugural Weekend on The Polar Express

"Maryland Thunder" is back, and the largest operating locomotive on the East Coast is now in revenue-earning operation!
In one of the biggest and most long-awaited railroading moments in the eastern half of the United States, on the weekend of December 17-19, 2021, former Chesapeake & Ohio 2-6-6-2 #1309 was finally making revenue trips for the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, out of Cumberland, MD. These were no ordinary trips, however, as the railroad planned to put the "Mallet" on the point of the extremely popular "Polar Express" trips.
For numerous reasons, mostly because of the short distances of the Polar Express trips, initially, these trips were diesel-assisted on the rear of the train, and only went the 5 miles or so to the famous Helmstetter's Curve location along the line, instead of the full length of the railroad to Frostburg. However, the engine still made a fine sight (and sound) at the head of the train for three out of the four trips on Saturday, December 18. I managed to catch the train at a few locations during the day. Enjoy this look at "Maryland Thunder: 1309's Inaugural Weekend on The Polar Express"!!