Trains of the Shenandoah Valley!

After weeks of editing and over a year after my first trip to the Shenandoah Valley, I'm pleased to bring you a full documentary style video on railroad operations in this beautiful region of Virginia! Enjoy!

[@johnuhelski8613]

Well done vid of a very scenic and busy area . I was up here many times last fall and look forward to my next visit .

[@anitanaylor-qt2f2cb52]

Good one!!!

[@anitabreitenberg]

Great Job!

[@VirginiaRailfanProductions]

Update: 15T and 16T no longer run on the Hagerstown and Roanoke district. Thanks to PSR. 4 trains run on the valley. 11Z, 12Z, 202, and 201 run through Hagerstown and Roanoke district. Any other coal trains also run through the valley as well. Hope this helps!

[@hmitchell8618]

As of 2023. Trains 201 and 202 (Now 289 and 288), no longer run The Valley. They take the B-Line. Trains 11Z, 12Z still exist. 13Z and 14Z have been added as well. Locals that still operate are V81, V84, V66, V93, V94, K46 and K47. Coal and grain still run the line but it’s very uncommon.

[@hmitchell8618]

Update. Trains 11Z, 12Z, 13Z, and 14Z run the entire length of the valley. NS local V85 also runs a night.

[@DCRailfanner]

Very well produced! Had me in for the whole thing!

[@jtq69]

Enjoy indeed!!! Great work thanks so much for the effort

[@SmithConductor]

One of the best Railfanning videos Ive ever seen! Amazing intro

[@WashingtonDistrictRailfan]

Thanks man!

[@appalachianrails]

That B&O geep isn't a GP7, that's a GP9.

[@buckeyerails15]

Man, this was great! My friend CSX Railfan brought me here, and I have to say, this is one of the most entertaining raillfanning videos I've seen in a while. Keep up the good work!

[@delawarecountyrailfan2204]

Well well well
I'm here for the same reason you were, h y p e

[@B-LineRailfan]

Well done! And I learned from it too (never knew about Button's Bluff).... I'll have definitely have to get down there sometime!

[@WashingtonDistrictRailfan]

Thanks Steve!

[@LouisianaRailProductions]

Dude I can't believe I missed this! Bout to binge this after my classes today!

[@WashingtonDistrictRailfan]

Thanks man! I know I got a few LRP videos to catch up on

[@chesapeakeandohiorr4350]

Winchester Virginia MY FAVORITE town

[@2Railz]

The "H" line runs from Hagerstown to Roanoke, and it was split into two districts -- the Hagerstown and the Roanoke, with the boundary between the two being Shenandoah Yard. Several mileposts are still tagged with the "H" above them alongside the line south of Shenandoah including the H143 at Waynesboro.
If you know where to look on satellite photos (or if you have access to a drone) you can see evidence on the far side of the yard at Shenandoah where the old roundhouse and turntable once were, now long gone. Pretty cool, I think!
I've made it through the first 40 minutes or so, I'll have to finish it up at some point. It's nice to see somewhat of a railfan guide and also a bit of a point-in-time documentary on what was my early railfan stomping grounds, and an area I like to fan when I have the rare opportunity.

[@2Railz]

I finished it up today, again -- great work! I love the overview, and definitely learned a few things about the areas further south that I haven't explored so much, especially the James River sub, and the BB to the west of Staunton.
A couple of minor corrections -- the DGVR doesn't own the SVRR, it operates it on contract to the owners, a consortium of some of the businesses it serves (and possibly other interested parties). The consortium was formed and purchased the line from NS back in the early 90s, and they have contracted out operations since. It was initially operated by the Buckingham Branch until 2002, before they took the lease on the CSX North Mountain sub. There are some photos of BB locos on the line which caught me by surprise when I was first learning about railroads in the area and their operations. After the BB lost the contract it want to the Bay Coast Railroad, and most recently to the DGVR.
As far as I can tell, the BB doesn't have a 99 year lease on the North Mountain and PIedmont subs. All the evidence I can find says that it signed a 20 year lease in 2004, so there remains a chance that we'll either see CSX take it over again or another operator come 2024. I'd hope that it remains in the BBs hands, they seem to have done a great job with it over the last 15 years.

[@roanokedistrictrailfan873]

Probably the best video I’ve seen so far from the Shenandoah Valley! Very nicely done!

[@travisroach6505]

Are those signals still there

[@pilotguy8685]

Travis Roach yes

[@bobmartin3018]

I thought coal headed north

[@east_carolina_rail_photos]

Oh god oh heck

[@landkruiser1095]

Love the videos man.👍
Just a heads up, Buena Vista is pronounced Buna Vista. Also, Glasgow is pronounced Glasgoe.