In March of 1994 I spied this southbound train slowly moving through Ponchatoula, Louisiana. I decided to quickly head further south on U.S. Hwy. 51 to Manchac to catch him again as he was crossing the South Pass on the long trestle there. I managed to get positioned on the south bank just in time to record his passage. The three gondolas behind the pair of SD40-2 locomotives have an interesting cargo: per-fabricated track switch sections that contain the switch frog.

The boxcars are passing through the Bascule drawbridge. The bridge is normally kept raised for boat traffic, and is closed when needed for a passing train. The abandoned piers at left supported the original U.S. Hwy. 51. After the new “high” bridge was built to its west, the old bridge had its moveable bridge section removed for boat traffic, but the remaining roadway was left in place for fishermen and sight-seers. I believe it eventually caught fire and the remains were removed leaving only the pilings.

The South Pass is a waterway that connects Lake Maurepas (to the left of this view) to Lake Pontchartrain (a short distance to the east), which has New Orleans located along it’s southern edge.