Three Rivers Region

[kalanc69]

Hello Again,

I just finished wacking away all the weeds in my backyard with my trusty weedeater and thought I would check in to see how the party is going! It looks like I was just in time for some really good stuff! I can't wait to see what the rest of the party will bring.

[Lowkee33]

Assabet, Sudbury, Concord?  No, those are the three where I grew up.

Been fun lurking all day.  I've got to stop posting pictures of food and actually make some for myself.  Tonight we're having my famous "clean out the refrigerator" soup.

I'll stop by later with a full belly.

EDIT:  Assabet, Sudbury and Concord sounds like the punchline to one of those bad jokes lawyers tell each other, Carl.  We need to share "refrigerator soup" recipes.  Sometimes I wind up nuking questionable ingredients in the microwave just to make sure they won't get to me before the ambulance arrives. -de

[pezzajn]

Happy 6th birthday 3RR !!! I brought my party hat
Here's to many more years!

[kalanc69]

Hello Again,

I just finished wacking away all the weeds in my backyard with my trusty weedeater and thought I would check in to see how the party is going! It looks like I was just in time for some really good stuff! I can't wait to see what the rest of the party will bring.

[Rayden]

Perhaps Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence Rivers. (RL)

Grand, Cold and Wind Rivers (SC4 ones)

EDIT: Silvio, my man!  Coming through for the team!  The Grand, Wind and Cold are the three rivers of the region, and obviously I need to prepare some refresher materials on basic 3RR geography. -de

[Haljackey]

6 Years. Wow.

This is one of, if not the longest running 'journal' that is still active. That is one huge feat, and a commendable task.

David, not only have you been able to keep 3RR afloat all these years, you've kept it entertaining and have done incredible things with it, like the NAM additions you indicated.



So here's to 6 years! Here's to you, David!



-Ryan (Haljackey)

EDIT:  Ryan, thanks so much.  I think I have Bruce (Schulmanator) beat by a couple of months, but he's better looking than I am, so that one's pretty close. -de

[dedgren]

In the next couple of minutes, post the names of the three rivers 3RR takes its name from without looking.

Oh, boy...

Well, how about a hint?



* * *

And, as were saying, then there's single track rail.





Jonathan and Dave (superhands) get all the credit for taking an idea that we had bounced around for a while and setting it in motion, but of all the transit things that have been done here at 3RR, I am the most proud of the STR puzzle piece set that was developed.

The High Line is the former mainline track, which has been rebuilt under Lankford Ridge through a 1.2 mile/two kilometer long tunnel that is not visible just off the left side of the pic.  The grades and curves of the High Line across Aspen Pass were deemed to be too challenging for the increasingly long trains loaded with coal from the Stony Harbor area mines.  The old line has been left open as it serves several small industrial customers on the flats off the pic to the north.  If these businesses stop using rail to transport product, however, the High Line will almost certainly be abandoned.  A major "Rail to Trail" organization [linkie] has already engaged in a preliminary study of the right-of-way through this incredibly scenic area.

The pics that follow are each keyed to the corresponding number on the main pic.



The High Line leaves the main line just west of the former Meadow station (off pic to right).



The line makes a broad curve onto The Ledge, where there is a fine view of the new trackage to the south.



The High Line sweeps around The Ledge, then heads north up the grade to the summit of the pass.



While the pass is not a high one, the grades up to it on either side frequently exceed three percent due to the rugged nature of the terrain.



The line snakes just under the base of The Thumb, a long granite outcropping near the summit.



The tight fit of the High Line's curves to the terrain is seen here against the backdrop of The Thumb's sheer side.



The summit.  The curves in the track are necessary to reduce the grade.



Blanchard Park on the north side downgrade.  This area, which is dotted with small ponds, is noted for being an important summer nesting place for the gray coot, which has recently been placed on the Endangered Species List.



The north end of the downgrade off the pass is reached at Hargreaves Flats.  The abandoned smelter and spur at Hargreaves are just off the pic to the north.

3RR's great friend and my professional colleague Matt (threestooges) also gets great credit for creating the first (and as of yet only that I am aware of) STR bridges.






David

956220

[mayorfabz]

Hey there, Montreal calling.

A very happy - though belated - happy birthday to 3RR. These flashbacks are truly impressive, I had almost forgotten the blocky curves in the pre-NAM version of the game. Looks like I'll never taste vanilla again...

Kudos on the achievements, Master. You manage to keep us all excited for the game despite passing time and RL. Can't wait for 10 years of 3RR.

Fabien (recovering lurker)

EDIT:  Fabien, no, not belated at all.  You were right on time, and I hope you got to the cake before I ate it all.  We'll see about the 10 years- I think some developments later this evening will make a good start on that. -de

[benedict]

Happy Birthday!

So great to see some of the amazing maps revisited in this thread.

EDIT:  Ben!  So great to see you here.  So we're even. -de

[abcvs]

For a six year old's birthday party there seems to be a lot of ETOH around...

Just sayin...

(I was referring earlier to the first ever in game shot of STR...  where the train was travelling over the wooden STR viaduct...)

EDIT:  Six years old on a fansite dedicated to a computer game, which usually rate somewhat less than the proverbial 15 minutes of fame, is forever, Craig.  Kind of like dog years, only you don't have to feed anything. -de

[TheTeaCat]

David,
Congrats on 6 years  with 3RR. I've set the table up in the corner there with the tea/coffee etc            -->

Gee I even remember the first 3RR post, hard to believe 6 years have passed and here's to 6 more.

Just wanted to say thanks too for keeping me entertained/amazed by stuff I see here and long may it continue.

Right I'm off to stick the kettle on and get a brew going so if you need me you'll find over  by the supplies

Derry

EDIT: A cuppa Bengal Spice as we segue into the evening here, Derry.  Thanks for your great friendship over the years.  I will make it back to the U.K. and visit people, not places, next time. -de

[jmyers2043]

Hey David - Congratulations on 6 years.



Take Care

- Jim

EDIT:  Well, Jim...
[tabular type=4]                                                
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3RR Quotable Moment

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[row] [data]

@dedgren: "I'm just one of those spinning plate guys..."

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-de

[Wacky Worm]

Hello all! I've been a lurker for a long time here at 3RR and thought this was as good of a time as any to end that.

I found 3RR... probably around 2007 on ST through one of the many tutorials (specifically the one spanning this page) and have been checking in ever since. Congrats on 6 years, and here's to many more.

EDIT:  Thanks, WW.  Don't be a stranger! -de

[mike3775]

Is the mandatory bedtime waved for the birthday boy?

EDIT:  Heather gave up trying to train me for a specific bedtime years ago, my friend.  This may have something to do with that.

-de

[dedgren]

74 posts so far today, including mine.  I'm sure that's some sort of record here, but today isn't about records.

We're about six hours into the party, and it's going strong.  Maybe it's time for the first of several announcements...



...[whistle]...[buzz]...

...[louder buzz]...

That's better.  Anyway, for those of you who really still do not believe that 3RR is really up there on the border between Minnesota and Canada, think again.  Later this spring, as part of a 15,000 mile road trip Heather and I are planning, I'm going to go there.

No, really.  Here's the map of our return leg of the trip.



We will be driving back from the opposite corner of the United States from Alaska: Key West, Florida, and somehow I have talked Heather into spending two nights in a (some would say) place that only exists in cyberspace.  My guess is that we'll find plenty of things to take pics of that will fit right in, and of course I'll be posting live from there.  Wherever there is, anyway.  I think it will be a hoot.  Heather will probably stay in the camper away from the mosquitos.


David

956350

[mike3775]

David, your initial post about US 30, US 12, US 6 hit close to home for me.  Go a little farther East of Munster on US 6 (just prior to the Porter/LaPorte County Line) is where is Live today, which is only a few miles east of the town I grew up in.

EDIT:  Another 3RR connection, my friend.  There have been a lot of them. -de

[Rayden]

Anyway, for those of you who really still do not believe that 3RR is really up there on the border between Minnesota and Canada, think again.

Perhaps a quick look through this link, will enlight those ones.

EDIT: Heh!  Silvio, if I say "US and Canada" I can maintain a completely straight face. -de

You're right, Bécancour, Quebec it's quite farway from Kenora, Ontario or Baudette, Minnesota.

[woodb3kmaster]

David, your initial post about US 30, US 12, US 6 hit close to home for me.  Go a little farther East of Munster on US 6 (just prior to the Porter/LaPorte County Line) is where is Live today, which is only a few miles east of the town I grew up in.

Same here, as it happens. I live less than 10 miles from good old (former) Route 66 as it travels through Victorville, CA, and I went to college only a couple of miles from another section of the Mother Road (this time as it traverses Los Angeles along Santa Monica Blvd). Truly a trip down memory lane. Congratulations on six years of 3RR, and here's to many more to come!

Zack

EDIT:  Heh, Zack:



We'll wave.  I plan to listen to the "We were somewhere around Barstow" chapter of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas [linkie] as we drive through that stretch.  No trunkfull of ether, etc., though.  My love for things Hunter S. Thompson only goes so far. -de

[mayorfabz]

That's better.  Anyway, for those of you who really still do not believe that 3RR is really up there on the border between Minnesota and Canada, think again.  Later this spring, as part of a 15,000 mile road trip Heather and I are planning, I'm going to go there.

15K miles? Holy smokes, that's more than what I did in a year back when I used to have a car! This is going to take weeks!

Fabien

EDIT:  Nine weeks, to be exact, my friend.  It's kind of one of those "Last Chance to See" trips: lots of elderly family members and places like Zion National Park and Ocracoke that I'll not have a chance to visit again.  I'll be 60 this year, and you start thinking about that stuff. -de

[jgehrts]

Congrats on six years! It's been quite a ride.

Side comment - I have a connection to US 20 myself, having grown up in Galena, Illinois. I'm sure you've been there a time or two, David, considering your upbringing in the Chicago area!

EDIT:  Mississippi Palisades and Historic Galena!  Having never been able to persuade my dad to drive me there, one Saturday in my senior year of high school I borrowed the car to "go over to [my girlfriend at the time]'s house," then picked up said girlfriend and drove across northern Illinois, spent about 15 minutes necking at the Palisades, drown to downtown Galena, looked around, then drove back in time for dinner.  Ahh, the pleasures of youth! -de