2022 A year in review
What an incredible year. This year was a little more relaxing than the past couple of years as we took a break from large projects and enjoyed the railroad. The year saw a few new pieces of rolling stock around the railroad along with many new faces. Here is a month-by-month snapshot of just some of the things the club did.
January
The year started off with our annual New Year’s Day Club Fun Day. The weather was beautiful and a little cold but was a great way to start 2022. A few weeks later we participated in the annual Trains, Trains, Trains event at the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History in Kennesaw with plenty of items on display to share with the visitors.
February
Our third member container began to take shape with the installation of track heading into the container. The crew installed all the necessary panels in a single day making it one of the quickest installations in recent memories.
March
March was a little quieter for us as we did some basic spring cleaning around the property when the weather permitted.
April
The beginning of our first full season since 2019 began with a public run day which saw many smiles, smoke, and fun by so many members and visitors. If you look closely, you will also see a special observer in a railroad tie watching trains go by.
May
May brought our second public run day of the season which also brought out more familiar faces and a new locomotive around the railroad. It was beginning to feel like old times.
June
As the year continued to warm up and in between some of the rain we had the next member container project kicked off with the clearing of some trees and planning on how to get the container positioned into its new home.
July
Work continued on the next member container with leveling off the ground and building switch templates that we can use to identify what radius switches we need. These will come in handy with future projects. We also installed a drain for the driveway and gravel for the container.
August
With all of the rain we had the grass grew tall, but we still got the container delivered. We learned that we had more ways to move a container than we thought which was great since dropping the container didn’t quite land at the right angle. Training on the club steamer was full steam ahead and the driveway drain installation was set in concrete. August also brought our annual Hot Summer Nights club fun day. Sorry I don’t have any pictures, but I understand it was great.
September
Just like old times the annual boiler inspection came and went with all the locomotives on hand passing with flying colors and then taking time to run around the railroad. In case you are wondering our 2023 boiler inspection will be September 16, 2023. More work was also done in preparation of track being installed for the next member container.
October
Wow what an October. This year saw an incredible turnout for our October public run day which made for an exciting day and lots of smiles by so many. The day would not have been successful without each one of our members. Once we got beyond our public run day work continued on the member container with progress being made on the area for track. The month also brought our 2nd annual Fall Meet where we welcomed visitors and visiting trains during our four-day event. Looking forward to 2023. Don’t forget to start sharing with others you know in the hobby that our 2023 Fall meet will be Thursday, October 19th through Sunday, October 22, 2023.
November
We closed out our 2022 public run day in early November with a great turnout early in the day. The interesting part of the day was how the second half of the day was pretty relaxing as many visitors left to go watch an exciting UGA game. We still gave 600 rides for the day allowing us to close out our public run day schedule with 2,481 rides given during our 2022 season.
December
With the year coming to an end, we take a moment to also remember those we lost. Our railroad family lost loved ones that will forever have a special place in the hearts of their families, North Georgia Live Steamers, and others that can say they knew them.
2023
As you prepare for a new year do not forget that we have 8 Club Fun Days this year with the first one being on January 1st. If you purchased a 2023 NGLS calendar the dates for our club fun days and many other dates are listed in the printed calendar. You can also visit our website for the latest calendar items as well. Speaking of the calendar do not forget about other items coming up just after the new year.
Saturday, January 7th - Club Meeting and 2023 Board Election
Saturday, January 28th and Sunday, January 29th - Trains, Trains, Trains event at the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History. Don’t forget to sign up to volunteer for this fun event.
Thank you again for a wonderful year and looking forward to seeing what new things members have been working on over the winter as the railroad comes alive again in 2023.
