A Putnam Division locomotive on the Yorktown Heights turntable
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When I tell friends about Geocaching, they sometimes ask if I have any normal hobbies. My response goes along these lines: "Of course. I like trains!" So any time I am caching a rail trail, I am alert for evidence of the railroading past. This nano cache along the North County Trailway will give you the opportunity to sit and consider an important relic.
As I suspect everyone knows, for most of its distance the trailway occupies the right-of-way of the New York Central's Putnam Division -- the Old Put. From the cache site, you will see a circular pit, surrounded by a concrete curb. Today, it is part of a park, adorned with flags and shrubbery. Originally, it was the foundation for a turntable where steam locomotives could reverse direction.
The turntable was removed after the division was converted from steam to diesel power on September 30, 1951. (Steam locomotives can operate in reverse, but don't like to do it, for several reasons. Diesels effectively don't know front from back.) The Old Put itself ceased operation on June 1, 1958, eventually enjoying new life as a geocaching venue.
This should be an easy find, although a TOTT will be especially helpful for log retrieval.
A big toot on the steam whistle to West End 2 for the FTF!
