Koleje in Kaszubia

My earliest memories of Polish railways are in the Kaszubia region of northern Poland, near my family home. To this day, they remain some of my favorite lines. This page is a sample of what you may see in this area, far away from express trains and overhead wires.

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The PKP SN-61 diesel railcars were built by Ganz Mavag of Hungary in 1959-1971. They were used extensively on secondary line services. This example, #183, was in the station at Czersk. (September 8, 1990)
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The distinctive nose of the SN-61's displayed a classic design. Here is #183 at Czersk. (September 8, 1990)
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The interior of the SN-61's was divided into two sections, one for smokers and the other for non-smokers. There was also a small baggage/mail area. The rest of the area was taken up by the engine and driving compartments. (September 10, 1990)
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The SN-61's could pull up to two additional coaches. The SN-61 had driving cabs at either end, and a steam generator to provide heat to trailing coaches! This train was arriving at Czersk on a local run from Koscierzyna with #156 in the lead. (September 7, 1990) (72K, posted Jan. 9, 1996
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My earlier train-watching spot in Poland was Czersk station, in the town where my uncle lives. Located on the Tczew-Pila secondary main line, there are no wires to spoil the view of passenger trains splitting semaphore signals. This local, led by an SN-61, was arriving on the evening passenger train from Koscierzyna. (September 17, 1990)
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In 1990, Koscierzyna was still a steam hot spot. Several locomotives were in service at the time, switching the yard and running freights to nearby towns. Here Ty42 #51 works a string of cars in the yard. (September 10, 1990)
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A daily freight to Bytow was one of the steam duties out of Koscierzyna. At Lipusz, the locomotive ran around the train and reversed direction. Here, Ty2 #927 sits in front of the Lipusz station. (September 10, 1990)
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Ty2 #927 storms its way out of Lipusz on its return to Koscierzyna. Tender-first running was common with many Polish engines, due to the lack of turning facilities at many locations. (September 10, 1990)
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A Ty-42 2-10-0 stands at the shed at Koscierzyna. Koscierzyna still boasted steam freight trains in 1990 when this picture was taken, but now hosts the museum of the Northern region of the PKP. (September 1990)