9.12.09 From one engineer to another...

Yeah, yeah, the ride was fantastic but THIS was my favorite part. The train engineer was so enthusiastic and answered all 431 of my questions. 10,000 gallons of water; 7,000 pounds of coal; engine is only turned off ever 30 days per federal regulation (yes it runs all night but wood chips are used instead of coal for 'green' workings); the steam shot sideways at high velocity is actually for cleaning the steam furnace of scale; because water is under pressure it boils at a higher temperature than normal (about 380f); takes 24 hours for engine to cool once turned off; "if we ran out of water we'd be in trouble"