The last open wire around where I live (Gurnee, IL) is coming down. It appears that CP Rail is removing trackside wire and poles again. Their last effort (in 2001, if I remember correctly) removed the line from south of of Deerfield, IL through the middle of Lake Forest, somewhere south of Rt. 60.

A week ago I noticed that the poles had been removed in Pleasant Prairie, WI, from county road ML north, not sure how far north. There is a mixture of H beehives, CD 152, CD 154, and CD 155, and a few HK Porters on this line. I have not seen any CREBs. It's a hard line to pick because there are frequent trains, and a lot of the poles are set in swampy ground.

I will prowl around a bit and see if I can find their dumpster. Stay tuned.

In February of 2006 I took pictures around the Atkinson Road crossing. This is one. I've been known to go out of the way to gander at this line. I'll miss it.

Here's a link to a close-up of a split bolt used in a splice on this line [id=143754130].