Sugar Mills in Cuba Part 6

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Apart from Rafael Freyre (635) these mills are rarely visited because steam activity is sparse. As a result what little has been reported from 1997 (nearly all from one pair of visitors) is reproduced in full. Further information on any of these mills would be most welcome.

601 Salvador Rosales Index

Visted 18.2.97 In charge of rail activities here was nicely kept Baldwin 2-8-0 1592. The mill's diesel had gone away for repair. No sign of 1680 which used to be here. 1592 shunted empties at 11.00 before retiring to shed. At 14.30 it was at the LP about 3-4km away on the Santiago side of the mill, near Maceiras. It pulled the fulls onto the main line, running chimney first, then pushed the train back to the mill. having positioned its train there, 1592 ran light engine to the LP just north and hauled more fulls to the mill.

602 Loynaz Hechevarría Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

603 América Libre Index

CRJ 107 reports no steam activity.

604 López Peña Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

605 Los Reynaldos Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

606 Paquito Rosales Index

A 37xxx working with 2 more on shed. There may have been one steam loco behind the shed.

607 Nicaragua Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

608 Cristino Naranjo Index

CRJ 107 reports no steam activity

609 Luis E Carracedo Index

Visited 17.2.97 The 2'6" gauge railway here is not completely closed as per the IRS book. There is some trackage in use within the mill itself, wagons being shunted by a tractor. Near the gate is a small diesel loco, E 4206. There obviously used to be a bigger system here and the trackbed can be clearly seen near the mill.

610 Jesús Menéndez Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

611 Antonio Guiteras Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

612 Francisco Castro Ceruto Index

No railway

613 Costa Rica Index

Visited 19.2.97 Access was refused, but 4-6-0 1671 was visible in the yard, looking well kept and used. Staff stated it is the last working steam loco in Guantanamo province and is used when a diesel is being maintained or at busy times when all four of the mill's LPs are in use. The other steam loco here was OOU in another part of the mill, unfortunately too obscured from view to be identified. Lists show this as 1710, which was seen at mill 101 Abraham Lincoln in Havana province in 1980 - seems a bit odd that it then appears to have found its way so far east, against the trend - and when similar size locos were already spare in the eastern part of Cuba. Has this loco been positively confirmed as being 1710?

614 Argeo Martínez Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

615 Bartolomé Masó Index

Visited 17.2.97 A 37xxx arrived on a full cane train at 11.00. On shed was another 37xxx, 1589 dead, 1590 dead and a steam loco with no number, almost certainly 1757, just lit up. According to other visitors 1589 and 1590 were in steam here in mid-March, presumably for shunting.

616 Juan Manuel Márquez Index

Visited 17.2.97 All diesel worked with standard gauge 34xxx and 37xxx. The workshop beside the loco shed has an interesting relic; a boiler from an Andrew Barclay loco, of which this mill had several examples on 3ft 0in gauge, delivered before World War I. It is understood that one or two were still working in the 1940s. The boiler is the only surviving reminder and was still in use as a stationery boiler in 1987, although it has now been discarded.

617 Honduras Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

618 Perú Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

619 Paraguay Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

620 Arquimedes Colina Index

Visited 17.2.97 Diesel 39022 (the highest 39xxx seen) working, it is lettered for this mill 1675 in steam on shed at 09.00, with 1588 dead. Outside the mill fence was dumped 1384, this loco in camouflage livery. Small 0-4-0 diesel 4167, incorporating steam parts, was working.

621 Antonio Maceo Index

CRJ 107 reports 1586/1681/1756 out of use. 1756 has since been trasnferred to mill 212. A late report says that one of the other locos (not given but it must be 1681 as 1586 was alone here in March) has also been transferred to the Havana area.

622 Argelia Libre Index

Visited 16.2.97 No steam at this all standard gauge dieselised mill, but there are items of considerable interest, particularly for railcar enthusiasts. The mill (access refused) has a half-roundhouse and there is also a workshop, near which are various Brill railcars and old rolling stock. Brills have been working here since the late 1920s and some are still in everyday use; they are single-ended and use the wye at the mill to turn. Even the diesel locos are reasonably interesting, being GE Bo-Bo types in the 27xx series.
Basically the railway system is the old Ferrocarril De Tunas with a route length of 65km and uses the Brill railcars (lettered Argelia Libre) for passenger services from Puerto Manti on the north coast to Victoria de las Tunas on the FCC cross-island main line. The two Brills seen in use had both been rebuilt with a Russian engine and Romanian bogies. Car No. 155 left at 13.00 for Las Tunas from the stone station at Manati, close to the mill, with a full complement of passengers. Car no. 4033 left at 13.30 for the 18km run to Puerto Manati. Manati station and the mill used to have both 3ft 0in and standard gauge, although the former has now all been taken up. Apparently the 3ft 0in gauge goods shed was subjected to a bomb dropped from an aeroplane in the last days of the Batista regime.
A children's park in a housing area has a small vestige of the 3ft 0in gauge in the shape of 2 crude carriages on ex-sugar cane wagons on a small piece of track, while a cab numbered is all that remains of a diesel loco.

623 Julio Antonio Mella Index

No access here, just a 37xxx seen working. The adjacent MINAZ locomotive workshops (dumped diesel 2711 and others) claim there is steam at the mill.

624 Roberto Ramîrez Delgado Index

1253 preserved at the mill. No sign of any other steam locos, which locals said had been cut up recently. Interesting old diesels working, including Whitcomb 0-4-0 4155, 2-4-0 4157 and 0-6-0 4168 which appears to be built on a steam loco frame. Photography near the shed and just outside the mill brought a threat of the police.

625 Dos Rios Index

All diesel. Railcars were of the standard modern, small 'carahata' type.

626 Guatemala Index

Visited 21.2.97 Work being done by 38xxx and 24xx diesels. Four derelict/dumped steam locos near the shed: (1456) 2-6-2T; a loco believed to be a 4-6-0; a big unnumbered 2-8-0 on which repairs had been abandoned; and 1579 last seen in 1994 stored at mill 639 Fernando de Dios. Prior to mill 639, 1579 was at 604 Lopez Pena, but it was originally from here and has 'come home to die'.
Also here are 2 Michigan built steam crane, one of which is useable. The shed foreman claimed that one of the cranes and the 2-6-2T had been built for the 5ft 0in gauge construction railway at the Panama Canal.
Beware of the MININT policemen who may be on the road up to the mill from the main highway and wanted to take your reporters to the town of Mayari for further enquiries into their documentation.

627 José N Figueredo Index

Visited 16.2.97 Between 16.00 and 18.00, 1455 was shunting, while 1676 was visible in steam at the mill, but did not move in two hours. It does no line work according to the staff. On loco, presumed 1677, at the shed under repair. 2 37xxx were working cane and 2 38xxx on Minaz hopper trains. Another visitor reported 1455 shunting here in mid-March.

629 La Demajagua Index

Small 0-6-0 diesel 4165 seen crossing the main road with a permanent way train on this 3ft 0in gauge system. No steam activity reported.

630 Manuel Tames Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

631 Urbano Noris Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

633 Chile Index

The IRS book reports ‘No Steam’.

635 Rafael Freyre Index

Rafael Freyre ranks among the remaining gems of the world today. This is a traditional narrow gauge (2’6") industrial railway operating a delightful fleet of classic American 2-8-0s in an extremely photogenic area. Additional pluses are the occurrence of non-mechanised Lps (cuchos) in many places and ‘real’ cowboys. Although it is remote from all other major steam mills, few visitors resist the temptation to make the trek down the island. Indeed some have been known to spend an entire 2 week vacation on this system. The only downside are that the roads in the area are poor and that it seems to occupy its own little ecosystem which produces more cloud and rain than elsewhere during the sugar season.

There are 3 principal lines in use and locos are usually turned so as to be smokebox first to the mill. One runs north to the port on the coast. The only regular traffic on it seems to be oil tankers (and enthusiasts’ specials with 1). The second line runs past a LP just west of the mill to the north of the village of Fray Benito to Potrerillo to the LP at Purial (with a recently restored southerly branchnear the end). Traditionally this line sees 2 morning trains (hopefully at least one of them steam) when the light is at its best for this part of the system. The climb up the bank from Purial is such that the trains usually come up in 2 parts and there are good photo spots on this climb.

The object of most people’s attention though is the east line into the hills. There are several branches to the south and such are the roads that locos can seemingly vanish into black holes for hours on end. To complicate matters in 1997, new LPs have been built at Barjay village and between Altuna and Progresso. At the far end of the system (Uvila and Latour LPs) there are attractive climbs and hills from which to view them. The LP near Progresso (Princesa) is less photogenic but the nearby Hondura branch from La Vega contains some photographic gems (locos propel in and haul out here giving double the photo opportunities). The climb on from La Vega to Altuna is steeper than it appears and again locos often split their trains in two. There is a branch from here to Jobal. There is a further LP at Luciano and a long branch to Teche LP before the line reaches Barjay - the view from the top of the nearby hill to the west of the village is probably the best on the island. Conventional wisdom says that you should find your train and stick with it - sitting waiting for the ‘Barjay curve’ shot can give you nothing more than a sun tan as 1997 saw at least an average amount of long waits, derailments and breakdowns although unlike 1996 there were few reports of diesels penetrating far on the east line. There is a map in WS 96/6.

1385, 1386, 1388, 1389, 1390 in use
1387 spare
1 (1180) spare for enthusiast specials

636 Enidio Díaz Machado Index

No railway here

637 Renulfo Leyva Index

Visited 17.2.97 1575 shunting near the shed at 10.00, with 1464 dead. Small 0-6-0 diesels 4153 and 4170 also working.

638 El Salvador Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

639 Fernando de Dios Index

The IRS book reports no steam activity.

640 Frank Pais Index

Visited 21.2.97 Zafra due to start on 26.2.97 at this 3ft 0in gauge mill. The large John Fowler steam ploughing engine seen in 1988 had gone. 'Galloping Goose" type railcar 54 looked smart outside the mill. Access to the shed refused, but 1256 was parked by the fence and another steam loco seen, dumped, but not identified. Could not see clearly into the shed so other steam may still exist. Locals say a steam loco is still used for shunting. Older non-standard GE diesels work here. The line is very scenic and crosses the main road towards Mayari several times.

641 Rafael Reyes Index

Only steam now is No. 1, the preserved 0-6-0 - it has 622D57 stamped on the boiler backhead. Other steam said to have gone.

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