LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — A scenic train ride through Lancaster County on a summer day might appeal to some.
Just ask Josh and Kelly Kite after their visit to Strasburg Railroad on Tuesday.
“We were just getting all the noise and the whole experience was just great,” Kite said.
But ask the engineers in the train cab and you’ll get a different answer.
“You know it’s about 30 degrees hotter up there than it is down here minimum and if you don’t prepare, it doesn’t matter how much you drink during the day, you can’t stay caught up and you’re struggling through your day,” said train conductor Ryan Musser.
Musser spends up to four hours a day in the cab where temperatures sometimes reach more than 100 degrees.
Steam trains, like the one Musser worked on Tuesday, can carry at least six tons of coal. When fed into the engine, temperatures can reach up to 1,500 degrees, maybe even 2,000 degrees when going uphill.
How do conductors like Musser and David Lotfi prepare for the heat?
“You have to start at least the day before, so you have to get plenty of rest, you really need rest, you have to start drinking plenty of water the day before and eating good food,” Lofti said.
Lotfi is the Superintendent of Locomotives at the railroad.
He says clothing is also important while on the job.
“The handkerchief protects my neck so depending on where the sun is I’ll have my neck protected and the clothes I’m wearing are somewhat loose since this is a size bigger than what I normally wear,” Lotfi said.
Dawson Miller has volunteered at the railroad for months and has worked the cab in some steam trains in west Virginia at just 12 years old.
He says the conditions are just part of the experience.
“I think it’s just the hard work that you’re required to do, just the love of being on a steam locomotive or a diesel locomotive, the sounds, the way they move,” Miller said.
Miller has a YouTube channel called Trainfan1001 dedicated to all things train.
The Kites also have a YouTube channel called Josh and Kelly where they post blogs from previous trips.