KaBar Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 The annual Amory (Mississippi) Railroad Days is scheduled for April 9-13, 2003. Anybody living withing easy driving or Greyhound distance who wants to meet up with some of the most well-known, high milage tramps and hobos in the United States need only arrive there ready to camp. It is definately possible to ride in, but look sharp or you'll miss the get-off. Norfolk Southern has a north-south line that goes through Meridian from New Orleans. In Meridian, catch the Kansas City Southern north to Tupelo, MS, only 24 miles away from Amory, and it's an easy hitch. Obviously, if you are going to try to "ride in" you'd better start real early. Riding freights in Lousy-ana is VERY ILLEGAL, though. BE CAREFUL. The cops there are haters, bigtime. Mississippi, on the other hand, is apparently pretty cool. Who knew? It's SPRINGTIME, and in the South, that often means rain. BRING CAMP GEAR SUITABLE FOR FOUL WEATHER, JUST IN CASE. There's several grocery-store type places, but all motels are likely to already be booked. If you want to camp out, you will be welcome in the jungle. Use common sense---do not break the law during Amory's Railroad Days. Because the local police department is too small to deal with the crowds (like, thousands) they enlist help from County Sheriffs and neighboring communities. Amory is making good bucks from the Railroad Days, and the tramps and hobos add to that (the locals love a circus) but if you get too weird or get loaded, or get rowdy or destructive, you are just asking to get arrested. Don't hit buildings or anything else in Amory during Railroad Days. It's a laid back, sleepy little town that's cool with railriders. Everybody wants to keep it that way. Act up, and even the tramps may call you down, because it will bring heat on the jungle. Loco Larry is the local crumb boss. There are some free feeds, but I don't know the details. Expect to feed yourself totally, and if you get some mulligan or something, it's all good. All normal trainhopping etiquette applies. Mind your manners in town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest railroadjerk Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 do they take kindly to inexperienced youngins? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaBar Posted February 14, 2003 Author Share Posted February 14, 2003 Of Course That's the whole point of something like "Railroad Days," to get young people interested. Not everybody will be, but there are always a few. If you're a newbie, don't feel bad. All those grizzled old hard-bitten railriders were once newbies, too. Just come prepared to take care of yourself, and keep in mind that there are always a few jackasses in every crowd, even a group as sociable as tramps. The anti-social guys usually don't show up at something like Amory Railroad Days, Pennsburg, or Britt. The anti-social tramps just stay isolated and reclusive and rarely go to gatherings. After you've got a few (thousand) miles under your belt, you'll feel like you've got as much right as anybody to show up at a deal like Amory, but you have to start somewhere. Right now is a particularly bad time to be breaking in, though, what with 9/11 security and the Homeland Security Department's intolerant attitude towards tramps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alabama Posted February 15, 2003 Share Posted February 15, 2003 hmmmm...this is pretty close to my neck of the woods, and i know the line to catch to get going up that way...weve heard about this town, and this little festival and might have to get a little group up to check it out...kabar, there are mainlines that run through amory though right?? i was under the impression that there was a yard of some kind up there....i'll check it out on mapquest.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
another loser Posted February 15, 2003 Share Posted February 15, 2003 pretty funny, i have family that lives in amory. considering im an additional 265 miles farther away than i was before, i may not be able to make this. but im gonna try pretty hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaBar Posted February 17, 2003 Author Share Posted February 17, 2003 If you can go, it would be cool It would be cool to see some new, young guys (or girls) attending stuff like Amory. Again, keep in mind, this is a little sleepy Mississippi town. "Entertainment" is going to revolve around stuff like listening to tramp stories, eyeballing tourists eyeballing the trains, playing "catch" with a baseball, maybe some volunteer work details. Stretch washes dishes at the cafe to earn a few "home-cooked" meals. Don't bring dogs unless you have no choice. The dog situation has been a problem in Amory the past couple of years because the tramp dogs are used to running free and the town has a leash law. They allowed the tramps to put the dogs inside a fenced area around a display steam locomotive one year, but Stretch tells me that's probably a thing of the past. If you go, BE COOL. Mind your manners in town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
another loser Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 chances are, if i do get to go, ill only get to go for a day, and MAYBE a night. schedules suck. hope to see you guys there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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