On my last "inspection" of the rails north of Goodspeed (Route 82)...
..the line is cleared and passable to Midway Marina, north of MP 13
..Midway Marina was parking boats on the ROW, but pretty sure this has been stopped, as the Friends has started making their presence known up there
..there is a driveway backfilled over the tracks between the Marina and the high bridge near the "shad shack" along Route 154.
..no stations remaining at Arnolds, Haddam, or Walkeley Hill station sites
..there is a washout at a point near Higganum
..no station remaining at Higganum
Over the years, the FVRR has done tremendous work to make the line passable for high rail vehicles. Things have certainly changed since my first exploration of the line in '94 but there are many obstacles remaining.
And on the south end, trains can operate right to the Amtrak division post at MP 0, at Mill Rock Road West in Old Saybrook. We used to have to call Amtrak's Boston dispatcher if we were going south of the I-95 overpass - I'm guessing this still is the case. During the early 80s, there were regular Saybrook Shuttle trains which made a cross-platform connection at OSB with Amtrak trains. Last year, and again this year, the railroad is running Saybrook Specials at 10AM on the first weekend of each month from May through October. I think these are going all the way to MP 0.
Personally, I'd like to see the expansion of service NORTH of the present steam train stopping point in North Chester (CMX) on the 10AM train, but if you want the extra mileage to Goodspeed, you'll have to take the dinner train. Last I heard, the general consensus was that the ride is long enough as it is and any track usage north of Goodspeed would be relegated to special events only, therefore not a high priority for expansion.
