Black Hills Central #104....the BHCR's OTHER engine. The Black Hills Central has several steam locomotives, but as of 2017, only two of them are operable. The primary engine is the Compound Mallet Tanker #110. She's the only one that can handle the line's mid-summer tourist trains. The engine you see here is the back-up. Locomotive 104 is a 2-6-2T Baldwin product that was originally built in 1926 for the Silver Falls Timber Company. It was acquired by the Black Hills Central in 1965, along with a sister engine (#103). The 103 is in storage and primarily used as a parts source to keep the 104 running. Because the 104 can only handle 4 cars on the steep grades of Tin Mill Hill, she's used primarily in the off season, when passenger loads are lighter. She also makes occasional appearances in the summer, when the big 110 is down for monthly inspections and boiler washes. Interestingly, the 104 faces west, unlike the 110, which faces east. That means that if you're lucky enough to see her in service, she'll be running forward westbound, where the grade is uphill most of the way. That would make for some great photographs.
By the way....the loco that is party visible behind #104 is Weyerhauser Timber #108. That's another, big 2-6-6-2T, which is nearly identical to #110. It was recently acquired from the Northwest Railway Museum and is currently undergoing an operating restoration in the Black Hills Central Shops. Sometime in the next couple of years, the Big 110 will have a sister to spell her when she goes down for her 1,472 SDI.
