Upstate NY and SPAAMFAA, August 2017

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On August 4, my 9 year old son and I came down from Canada to meet up with fellow firepics member Eric Fellows (Eric's Fire Pics) and his 10 year old son for a tour of St. Lawrence County, NY, on our way down to the SPAAMFAA muster in Sackets Harbor. I planned this trip to get into some off the beaten path stations, and we were not disappointed.

 

As anyone who attended the SPAAMFAA muster can attest, the weather was not the best, brilliant sunshine for a couple minutes, heavy overcast the next, severe thunderstorms and high winds all played havoc during the weekend. We did the best we could with the weather, so some of the following photos may not be posed in sun, as it had disappeared at various times.

 

We met in the City of Ogdensburg for our first stop. OFD is a career department that runs from a single station in the centre of town.

 

Engine 1 is a 2005 Spartan Diamond/Crimson 1500/750

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Engine 2 is a 1995 Ford F750/E-One 1250/1250

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Engine 3 is a 2014 Spartan Metrostar/Toyne 1500/750

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Quint 1 is a 1994 E\-One Cyclone 1250/270/100 foot 

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Squad 1 is a 2000 Chevrolet 3500 

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Car 2 is a 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe

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Our next stop was Heuvelton, and was our first bust in that no one showed up to meet us. However, TA8, a 2000 Mack CH 5000 gallon  was parked outside.

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Our next stop was in Rensselaer Falls, where Chief Dallas Denny was waiting for us. 

 

One thing I always do is bring a small photo album with several prints of trucks, always posed properly in the sun, and if I have any from that area that we are visiting, I have those in the album. This pays off in huge dividends, as they get an understanding of how we would like to see the trucks posed, etc. The album payed off here, as when Chief Denny looked at it, I had photos of 4 RFFD trucks from about 25 years previous, 2 of which he had never even seen before.  After that, he couldn't do enough for us! He started calling other departments to arrange people for us! Took the kids for a drive around town in the engine, and was absolutely wonderful!

 

Engine 51 is a 1994 Freightliner FL80/Pierce 1250/1000

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Engine 52 is a 2008 Spartan Metrostar/Crimson 1500/1000/30

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Tanker 54 is a 1998 GMC Top Kick/Almonte 2000 gallon

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Ambulance 971 is a 2004 Ford E450/2001 Braun 

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Rescue 87 is a 2003 Chevrolet 3500 

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To be restored, this was parked out front of the station. This will be a future project for the department.

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We then headed over towards Canton, and decided to stop at Morley FD, even though we could not make contact with anyone there. As we pulled into the station, a firefighter followed in and was only too happy to pull the trucks out for us.

 

Engine 29 is a 1987 Pierce Lance 1500/1000

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Engine 32 is a 1996 E\-One Hush 1500/1000

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Engine Tanker 37 was one of the highlights of this trip for me, and is a 1978 Ford L800/Pierce 750/2500. Still has the original gas engine!

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Rescue 35 is a 1992 Ford F250 PP/250 

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Tanker 30 is a 2002 International 7400 2000 gallon

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Tanker 47 is a 1987 Chevrolet C70/Darley 2000 gallon. 

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The next stop was the Town of Canton Fire Department, and as we arrived, the sky was starting to turn ugly, and thunder was starting to happen.

 

Canton Engine 6 is a 2003 American Lafrance Eagle 1500/750