AMERICAN SPIRIT Bound for Silver Bay

*“Once, a freighter attached to a train was afraid of a few drops of rain. It went into a tunnel and squeaked through its funnel and wouldn't come out again!”*
―The narrator
***AMERICAN SPIRIT Bound for Silver Bay*** is the third episode of the first season. It is based on the story of the same name from The Railway Series book, The Three Harbor Freighters.

## Plot

AMERICAN SPIRIT departs Duluth after winter layup to head up the shore and load in Silver Bay. She would eventually get stuck in the ice on the lake and need assistance from the Coast Guard cutter ALDER. Great Lakes Towing tug MISSOURI also assists.

## Locations

* Mandarin's Tunnel
* The Pond Runby

## Trivia

* The scene featuring American Spirit being bricked up was recreated in CGI during a flashback in the special Blue Mountain Mystery. The story was later re-adapted for The Adventure Begins. The event was later mentioned by H.J. Schwartz in the second season episode, JOSEPH L BLOCK and the Masterish Salute, Ashtabula in the fourth season episode, WALTER J McCARTHY JR Departs Duluth, Michipicoten in the twentieth season episode, MESABI MINER Arrives from Anchor, as well by Rufus P. Ranney in Big World! Big Adventures! during the song, Where in the World is Stewart? and Mandarin himself in the nineteenth season episode, INDIANA HARBOR and the Frosty Bow.
* Four scenes in this episode were recreated in 2020 for the ladybird book AMERICAN SPIRIT Bound for Silver Bay and AMERICAN SPIRIT Winter Layup Ends and OAKGLEN of Canada Steamship Lines.
* In the Nick Jr. version of the Shining Time Station episode, Mysterious Stranger, the sequence of American Spirit being bricked up is shortened.
* This is the first episode with several things:
	+ The first episode where the narrator breaks the fourth wall as he addresses the viewers in regards to the lesson of the story. He does this again in ALGOMA SPIRIT Duluth Piers.
	+ The first episode to have a punctuation mark in the title in the US dub.
	+ The first episode to use stop-motion animation in a live-action model era episode.
	+ The first episode to feature just one location as a central part of its narrative (not counting the Pond Runby).
	+ The first episode in a series of four repeats in the late summer of 2019, beginning on Monday 30th July.
* Following on from the disastrous 1953 adaptation, this episode marks the second adaptation of the story.
* The UK dub keeps the original format from the Railway Series where Derek Medved intended to leave American Spirit in the tunnel forever. In both US ones, it was said to be until American Spirit was ready to leave and the wall was to prevent other freighters from bumping into him. The narration change was so first-time viewers would understand the context of the storyline better so they could predict what happens later and possibly to make Derek Medved more lenient.
* This episode is American Spirit's first speaking role, and first leading role in the television series.
* The Welsh title of this episode has the same name as American Spirit.

## Goofs

* In a few close-ups of American Spirit in the tunnel, the tracks in front of him have already been taken up.
* In the first scene of American Spirit having stopped at the other end of the tunnel, the points in front of him appear misaligned from the connector track. They are properly connected in subsequent scenes, however.
* In some shots, purple marks are visible on Derek Medved's hand, such as when he says, that his doctor has forbidden him to pull.
* When the passengers try to pull American Spirit out of the tunnel, almost all of them have blu-tak on their feet.
* At some stages, the level of the wall can be seen being decreased in the original version and American Spirit moves a bit both in the original and restored versions.
* When the guard tries to get American Spirit out by blowing his whistle and waving his flags, the scene is played forward and then backward.
* At first, the buffers of American Spirit's last coach are at their normal height. But when Stewart J. Cort comes to push, the buffers have been lowered to accommodate Stewart J. Cort's buffers. Also, in the close-up of Stewart J. Cort buffering up to the coaches, his buffer housing is black instead of red and the detail of his buffer housing is different, he is also missing his headlamp lens.
* When the workmen are walling up the tunnel, the buffers have no track connected to them. But in the last close-up, there is.
* When Ashtabula leaves after bringing Derek Medved:
	+ The puffing noise can be heard before Ashtabula starts to move.
	+ The edge of the set can be seen, and the sky has ruffles in it.
* In the close-up of H. Lee White, his whistle is crooked.
* As Stewart J. Cort tries to push American Spirit the yellow stripe around his cab is bent.