It’s hot in Caliente
Picture of the day
It’s hot in Caliente
Railroaders tend to name every location of a line in order to insure proper recognition by crews and therefore support reliable operation. The specific point of Caliente lives up to its name on this Friday in August 2016. At plus 90° Fahrenheit (+32 °C) a set of UP engines lugged the train in tow around a horseshoe curve and, by doing so, turned the direction of travel the opposite way for several miles. This is another trick the engineers of the line across the Tehachapi Mountains pulled out of their sleeve in order to tackle the pass. Besides “The Loop”, Caliente, CA is another hotspot for rail-fans. There is a lot of action within a couple miles of track, the area is relatively easy to access and train “announce” themselves by blowing the horn for grade crossing several miles away.