BTB Blog

We’re back in the desert and after almost a whole week I finally got a hold of a train powered by other than BNSF engines. I did so at the flyover structure in Victorville, CA. In general, by going over and above the westward trains change to the left side of the line in order to utilize the steeper grade downhill on Cajon pass several miles to the west. In return, trains going uphill use the lower grade track which takes them on the left hand side for…

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to break a little bit with the ongoing “BNSF in the desert” theme, this photo of today features a picture I took some weeks ago while staying in New Orleans, LA. This lovely and beautiful city not only offers the French Quarter, cemeteries and swamps but also is home to one of the oldest, continually operated street car lines. Car 961 travels back to the barn after a long day hauling tourists and locals on the famous green line.

I know, it might get a little bit boring, at lest for the non-trainenthusiasts. Here is another picture of contemporary railroading in the Mojave desert. A solid set of orange and green, six-axle GEs haul a westbound container train out of Crozier Canyon. This location along “historic route 66”  can be found pretty much right in the middle between Seligman, AZ and Kingman, AZ.The area provides a lot of opportunities for rail-fanning, if one does not mind the heat and bumpy backroads.

getting up early mostly gets rewarded- at least when you’re a rail-fan. This interesting trio at the point of a heavy BNSF coal train is only part of the story. Besides a Norfolk Southern and a CSX locomotive, both houndreds of miles away from home, the big part of the hopper cars still is in BN green. In addition the train had some DPU units in front of the last third as well as pushers. I did this shot of the nice consist…

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Two of the many ES44C4 locomotives built by General Electric for BNSF leading a double stack container train into the night east of Gallup, NM. The shadows have reached the bottom of the valley already but the sun still gives the clouds some colored texture. A long day of train watching along the “BNSF Transcon” on New Mexico comes to an end.

Today we go back in time a little bit. On one hand side this is a picture taken earlier on my tour in Kansas City, MO on July 19th 2016. On the other hand we have two SD 40-2s, still in Santa Fe dress, pulling a local through famous Santa Fe junction. These 35 years old units prove that they’re still able to contribute to operations of BNSF. Thanks a lot to John Rus, a local rail-fan I met down…

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PLEASE OPEN THIS POST FOR A SOUND SAMPLE! After riding the Cumbers & Toltec Scenic Railroad the day before it was time to follow the train on its way up to Cumbers pass. The slow speed as well as close proximity of rails and highway 17 make chasing the train a fun trip. Once reaching Los Pinos with the significant water tank the road and track separate. Meanwhile the daily, monsoon season, storm rolled in and it is time to head…

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Rail fans and families enjoy a ride in the open car on a train of the Cumbers & Toltec Scenic Railroad. On its 64 miles ( approx. 103 km) journey from Chama, NM to Antonito, CO the train climbs steep mountain passes, clings to canyon walls and travels across the high desert. On a slow but steady pace, it takes the “classic” D&RGW K36 narrow gauge steam engine #489 about 6 1/2 hrs (2 hr. lunch stop included) to get the consist across the line….

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A San Luis and Rio Grande train catches the last sun rays of the day outside Alamosa, CO. The little regional line is known for its multifarious collection of rolling stock. Earlier in the day I met Amtrak train #5, the westbound California Zephyr, while battling the grade up to Moffat tunnel. The line from Denver up the Front Range is a scenic gem but unfortunately, especially since the general decline in coal shipments, traffic is on a record low- in particular on…

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