Railfan Maps and Guides

New Blog!

2010-11-19T08:37:00.000-08:00

I've started a new blog called "Railroaded" which will replace this one. The posts shown here have already been transferred with more to come. This blog will no longer be updated.

URL is http://djcooley.com/blog/

The new blog is powered by WordPress and offers a lot of flexibility in displaying content. It's also a lot easier to use than blogger! For the viewer, it also offers larger images and easy ways to explore the blog and discover stuff you never knew was there.

Hope to see you there! Dave

Rock Island heritage unit in action

2010-10-23T19:56:00.000-07:00

I just ran into a nicely shot video on YouTube by Nick of Joliet, IL. It features the Iowa Interstate's Rock Island heritage unit on an ethanol extra running eastbound from Minooka towards Blue Island, IL. The unit is striking in red and black trimmed with white striping. It's a far cry from the same-old-same-old out here in the land of never-ending BNSF orange and UP armor yellow.

Listen carefully at 02:30 for the engineer's crack about photos of the classy unit being twenty bucks a shot!

While watching, I grabbed my copy of Sonrisa's Illinois Railroad Maps to get better acquainted with the lay of the land. The video takes place on CSX's New Rock subdivision, which fittingly is former Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific trackage. Here's a snippet of the map as it appears on page 23:

I must admit, I have to keep from snickering at 04:12 and 05:54 when Nick describes how the train slows to battle two "hills." I understand that railroad grades are very slight compared to highways and hiking trails, but somehow it doesn't look like much of a struggle when the landscape is so, well, flat. Oh well, I guess I am just spoiled by the likes of the Cascades, Sierras and Tehachapis out West!

Illinois Railroad Maps released!

2010-10-14T21:27:00.000-07:00

Sonrisa Publications is pleased to announce it's newest release: Illinois Railroad Maps.

This handy pocket-sized guide is 92 pages and 4.25 x 11 inches and covers the Class I and shortline railroads operating in Illinois. As in Sonrisa's previous releases, each page covers a separate subdivision and shows the line in relation to major highways. This edition features a durable spiral coil binding that allows the book to be opened flat or folded back to hold a page.

Retail price is $20.00 and soon will be available from dealers or direct from Sonrisa at djcooley.com.

Railfanning the Mojave Sub

2010-10-07T13:58:00.000-07:00

Checking the weather forecast I see it's clear and sunny back home in Washington and rainy and cloudy here in California. It was supposed to clear up this morning, but as you can see, sunrise was hidden behind a couple layers of clouds and fog. That light in the distance is not the sun coming up but the headlight on a northbound at Sandcut.

Conditions were no better anywhere along the line to Tehachapi, and since no trains were in evidence, we kept going to Mojave where we found sunny blue skies. UP 5434 had just come off the hill and was waiting for clearance just outside town. The clouds from the valley have pushed themselves up the Techachapi Mountains to stop just at the edge of the desert.

UP 5434 is waiting for UP 5440's train (with helpers), just ahead.

UP 5440 finally on the move towards Lancaster and Cajon Pass.

As UP 5434 heads out, BNSF 4880 arrives at Mojave Junction from Barstow. We decide to leave the sunshine and follow it up the hill.

BNSF 4880 at the cement plant at Monolith.

We met two southbounds on our way to the Loop, but weren't in position to photograph either of them. We opted for a long wait for BNSF 4880 at Woodford, since we knew it was coming.

Just as we moved back to the car to head back to Bakersfield, BNSF 4880 came to a halt. Guessing that this meant it was meeting a southbound, I headed back to my perch on a set of abandoned water tower footings. A few minutes later, BNSF 991 came around the bend, to polish off the morning's railfanning.

What looks like sunshine is actually just cloudy bright, overexposured a tad to give the trains a little more light under the highway bridge.It rained on us all the way back to Bakersfield, just to make us feel at home.

Railfanning at Fresno, California

2010-10-06T19:50:00.000-07:00

I delivered the corrected proof of the Illinois Railroad Map book to the printer just in time to head to California for my nephew's wedding. On the way we stopped in at Fresno to visit family and managed to squeeze a quick stop in at Calwa Crossing, where BNSF (former Santa Fe) crosses the UP (former Southern Pacific). When we arrived, there just happened to be a long string of locos (led by BNSF 7579)switching their train at the yard.

Also hanging out at Calwa was the plant switcher for Miller Milling.

Finally, we headed up the track to Sunmaid crossing and found the original signal towers still standing, though apparently not for long. A new "erector set" style tower is already taking shape.

Oops! Sorry about this photo! Blogger is refusing to display this photo properly. Everytime I log on it is distorted in a different way!

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps AT THE PRINTERS!

2010-09-27T06:35:00.000-07:00

At last! The book is finished and files have been transmitted to the printer.

This edition will feature a spiral binding which will enable the book to open flat or to be folded back on itself to hold a page. Now, get those spiral school notebooks with the flimsy wire coils out of your mind. This is a nearly indestructible hard plastic coil that will not crush so you can carry it around in your pocket or camera case.

Books should be available for purchase by mid-October through our website at www.djcooley.com.

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-09-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

Canadian National: Centralia and Eldorado Subs.
Chicago Rail Link
Indiana Harbor Belt

Mapping is now complete! All that's left to do is clean up the pages, proof them and create the index, so we are well on our way.

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-09-07T18:59:00.000-07:00

Candian National: Champaign Subdivision
Mapping is nearing completion with only a couple left to do. Next, pages need to be cleaned up, stations indexed, and layout finalized. Then the whole thing needs to be proofed before it goes to the printers. It won't be long now!

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-09-06T10:06:00.000-07:00

Norfolk Southern: Southern-West District

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-09-04T08:46:00.000-07:00

Canadian National: Effingham, St. Louis Subdivisions
Effingham Railroad
Indiana Railroad

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-09-02T22:14:00.000-07:00

Canadian National: Bluford Subdivision
Eastern Illinois Railroad
Joppa & Eastern
P&I Railroad

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-09-01T09:24:00.000-07:00

We are hard at work on the newest title from Sonrisa Publications. Illinois Railroad Maps is expected to release in October 2010. Mapping continues with the completion of these lines:

Canadian National: Gilman Subdivision
Norfolk Southern: Brooklyn District, Madison and Monterey Branches

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-31T15:29:00.000-07:00

CN Peoria Sub
Decatur Junction Railway

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-27T10:13:00.000-07:00

Illinois Midland Railway
Norfolk Southern Kankakee Branch

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-26T10:01:00.000-07:00

Bloomer Shippers Connecting Railroad (Bloomer Line)
Kankakee, Beaverville and Southern Railroad
Toledo, Peoria & Western Railroad

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-24T07:43:00.000-07:00

BNSF Peoria Sub.
Union Pacific: Monterey and Springfield Subs

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-23T11:18:00.000-07:00

Kansas City Southern: Godfrey, Jacksonville, Roodhouse, Springfield
Union Pacific: Pana Subdivision

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-17T15:27:00.000-07:00

Keokuk Junction Railway, BNSF Yates City Subdivision

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-08T08:29:00.000-07:00

CSX Chicago Heights Sub, CN Matteson Sub, UP Villa Grove Sub.

Update: Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-08-02T08:27:00.000-07:00

8/2/10 CSX New Rock/METRA Rock Island, CN Joliet

More pieces to Illinois puzzle

2010-07-16T12:43:00.000-07:00

Two more lines completed - BNSF Chillicothe and CN Chicago. Bit by bit it's coming together!

Progress on Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-07-14T04:27:00.000-07:00

I ran into a bit of a snag which required a major reorganization of the book's layout. Some of the lines required more space than anticipated which meant shifting completed maps to other pages. In the process, I decided that presenting the various lines as they radiate spoke-like out of Chicago and East St. Louis would make the book easier to follow.

Since each page is cross-referenced to adjacent maps, this means updating all completed pages with the new references. In the Chicago area, this amounts to a dozen or so references per page. Needless to say, this is taking a bit of time, but I think the book will be better for it.

I also added a locator map for the Chicago area (at left) to make it easier to pick out the individual railroads.

Update on Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-06-17T21:24:00.000-07:00

Work on Sonrisa Publications newest title continues! Maps completed this week include the following:

DM&E Chicago Line (Sabula, IA to Elgin, IL)
UP Geneva Sub (Clinton, IA to Chicago, IL)
BNSF Brookfield Sub (Galesburg, IL to West Quincy, MO)

Sonrisa Publications at work on Illinois Railroad Maps

2010-06-08T17:25:00.000-07:00

Work continues on the latest in the series of Railroad maps by Sonrisa Publications. The accompanying diagram shows progress to date. The light gray lines represent areas that are under development while the black lines are areas are complete.

The yellow segments are the most recently completed sections, which are CSX's Illinois, St. Louis, Woodland and Danville subdivisions.

Illinois is turning out to be our most ambitious project to date. Each page contains 3 to 4 times the data as previous books due to the high density of rail lines in Illinois. Release is scheduled for 2010 but it's still to early to set a specific date. Watch this blog for further progress reports!

FRA Launches A New Train Safety Tool

2010-03-23T10:29:00.000-07:00

Text of press release for Tuesday, March 23, 2010 (Washington, DC):

New, Innovative Train Simulator Will Improve Research Efforts

Efforts to prevent train accidents caused by human error took a giant leap forward today with the installation of a technologically advanced train simulator, Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Administrator Joseph C. Szabo announced today.

The newly acquired equipment will permit researchers to realistically simulate innumerable conditions and scenarios encountered during railroad operations to help identify safety problems and develop effective solutions. The $1.6 million Cab Technology Integration Laboratory (CTIL) was constructed by Alion Science and Technology headquartered in McLean, Virginia, and will be located at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Volpe National Transportation Systems in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

“Developing new and innovative rail safety technologies is one of the most important and rewarding things we do,” said Administrator Szabo. He added, “It is inspiring to know that this work will ultimately prevent injuries and save lives.”

Among its capabilities, the full-sized locomotive simulator can accurately record crew behavior through the use of video, audio and eye-tracking capabilities at the control and button-pushing level. This allows researchers to carefully observe the actions of train crews, and monitor the corresponding effect of their actions on the simulated locomotive they are operating. Other features include modeling and visualization technologies which are tools to optimize the physical design and configuration of locomotive cabs to enhance crew performance.

Using the simulator as a laboratory, FRA will continue its longstanding research program to analyze the role human factors play in freight and passenger train accidents, injuries and deaths. Specifically, the simulator will be used to evaluate the safety and reliability of new locomotive technology systems, controls and displays prior to their wholesale adoption and use by the railroad industry.

Created to minimize the risk of human errors that may lead to an accident, the FRA’s Human Systems Integration (HSI) research and development program is focused on the interface between employees and railroad equipment and infrastructure. The CTIL is intended to serve as a resource for technical collaboration between government, industry, academia, and others to improve train crew decision-making and performance during routine railroad operations.

Federal Railroad Administration Initiates Trespass Prevention Study in South Florida

2010-02-17T15:10:00.000-08:00

Text of 2/17/10 press release from the FRA:

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced today that the City of West Palm Beach, FL and the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA), among other partners, will participate in the Trespass Prevention Research Study, a program designed to identify and review trespass laws and mitigation strategies. The goal is to successfully reduce trespassing incidents and fatalities.

The SFRTA area experienced ten fatalities due to illegal trespassing in the first eight months of 2008, half of which occurred in the West Palm Beach area. Research done by FRA in the region will help the agency better understand trespassing issues and assist in the development of national guidance on trespass prevention.

“The Federal Railroad Administration will continue to make railroad safety our highest priority,” said FRA Administrator, Joseph Szabo. “Efforts like this research study have the potential to reduce the number of trespassing injuries and fatalities in a big way.”

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood added, “Transportation safety is DOT’s top strategic priority. Because the human toll and economic cost of transportation accidents are massive, sustaining continuous progress in improving transportation safety is the first objective of all DOT operations.”

The number of railroad trespass fatalities first surpassed the number of fatalities at highway-rail grade crossings in 1997 and continues to be the leading cause of fatalities industry-wide. Today’s study complements other efforts by the Federal Railroad Administration to combat trespassing, such as the 2008 Trespass Demographic Study and FRA’s ongoing partnership with Operation Lifesaver, Inc. to educate the public on the dangers of trespassing.

Source: Federal Railroad Administration Press Room

High-speed rail key to job growth

2009-12-04T14:03:00.000-08:00

A key element in the administration's quest to creat new jobs is building high-speed rail lines funded by $8 billion set aside by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. LaHood says more than thirty rail manufacturers and suppliers, foreign and domestic, have committed to expanding their U.S. operations to meet the demand as states begin to build the new systems.

Demand for high-speed rail outstrips the available funding with grant applications to the federal government totalling $50 billion from 24 states for large projects. Smaller projects total $7 billion for 214 grant requests from 34 states. Projects receiving awards will be announced this winter.

Particpating companies are:

GE Transportation
Wabtec
Columbus Steel Castings
Bombardier
ALSTOM
TALGO
Kawasaki Rail Car
Siemens
Hyundai Rotem USA
Motive Power
National Railway Equipment Company
CAF USA
US Railcar
Nippon Sharyo
Electro-Motive Diesel
Ansaldo STS
Lockheed Martin
Safetran Systems Corporation
Tangent Rail
Amsted Rail
AnsaldoBreda
American Railcar Industries
CXT Tie
Railroad Controls
A&K Railroad Materials
Cleveland Track Material, Inc
New York Air Brake
Plasser American
Simmons Machine Tool
Ellcon-National
Harsco Rail
ORX Railway

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation

Railroads Enjoy Improved Fuel Efficiency

2009-11-19T13:12:00.000-08:00

Press Release today from the Federal Railroad Administration:

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today released a study showing vast improvements in freight rail fuel efficiency over the last two decades, approximately 22 percent between 1990 and 2006.

“While all types of transportation are vital to the distribution of goods across the country, this study shows that utilizing America’s freight rail system can lead to significant fuel savings,” said FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo. “The environmental benefits of these positive changes over the last two decades are enormous. We look forward to working with the freight rail industry to make sure these gains continue.”

Several factors point to the reasons for rail’s fuel efficiency, including the improvement in diesel-electric locomotives, the increased use of double stack trains, track and signal improvements, and longer trains.

The complete study can be found at:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/Downloads/Comparative_Evaluation_Rail_Truck_Fuel_Efficiency.pdf

BNSF to abandon Prairie Line in Tacoma

2009-10-22T09:05:00.000-07:00

October 1, 2009 BNSF has filed to abandon the remaining 1.56 miles of the former Northern Pacific Prairie line in downtown Tacoma, Washington. The abandonment extends from MP 0.59 at the BNSF Seattle Sub. main line to MP 2.15. The southern segment of this line is intact and is operated by Tacoma Rail (TMRW).

Source: Surface Transportation Board

UP to sell Sikeston Line

2009-10-21T22:53:00.000-07:00

Sept. 29, 2009 The Union Pacific has agreed to sell the former Missouri Pacific Sikeston Line in southeastern Missouri to the Mississippi Central Railroad (MCSI). The track purchase extends from MP 196.7 west of Essex to MP 216.27 east of Miner for a total of 19.57 miles. This line had been proposed for abandonment prior to the announcement of the sale.

Source: Surface Transportation Board

Coal loads at East Auburn?

2009-07-03T15:47:00.000-07:00

This train at East Auburn, Washington, caught my eye because it contained coal hoppers. Now, empty coal trains on the Stampede Sub used to be a common sight heading east back to the Spring Creek Mine in Montana from the power plant in Centralia. But we haven't seen that movement for several years.

The next thing that caught my attention was the fact that these were LOADS - heading east! But, wait - it stops and then moves westward, then stops again. In all likelihood this is the regular coal movement to Canada on the Seattle Sub that has been moved up the wye to get it out of the way of the evening Sounders. I grabbed my camera and walked over to get a shot of the power.

I notice that new ribbon rail is lying next to the main line. It's hard to believe that the rail on the main is 58 years old, dating back to 1951. Even more incredible, some of the jointed rail in the siding is about 100 years old!

The next thing I notice is that the power is nowhere in sight and that the train has been cut in two to clear the busy crossing at M Street. That explains the long stop. Now I had a much longer walk to reach the power.

I crossed the tracks at M Street just as a crew van arrived and dropped off a crewmember. A few moments later the train began moving east again across M Street to couple with the cars on the other side. My assumption that the power was on the east end of the train turns out to be wrong. Realizing that my chance to photograph some big coal power has now disappeared, I grabbed some quick shots of the coupling move.

A loud crash follows and the setting sun highlights the coal dust that has been flung up into the air. I can only imagine how the "clean coal" folks would react.

Map Quiz No. 1

2009-05-16T20:54:00.001-07:00

Can you identify this location from the clues shown? Railroads are heavy lines; highways are thin lines. This is an important junction with several subdivisions converging on the subject. Try to name each one plus the short line and the abandoned (dashed) railroad.

Map is compiled from the Sonrisa Railroad Map Series. No, I'm not going to tell you which book it's from.

Stampede Inspection Train

2009-05-14T19:18:00.000-07:00

BNSF's Stampede Pass line was out of service for a couple of months after a storm in January washed out tracks near Lester and at the summit tunnel. The line was reopened about a month ago and has seen a small amount of traffic in that time.

Today. an inspection train came off the line at Auburn about 5 PM. It probably had spent the day checking the new work done on the line. At any rate, anything resembling passenger equipment on the Stampede Line always gets the heart pumping and I ran out with camera in hand to find it sitting on the north leg of the wye waiting to head towards Seattle when the Sounders gave them an opportunity.

Consist was BNSF 4770, BNSF 88 Atchison, and BNSF 87 Skagit River with the large rearward viewing window on the back end.

California Northern at Williams

2008-12-06T21:55:00.000-08:00

Despite many years of making long trips on Interstate 5 through California, I had never yet seen the California Northern Railroad in action. This time, however, I spotted a northbound from the freeway sitting at a signal near Williams. We jumped off at a nearby exit, but reached the frontage road just as the train began to move.

A chase ensued and it wasn't difficult getting ahead of it, but finding a suitable place to pull over and get some photos proved to be more of a challenge than anticipated. The low-lying communication wires kept hanging down in front of the train!

It was hard to believe the clear, blue Californian skies in late November after weeks of grey in Seattle. The temperature was unseasonably warm, too, even for California. Overall I was pleased to get these shots and was surprised at how old-fashioned the GP15's were looking. Must be age, I guess. Not theirs, but mine. That California Northern paint scheme still looks great to me and it looks like the railroad has been taking good care of its equipment.

The train's immediate destination appeared to be a grain elevator just north of town, but we needed to get back on the freeway and couldn't stick around to watch the switching. The train's consist was boxcars, a few covered hoppers and a string of reefers. Not real long but respectable for a small outfit working a line the big boys had given up on years before.

Westbound grain on Stampede

2008-11-18T06:52:00.000-08:00

Since last week I've been seeing some activity that is different from the normal meager fare on the Stampede line. The westbound grain trains have returned! The latest arrived in Auburn at 6:30 this morning complete with midtrain DPU's.

There is plenty of grain traffic over Stampede but usually it consists of empties moving east. In fact, the typical flow of all traffic (grain and otherwise) is about 3:1 eastbounds to westbounds. The new westbounds seem to be on a daily schedule and is a departure from BNSF's normal practice of sending grain down the Columbia River.

This change in operation most recently ocurred last spring when track maintenance on the Fallbridge Sub detoured the westbound grain traffic over Stampede. At that time, helper crews worked out of Ellensburg and would bring a set of 4 locomotives (Dash 9's or better) to Easton where they would push westbounds over the hill to Lester. At Lester, the helpers would cut off and return to Easton. Sometimes they might even have more than one train a day to assist.

Reports indicate that the helpers have returned to Easton, since these trains won't make it over the hill by themselves. Stay tuned and let me know if you hear anything.

Stampede Pass Snow

2008-11-06T07:46:00.000-08:00

First snow of the season is falling at Stampede Pass and Easton, though according to the National Weather Service it should be turning to rain later today and continued rain for the next several days. Travel to the west side of the pass may be over soon for this year as the road is not maintained in the winter. Lester, which is much lower in elevation than the pass, is forecasted for rain. And more rain. It's what keeps Western Washington green.

You can check on the winter's snowfall by visiting the Stampede Pass weather station on the web:

http://www3.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/nwcc/sntl-data0000.jsp?site=788&days=7&state=washington

East Auburn, Washington (BNSF)

2008-10-19T15:06:00.000-07:00

East Auburn is situated at MP 102, on the western end of BNSF's Stampede Pass Subdivision in Auburn, Washington. This was originally on Northern Pacific's transcontinental line from St. Paul to Tacoma and Seattle. East Auburn served as a transfer point for the North Coast Limited for passengers to and from Tacoma and was a major mail handling stop. It once sported sidings, platforms, umbrella sheds and a small station but little evidence of any of this remains today, save one little-used siding with rusty 100-year-old rail.

The former station site road access on K Street SE provides a good vantage spot except that it is on the shady side of the tracks. With a telephoto lens, it offers a nice view of the east end of Stampede Wye with it's approach signal. A similar view exists to the east which catches trains emerging from around the curve between M Street and Auburn-Black Diamond Road.

The grade crossings at both M Street and Auburn-Black Diamond Road enable shots from the south side of the tracks when the sun is high enough to clear Highway 18, which is elevated through this area. A disadvantage of M Street is the lack of clearance with the highway which makes it hard to get far enough away from the train to get much of it in your shot. Auburn-Black Diamond Road offers more space but is a dangerous location to hang around due to heavy dump truck traffic from the nearby gravel pit.

Stampede trains are far from frequent, but are worth making a slight detour to catch if you are following trains on either the BNSF's or UP's Seattle Subs. The last place to reasonably catch a Stampede train is at the Green River bridge, which is only a couple of miles from the BNSF Seattle Sub. Trains generally check in with the dispatchers before entering or leaving the Stampede Sub and many put their trains together in Auburn Yard so there's usually plenty of time to get into position for a photograph.

Here's a sampling of trains at East Auburn from the past several days:

Fri. 10/17/08 8:30 AM Westbound baretable, led by an SD40-2
Fri. 10/17/08 5:10 PM Eastbound grain empty

Sat. 10/18/08 9:05 AM BNSF 7611 East grain empty
Sat. 10/18/08 12:45 PM BNSF 6511 East baretable led by ex-Santa Fe SD45-2

Sun. 10/19/08 10:25 AM Eastbound grain empty
Sun. 10/19/08 1:35 PM Westbound manifest
Sun. 10/19/08 2:00 PM Eastbound grain empty

You may ask why, with such a small amount of traffic, do I spend so much time at East Auburn. The answer is I live only a few blocks away and can usually walk over and grab a few shots when I hear the train coming. Otherwise I wouldn't plan to spend much time there except when in the area and a train is heading that way.

Steilacoom / West Tacoma

2008-10-02T12:55:00.000-07:00

Steilacoom lies on BNSF's Seattle Subdivision which extends from Seattle south to Portland. The entire sub is double track and has the traffic to support it. BNSF shares this line with Union Pacific and Amtrak so there always seems to be something moving.

Steilacoom is one of the oldest settlements in Washington State. The railroad station is still standing but is not open to the public, as it is used by the railroad for non-passenger activities. The ferry dock at the foot of Union Avenue provides for some interesting action when trains and ferries arrive at the same time.

Sunnyside Park on the north side of town is a good base to work from with parking (for a $5 fee when I last checked), restrooms, picnicking and a beach. West Tacoma and the Chambers Creek drawbridge can be reached on foot via the beach during low tide.

A wide variety of traffic travels the Seattle Sub. Amtrak runs several trains with both Superliner and Talgo equipment. Both BNSF and Union Pacific run Seattle's daily garbage trains, loads southbound and empties northbound. Grain trains, double stacks and manifests fill out the parade.

Photos from my recent visit can be found on my website at

Steilacoom, Washington

Until next time,
Dave

Stampede Sightings 9/23 & 9/24

2008-09-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

There hasn't been much traffic on Stampede of late. That's not good for the railfan but it is nice for those of us living in East Auburn near the tracks. I haven't been roused at 2 AM by empty grain cars slamming together during a switching move for some time now.

That said, there has been traffic in the evenings, so maybe something is happening somewhere on the line during the daytime. There was a long string of ballast hoppers in Auburn Yard last night so there might be track work going on. Here's a brief list of a few trains I've seen this week. Sorry about not getting all the engine numbers. I'll have to prune the apple tree to restore my view of the tracks!

Tues. 9/23/08 5:30 PM Eastbound grain empty lead by a 7500-series loco.
Tues. 9/23/08 6:45 PM Westbound manifest

Wed. 9/24/08 4:40 PM Eastbound grain empty with Soo Line unit in consist
Wed. 9/24/08 7:00 PM Eastbound grain empty preparing to leave Auburn Yard. Led by BNSF 857 and 836 in fresh paint.

Feel free to add your sightings to this post using the comments feature.

Until next time, Dave

Stampede Pass Sept. 19, 2008

2008-09-22T12:23:00.000-07:00

Beautiful weather, magnificent scenery, lots of time to devote to railfanning, but alas - no trains! I crossed the pass about 9AM. I had hoped to arrive earlier but morning traffic on Hwy 18 was backed up from Tiger Summit to I-90. The view heading down to Lester was spectacular, with the clouds creeping up from the valley to Tunnel 4.

I had heard about the new gate on FR54 and it is really there, just 1/4 mile or so beyond the fork to the viaduct. No driving from here, says the sign. No bicycling either. Just foot traffic. I hiked the road into Lester as BNSF trucks and others whizzed past, stirring up clouds of choking dust. It's about 2 miles to the wye. Not much there except some MOW equipment, so I walked back out.

I ate lunch in view of the viaduct. Good lighting, perfect blue sky, no train. I sat there pondering if the large birds circling over the viaduct had any significance. I drove back to Lizard Lake along the south road, watching for potential photo spots. I found several, but still no trains. I left about 3:30 when the motorcycle enthusiasts started driving me batty with their constant buzzing about and clouds of dust. I might prefer mosquitoes over them.

On the way out, I took a quick detour up FR41 for the overhead view of Martin. The view is mostly still there, but the trains weren't. It won't be long before the trees finish growing up and block it completely.

Until next trip, Dave