Peak Diversity on the Union Pacific
Can you think of a 5-year interval, on any railroad, that offered more diverse motive power than 1955 to 1959 on the Union Pacific?
I can’t either.
Here’s a collection of images illustrating this amazing half-decade on the Union Pacific. (Click on any image for a larger image.)
The Age of Steam was in twilight, but you could still find steam locomotives of all sizes on the Union Pacific, especially the east end of the system.
UP 2-8-0 430, a 1900 vintage Baldwin product, works a local in Spaulding, NE on Oct. 5, 1957
UP 2250, a 1914 Lima Mikado, is working in Council Bluffs in this 1956 view.
Union Pacific Northern 830 hustles an eastbound freight near North Platte, NE in early 1958.
Challenger 3959 has cut off its train and heads to the Cheyenne roundhouse in March 1956.
Big Boy 4022 idles near the Cheyenne coal dock in September, 1958
Union Pacific’s unique gas-turbine fleet was 55 units strong in the late 1950’s, operating between Council Bluffs and Ogden.
Two-year-old Veranda gas-turbine 66 is serviced in Council Bluffs in 1956
Gas-turbine #1 awaits assignment in Cheyenne in August, 1959.
You could still catch doodlebugs in secondary passenger service until late 1958.
Brill Motor Car M-69 and a motor car trailer car shown on a local passenger train in Oregon in 1956
Steam, turbines, doodlebugs. What else was out there on the UP in the latter half of the 1950’s? Oh yes, diesels. Specifically, first-generation diesels in the prime of their careers.
UP and passenger partner, Milwaukee Road, E-units congregate at Denver Union Station in 1956
A spotless A-B-A set of GP’9’s handle an eastbound passenger special across the Santa Ana River in Riverside, CA in 1958 .
EMD F-units were ubiquitous on Union Pacific freight trains. Here F7 1457 and an F7B tag-team a westbound at Topeka, KS in 1957
ALCO power had a strong presence throughout the UP system. 11-year-old S-2 works the Omaha Yard in 1956
A matched quartet of ALCO FA’s hold their train near Cheyenne in March 1959.
The UP’s experimentation wasn’t limited to high-horsepower turbines. UP leased GM’s “concept-train” Aero-Train from November 1956 to September 1957.
UP 1001 pauses at Columbus, NE in December 1956.
I’m not posting images of representative Baldwin or Fairbanks-Morse diesels from the time period in question because I think I’ve proved my point. Peak motive-power diversity on any U.S. railroad during any given half-decade was on the UP between 1955-1959.
Out & About – April 28, 2014
I had no plans to get out today, but that changed about 5 PM when I received an email that Amtrak 145, its Phase III painted heritage P42DC, was on the point of train #1.
The last time this unit came through was nearly 2 years ago. I didn’t do too well with it as it was the trailing unit (Click here to view that post.) and another whack at the piñata was just the ticket.
I originally set up near the Sugar Mill at CP SA025, but I felt that the track would be in shadows by the time that #1 arrived. I opted to head 6 miles east to CP SA019, the west switch at Missouri City, where I could catch the train about 6 minutes earlier, and hopefully in nice light.
My plan almost backfired. About 5 minutes before the train was due, shadows were taking over Main 1, the normal route for westbounds. As I cursed my misfortune, the DS advised #1 that he had to cross them over to main 2 at Ormandy account a tied-down train on main 1. Praise the FSM!
The detector at MP 15.6 announced 36 axles at 7:28 PM. Two minutes later, the westbound Sunset Limited filled my viewfinder.
A quick pivot to my right captures the head end as it approaches the signal at CP SA019.
Right behind #1 was KCS 3907 leading a QKCNL (Quality Kansas City-Nuevo Laredo) train. It came into view 8 minutes after #1, but during that interval, shadows took over. Too bad, because the 2 SD70MAC’s were putting on a show.
The QKCNL typically has a DPU that’s cut-in between the manifest and a block of Schneider intermodal traffic.
A really short outing, but I’ll take what I can get. Especially if I wasn’t expecting to get out at all!
PS – I’ve been meaning to tell you about Chasing Heavy Metal. Michael Matalis lives along the BNSF Racetrack and shares his adventures (and great photography). You really should click here to check out his site.
Before Passenger Trains Were Pariahs
I came across this beautiful 1956 shot of SP PA 6006 receiving some TLC at the West Oakland roundhouse.
I’m struck with the amount of work that’s being put into bathing the unit. It’s apparent that the SP hasn’t thrown in the towel yet on its passenger train service. I wonder if any of these laborers have any inkling about the dramatic changes in store for the SP’s passenger trains?
Not only did the railroads change their attitude about passenger trains. Workplace safety practices have also changed dramatically over the years. What current safety violations do you see taking place in this image?
You Might Be A Foamer
You might be a foamer (and/or have some serious issues) if you roll in this:
The coupler on the front bumper is a nice touch, isn’t it?
Out & About – April 4, 2014
This past Friday was forecast to be overcast and dreary and I, of course, had no plans to get out. But upon looking out the window around 9 AM, I saw that it was actually quite nice. I then implemented Plan B, which consisted of turning on the radio to see what was running in my neck of the woods.
There were several westbound UP trains, but too backlit to worry about. It was about 10:15 AM when the tide of traffic turned and the DS started talking about several eastbounds to run before Amtrak came into the picture. I took that as my cue to hit the road.
The first eastbound was KCSM 4745. I wanted to catch it near MP 19, but it got there before I did, so I jumped ahead to Heacker where I was able to catch KCSM 4745 passing by KCS 4159.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen CN refrigerated containers before.
Once the KCSM 4745 cleared up, I grabbed a roster view of KCS 4159, a 3-month old SD70ACe, just east of the S. Post Oak grade crossing.
I knew there were more eastbounds coming, but I didn’t like the shot here, so I headed back to Missouri City. Within 5 minutes of arriving there, UP 7990 arrived with the ILBAV (intermodal Long Beach – Avondale) in tow.
The mix on this train was classic priority traffic: stacks, racks, and pigs.
UP 5777 was the DPU. I know there’s a good reason for these 20′ K-Line containers to be riding on a chassis in the well car. I just don’t know what it is…
Running on the ILBAV’s blocks was an RBMBT (Rock Beckman, TX to Beaumont,TX) train led by ex-C&NW C44-9 9755.
Amtrak #2 was running 2 blocks behind the rock train, calling out advance approach aspects from Harlem to CP SA 020. Apparently the DS was finally able to get the rock train crossed over at West Junction, because #2 finally called out a clear aspect at CP SA 019.
I opted for a slightly different perspective for #2:
Next up was the KCS 4159 on the ASPLDR-03 (Autos Spring TX to Laredo TX reposition). The DS told them that he was ready for them to pull west from Post Oak. They complied, but as they approached my location, the conductor toned up the dispatcher to advise that they only had 20 minutes left to work.
The dispatcher then asked “Is this the 0830 crew?”
“No, we’re the midnight crew” was the conductor’s reply.
Noticeably annoyed, the dispatcher told them to stop their train off crossings until he could locate the 0830 crew.
A few minutes later, the DS called the ASPLDR to advise that the relief crew was just leaving Englewood, over 3 hours after coming on duty!
By this point the KCS 4159 arrived, stopping just short of the Cravens Road grade crossing.
At this point the DS took back the KCS 4159’s signal at CP SA 019, telling the crew that he was going to run traffic around them until the new crew arrived.
About 20 minutes later, KCS 3916 with the daily QSHNL (Quality Shreveport to Nuevo Laredo) train, overtook the hogged-out ASPLDR.
Both of the units on this train were ex-TFM SD70MAC’s, but the DPU had been re-painted into the Belle colors.
Shortly after the QSHNL cleared up, the crew limo arrived at 12:16 PM with the 0830 San Antonio crew that would take the ASPLDR west.
Once the new crew was aboard, they toned up the DS to advise that they were ready to blast off. The dispatcher’s response was to ask why it took them nearly 4 hours after coming on duty to get to their train.
The conductor said that Crew Express didn’t pick them up at the hotel until 10:30, and the remainder of the delay was printing paperwork at the yard office and travel to the train.
The DS didn’t sound too impressed. He then told the conductor they’d see one east before he could take them.
The eastbound didn’t arrive until 12:53 PM. It was the MLDEW (manifest Laredo-Englewood) with flared SD70M 4763 on the point.
I was surprised to see GMTX 3300, a May 1970 vintage SD38, dead-in-consist. It’s been working on the Gardendale Railroad in South Texas. In its previous lives, it was NS 3809 / CR 6939 / PC 6939. It’s apparently en route to Settegast Mechanical for some work.
A string of 20 or so brand-new oil tank cars were near the rear of the MLDEW, presumably built in Mexico.
As the MLDEW was passing, I relocated about a mile west, to the S. Gessner grade crossing for a few more shots of the ASPLDR.
KCS 4159 approaches the diverging approach aspect at CP SA019.
The ASPLDR had to flag the next 2 signals, so I took that as a sign that I should try to catch it one last time. Actually, I look for any excuse to shoot a fresh Belle.
I went to the east switch of Sugar Land to await its arrival, hoping to get better light and a better background for a better picture.
All in all, not too shabby for an impromptu outing, especially since the forecast called for cloudy skies. I wish the weather folks would be wrong like this more often…
Stupid People Tricks – Deja Vu
That was the lead paragraph from an article in yesterday’s San Antonio Express-News. It’s really not noteworthy when someone manages to get crosswise with a train. People do stupid stuff every day, right?
The only reason I note this particular incident is because it reminded me when I witnessed something just like this one morning nearly 2 years ago.
It was Aug. 14, 2012. I was in Stafford,near MP 20 (UP Glidden sub), to shoot two eastbounds that were running ahead of Amtrak #2.
The first train was UP 7717 on the MKBHO:
As you can see, the light was brutal at MP 20.5 for this first train. I decided to move east about a half-mile believing that the light might be a little better.
The next train was the hottest eastbound around here, the ZLCAT (Expedited LA to Atlanta) with SD70ACe 8517 on the point. As it came into view and I started composing my shot, I was startled to see a guy run out from the brush and lean in toward the north rail. It looked like the guy wanted to get whacked by the train. Holy Crap!
I quickly re-composed to capture what I thought was going to be a brutal, brutal event. Suddenly the guy reaches down to the rail to place a coin on the rail. Whew! I can breathe again!
Image time: 10:35:15 AM
As the guy started to pull away, he suddenly stopped and leaned over the track again! What are you doing????
He grabbed the coin off the railhead, put it in his mouth, and returned it to the railhead.
Image time: 10:35:17
After what seemed like an eternity, he scurried away with the moving train maybe 100 feet away. Apparently it was just another day at the office for the crew – they didn’t whistle once.
Image time: 10:35:21
I’d never tried shooting an eastbound here from the north side of the track. I just didn’t think there was a decent shot to be had here. Now I know there isn’t a shot here!
Image time: 10:35:26
Once the DPU cleared up, Mr. Mensa begins the search for his souvenir. Note his vehicle next to the last pole on the right. (Click to enlarge image)
The rest of the morning was less exciting. I headed east to West Junction (MP 12.4) to be able to catch #2 in better light than Stafford.
I thought that would be it. But I heard that KCS 4614 wasn’t too far behind #2, so I moved west to Heacker to capture it as it diverged onto main 1 for its trip on UP’s Terminal sub through Houston.
I don’t recall if I shut it down after the KCS empty grain train because there wasn’t any more traffic or because it was too hot. Either way, that was it.
I never thought I’d post the images from this summer 2012 morning. But upon reading about the San Antonio incident, as Yogi Berra once said: “It was like Deja Vu all over again”.
Out & About – 3/25/14
To the extent that clear skies have been scarce around here this past winter, I’ve decided that whenever it’s nice, I’ll postpone more important matters (like work) so I can work in some railfanning.
I received good news as I prepared my coffee around 10:00 this morning. Radio chatter suggested at least 4 eastbounds and Amtrak #2 would be coming through the Sugar Land area over the next several hours. Time to hit the road!
The first eastbound was UP 9726, an RDTDP (Rock Dittlinger-Dallerup) train. But the crew was almost dead, and they were instructed to tie their train down in Sugar Land siding. I decided to head that way and use the parked RDTDP as a backdrop for the other eastbounds that were en route.
I was almost there when an unexpected headlight came into view at 10:32 AM. I was just west of the Hwy 6 grade crossing. I was able to pull off the road easily, but I was in a spot with no shots that I was aware of. No matter, I grabbed the camera and figured that I’d conjure one up on the fly.
The headlight belonged to UP 5318 leading the ILBEW-21. As you can see, I wasn’t able to conjure up a decent shot, but what can you really do?
Apparently it was right behind the RDTDP. Once the RDTDP cleared up in Sugar Land siding, the ILBEW started running on green and catching me off-guard.
I drove the 1/2 mile to where the RDTDP was tied down. As I arrived, I was underwhelmed by the lead unit’s appearance. It reminded me of the peeling clear-coat problems had by late 1980’s-early 1990’s automobiles.
So be it. You go with the backdrop you have, not the one you wish you had.
I set up just east of “Prison Road” crossing to await the next eastbound. The MEGEW (Manifest Eagle Pass-Englewood), led by ES44AC 7726, rolled into view at 10:48 AM
BNSF 5234 arrived at 11:02 AM with a long rock train. It’s not common to see BNSF rock trains on the Glidden sub.
The head end as it negotiates a slight curve on the approach to downtown Sugar Land. The old Imperial Sugar mill is in the background.
BNSF C44-9W 4913 drew the DPU duties for the BNSF 5234. Odd that the UP has never seen fit to use DPU’s on their aggregate traffic into Houston. Never mind. I just realized that UP has always assigned some of its oldest power to the Houston area aggregate traffic, none of which is DPU-equipped.
Amtrak #2 came by 10 minutes later, at 11:02 AM. It was going only 30 mph or so account running on approach/approach restricting signals as it followed the BNSF rock train. Relief for #2 was 6 miles away at CP SA019, where double track begins.
I drove east in the hope of getting another shot of #2, but the traffic lights along Hwy 90 didn’t cooperate. I went as far as Stafford before I realized it was a futile endeavor. En route back to Sugar Land, I heard the DS tell LHT 47 (the Sugar Land local) that they had to see 2 more eastbounds before they could come out of Sugar Land yard. He also said the second one was the LHT 44 (eastbound Flatonia local) which had to shove a 20 car set-out by them into Sugar Land yard.
I decided to catch the next train right at MP 24, about a mile east of Sugar Land yard. It was 11:35 AM when yet another rock train appeared, UP 9624 on an RDTMY-24 (Rock Dittlinger-Melendy).
If you look closely in the distance ahead of the lead motor, you’ll notice the slightest of grades, 0.41% actually, between MP 23 and MP 22. (Click on any image for a better view)
I re-located to CP SA025 to await the LHT 47. It arrived at 11:51 AM with UP 6155 on the point. UP 6155 is an ex-SP AC4400CW coal motor, SP 114 specifically. That’s some local power, isn’t it?
It stopped to allow the conductor and switchman to step off to get in position to protect the shove before dragging past me.
Upon clearing the switch, the LHT 44 shoved into the Sugar Land siding. A lead into the yard comes off the siding about 150 yards west of the switch.
Note the LHT 47 waiting for the 44 to get by before resuming switching chores at Nalco Chemical.
The 47’s switchman helps out the 44’s crew by getting the derail back up for them. Otherwise, the 44 would have to stop and wait for their switchman to restore the derail.
Now that the show was over, it was time to head to the bank, after which it was back home and back to work. My bank is only about 5 minutes away. Upon arrival there, I hear the LHT 47 call the dispatcher. Surely, now they’ll get permission to enter the main line and go west to do their work in Rosenberg.
Actually, no. The DS said “you’re not gonna believe this, but I have to run one more eastbound before I can bring you out. Call me after you identify the rear of the BNSF, ummm, make that the CN 5738”
Work can wait, right? I ran in, made the deposits, and got in the car just in time to hear the detector at MP 30.5 announce the next eastbound. I took the quickest route back to the track, north on Hwy 59. I parked right at MP 22, just west of the Hwy 59 overpass.
Within 2-3 minutes, a headlight appeared from the west. At 12:30 PM, CN 5738 / UP 4871 / CSXT 565 arrived with a BNSF loaded oil train.
I knew BNSF is hurting for power, but this is crazy!
Looking west, the tank cars seem to reach infinity…
Looking east, the rear of the train is passing under US 59.
Once the oil train got by, the DS did give the LHT 47 authority to enter the main line and head west to Rosenberg. But he told the LHT 44 that they would have to tie their train down in the Sugar Land yard. There was no way he could get them to Englewood. because he had at least 5 westbounds to run.
Unfortunately, some thick cirrus was rolling in, so I shut it down and headed home. But I’ll take 9 trains, 8 in good light, in 2 hours any day of the week!
Union Pacific Dodges A Bullet
Driving home from a job this afternoon I heard the Glidden sub dispatcher answer an emergency call on the radio. The QEWWC-21 was reporting a derailment of its train. The QEWWC is the daily quality manifest between Houston and West Colton. It’s frequently a key train due to the amount/type of hazmat that it carries. It was a key train today. Right off the bat, the crew reported the poison cars in their train being OK.
The derailment occurred 3/21/2014, about 5 PM, near MP 32 on Union Pacific’s Glidden sub. This would be about a mile east of the Brazos River bridge, between Sugar Land and Rosenberg. Needless to say, had the train continued through the Brazos River bridge with a derailed car, it could have been a major derailment, even potentially disastrous.
Here’s what I’ve learned. UP 6920, the QEWWC-21 was stopped by the hot box detector at MP 30.5. The head end was stopped at MP 32.3.
Upon walking the train, the conductor discovered a derailed DOWX tank car 30 cars from the head end. Fortunately, everything was upright and the train didn’t lose its air. The conductor applied tempilstik to the journals of the derailed truck and reported that it vaporized instantly, signifying an extremely hot journal.
There was talk about pulling the train westward, cutting away from the tank car. They would then pull the east part of the train away with the DPU’s, isolating the derailed car so a boom truck can hi-rail in to affect repairs. But the DS told the crew to not move anything until UP managers arrived.
As I had some free time, I drove out Hwy 90 to see what was going on. This was the scene at 6:44 PM when I arrived.
The DPU’s were stopped just east of the FM 359 grade crossing. It’s the last grade crossing before the Brazos River bridge.
(I’m now making all images 1200 pixels wide. Click on any image for a larger version.)
Looking west from FM 359 toward the derailed car, you can see how the brush becomes very thick. That, along with the curve of the track prevented me from seeing much.
Driving west a bit, I was able to see the head end from the parking lot of a little Mexican restaurant. Like I said, the brush is pretty thick along here.
I drove to the back parking lot of a Goodyear store and was rewarded with these views of the offending tank car. Did I mention the heavy brush along the right of way?
At this point, the decision was made to take the crew to the DPU’s and have them cut away all of the cars east of the derailed car and drag them to Harlem siding.
Here the DPU’s are passing through the detector at MP 30.5. Is there an award for unsung heroes? If so, I nominate this detector.
The conductor protects the point as they enter Harlem siding. The dispatcher did order a limo for the crew so they could go get some dinner.
As I started heading back home, a convoy of vehicles arrived with two sidebooms to clear a path to the scene and lift the tank car so repairs could be made.
Maybe the driver missed the sign, or maybe it doesn’t apply to Union Pacific vendors?
UP managers waiting to get the show on the road…
If you’ve made it this far, here’s the latest info I can share. The train was re-assembled at 10:47 PM. Patch crews galore are deadheading from San Antonio to relieve all of the UP crews that will hog out account of the 6 hour shut-down of this key stretch of main line. A 25mph slow order is in effect between MP 31.35 and MP 31.80.
Southern Pacific Locomotive Alpha & Omega
In browsing through some older Southern Pacific images, I came across two that caught my eye. These two represent the alpha & omega of SP diesel locomotive road numbers.
Alpha would be SP 1, a one-of-a-kind narrow-gauge General Electric locomotive. It was acquired by the SP in 1954 in order to dieselize its 3′ gauge Keeler branch. This branch, between Owenyo and Keeler, CA was the site of SP’s final steam revenue service in 1959, but that’s a different post.
SP “51-tonner” 1 idles at Owenyo, CA in the 1957-1958 time frame.
SP 1 bears a resemblance to the GE 70-tonners that the SP operated elsewhere, but everything is on a smaller scale. Narrow gauge, smaller diesel engine, smaller fuel tank, etc. bring the weight of this unit in at 102,000 lbs. SP 1 was retired by the SP in 1960 when the Keeler branch was abandoned. It was sold, via a dealer, to a mining concern in Mexico.
Omega, the highest numbered diesel locomotive on the SP, was U50 9952.
SP U50 9952 lays over at Taylor Yard in L.A. in June of 1975
It too is a GE product. At 575,500 lbs, it’s nearly 6 times heavier than SP 1.
The range of operation of these 2 locomotives is also at extreme opposites. SP 1 was limited to the 16 mile length of the Keeler Branch, whereas SP 9952 operated between East St. Louis/New Orleans and Los Angeles during its prime.
My alpha and omega metaphor doesn’t quite hold true regarding size and weight though. They are the second smallest, and second biggest, units that the SP ever rostered. The smallest SP units ever were the GE 44-tonners. The largest were the DD35’s. They were 88’5″ long vs. the 83’7″ length of the U50.
Out & About – March 19, 2014
I snuck out after dinner this evening to try my luck with Amtrak #1 as it passed through Sugar Land. In about a month, sunset will be late enough to where I can get some sun on it when it comes through. But for now, I must deal with darkness.
Shooting it after sunset is challenging because I must make constant adjustments, right up to the moment it arrives, because the light level is dropping by the minute.
P42DC 144 leads #1 as it splits the signals at the east switch of Sugar Land at 7:39 PM on 3/19/2014
I really don’t want to know what was being dumped from the 4th car as it passed by me, but it sure did leave a foul stench along the right of way. Note the dimmed headlight in the distant background. It’s the MEGEW, UP 8325, waiting for Amtrak to get by before proceeding eastward to Englewood.
The dispatcher wasn’t able to line the MEGEW out of the siding. At 7:49 PM a job briefing ensued in which the dispatcher tells the crew what the plan will be.
The DS told the crew “After stopping, UP 8325 at CP SA025, has authority to pass signal displaying stop indication, eastward, siding to main”. He also instructed the conductor to hand operate the dual-control switch at CP SA025 and line it siding to main.
Say what you want about the day-glo safety vests, they sure do work good at night!
Finally, at 7:59 PM, the MEGEW was able to get underway and knock out the last 30 or so miles to Englewood.
I’m too much of a traditionalist to forsake sunny sky photography, but this night stuff is fun to capture. I do like how the same old stuff at the same old locations has a completely different feel after dark.
He Ain’t My Brother, He’s Heavy
My high hopes of getting some after-work railfanning in today, 3/18/2014, were dashed when the job ran much longer than expected. No matter though, as I was able to sneak some in before work.
I happened to have the radio on this morning as I was getting ready. With just a few more things to load up, I heard the DS call UP 8841 and say “ILBEW (Intermodal Long Beach-Englewood), I’m ready for you at the east end of Sugar Land”.
Sweet! The ILBEW is 5 miles behind me and has just started pulling toward Houston, I’m headed to Houston, and the weather is perfect! And one more thing: the ILBEW has a brand-new SD70AH on the point!
SD70AH is UP’s designation for its latest order of SD70ACe’s. H stands for “heavy” because these units were spec’d at 428,000 lbs. gross weight versus 420,000 lbs. that’s been the norm. The extra 4 tons, in conjunction with new software, is expected to provide increased tractive effort compared to a non-heavy SD70ACe.
Unlike many of my adventures, there was no “Perils of Pauline” drama today. The drive to Missouri City was smooth and I was set up at MP 18 a good 5 minutes before the ILBEW arrived at 9:04 AM.
Note the SD70AH model designation below the locomotive number.
I really like the lines and texture of the B&W going-away view
Eastbound international container traffic is the ILBEW’s bread and butter.
As the ILBEW was only doing about 30 mph, I decided to jump ahead of it and get another shot of it at West Junction. It came by me at 9:18 AM.
The trailing unit looks pretty sad compared to the 8841.
There were 2 more trains following the ILBEW, plus Amtrak was due in about 90 minutes. None of that mattered because I still had the 10:00 AM work commitment in Houston. But I wasn’t too bitter because the one train I did catch was probably the best of the bunch.
St. Patrick’s Day Surprise
A beautiful day in Houston today, an exceedingly rare commodity this past winter. But I just wasn’t able to break away during the day to capitalize on the nice weather. I did listen to the radio a bit and it didn’t appear that I was missing anything special.
Then about 3:30 this afternoon I learned that NS 1072 ( the Illinois Terminal Heritage unit) had been spotted in Luling, TX at 7:32 AM leading the MKBHO-17 (Manifest Kirby [San Antonio]-Houston). At first I figured the train was by me because Luling is only 128 miles west of Sugar Land, and 8 hours is a long time, but a quick trace revealed otherwise. The MKBHO had only made it to Eagle Lake, 43 miles west of Sugar Land.
The good news was that it wasn’t past me. The bad news is that it’s still 43 miles away and it’s getting late. I decided against driving west to meet the MKBHO because the train would be very back-lit. My plan was to wait-and-see, but I was skeptical because there had been 3 recent westbounds through Sugar Land and there were 2 eastbounds ahead of the MKBHO. With that amount of traffic, it would be at least 2 hours before the MKBHO would reach my area.
So I busied myself with chores and making dinner. Then about 6:15 PM, 2/3 of the way through my ham steak, stuffing, and mixed vegetables, the DS calls NS 1072 for a slow order and to advise that they would see a west man at Sugar Land after which it would be their turn to go in to Houston.
I looked out the window and saw that it was still pretty bright out (thank you DST!). This just might work, so I grabbed a camera and headed to the one spot that I might catch some decent light on an eastbound at sunset.
As I arrived to the Willowbend Drive grade crossing, the crossing gates activated. I bailed out of the car just in time to catch KCS 4045 at 6:44 PM leading empty grain train GMXKRJ. This was the second eastbound I referred to earlier.
I went back to the car to await the MKBHO, confident that sunlight wouldn’t be an issue. I know better than to provoke the sun gods because within 10 minutes some clouds appeared near the horizon and the sun was headed toward them.
Just when I was about to pull defeat from the jaws of victory, the MKBHO’s headlight came into view. I made a few camera adjustments right before NS 1072 East arrived at 7:06 PM.
Even the Union Pacific partakes (albeit with NS power) in St. Patrick’s Day festivities! Who knew?
Before the MKBHO could clear the crossing, the sun dove into the clouds that were near the horizon and that was it for decent light. No matter. For once, I actually came out on the winning end of a close call.
As I was waiting the MKBHO, I heard AMTK 113 announce its departure from the depot at 6:55 PM. Despite the sun being done for the day, I figured it was worth waiting the 15-20 minutes for Amtrak #1 to get to me.
I drove a few miles west to Heacker and set up just west of the signals there. A few minutes later, AMTK 113 came into view at 7:26 PM.
Tomorrow is supposed to be nice as well, but wouldn’t you know it? I have a video job in the morning. Hopefully it will wrap up early enough for me to get a few more shots.
Southwest Rails 