Railfanning Wyoming and Montana - 1

Hi, Our first full day of railfanning after chasing 4014 was to be given over to the Wind River Canyon. However, we awoke that morning to a grey day and the weather forecast was not promising. We started our day driving over to the BNSF station in Thermopolis, where we spent the night to see if we could get any information on train movements. Thermopolis is about 10 miles from the north end of the canyon and we planned to photograph there despite the weather.

However, the people we spoke to in Thermopolis, all maintenance crew, professed to have no information. So we headed north to Greybull, WY where we knew there was a yard, all the while keeping a close ear to the radio. We heard nothing. A call to a friend of Jim and Bill who had sources withing BNSF netted the info that nothing was called for Greybull, Casper, WY or Laurel, MT. Therefore, likely nothing through the canyon that day.

When we arrived in Greybull we found the two power sets on the left in the photo above and a third power set out of sight to the left. The train on the right is LAUDEN which arrived while we were poking around town.

Bill did get to talk briefly to a PTI van driver who informed us she had an 11 AM call for a crew which she said was for the LAUDEN. Actually it was for the Crowley Local, which after some switching headed north. We caught the train twice along Highway 26 before the road dead ended and the railroad became inaccessible (above and two below).

The next point where the railroad could be easily accessed was Kane, WY. Looking for a photo location along Road 20 in the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation area we came upon a northbound sitting in a siding awaiting a crew (above and below).

About a third of the way back in the train this wrecked Indonesian Railways EMD GT38ACe sat on a flat car.

Shortly the Crowley Local appeared (above and  two below).

As the local stopped in Kane to switch a bentonite plant just beyond the shot above, with the power out of sight, we continued north.

Montana Limestone Company is located on either side of US 310 in Warren, MT. The power used to load trains consists of a pair of former CN SD50Fs. They were slowly loading cars the afternoon we were there (above and below)

Upon arrival in Laurel, MT, our destination for the day, we immediately spotted a short Montana Rail Link (MRL) train heading west with two SD70ACes up front. As Bill had never photographed MRL SD70ACes we gave chase and caught the train at Park City, Columbus and Springtime, MT (above and two below).

At Springtime the MRL train took the siding for a meet with this BNSF eastbound.

Thanks for looking.

Chase of the Big Boy - Day 3

Hi, May 6 was our third, and final, day photographing UP #4014. Unfortunately the time with 4014 began and ended very early.

The train left Rock Springs, WY at 4:00 AM and arrived at Granger, WY just before 6:30 AM, about 1/2 hour late (above)

Where it stopped for about 45 minutes. The figure on the left holding the train order fork is a former UP employee who had spent four months working at Granger as an operator in the late 1940s. Arrangements had been made to have him fork up orders to the engineer after the train stopped.

After we left Granger and we set up at the point where I80 crosses Leroy Rd in Fort Bridger, WY. First up was an eastbound freight.

An hour after the freight cleared 4014 hove into view a little more than an hour after it was due to end its run for the day in Evanston, WY (above and three below).

After returning to the motel for a late breakfast we headed for Thermopolis, WY.  The only train we found to photograph was this Bighorn Divide & Wyoming GP35.

 

After checking into our motel in Thermopolis we went out to explore. We found this work equipment (above and below). The car on the right was some kind of boom tender. We could not figure out what the car below was used for. Our best guess was some kind of conveyor.

Thanks for looking.

Chase of the Big Boy - Day 2

Hi, We set up for our first shot of the day of 4014 on the approach to an over pass at Creston, WY.

Two eastbound UP freights passed our position while waiting for 4014 (above and two below).

Before 4014 and train passed the Wyoming State Police told everyone to remove their cars from the berm of the road thus effectively forcing us off the bridge approach.

We relocated to Wamsutta, WY where the train made a stop (above and below).

While the train was in Wamsutta we moved further west to Tipton, WY where we shot this eastbound.

Unfortunately, the eastbound did not clear in time for a westbound head on photo of the special.

Our next location was just east of Rock Springs. This eastbound

with a DPU trailing passed

before 4014 and train came west (above and below).

After lunch we photographed a couple of trains at Peru which is the top of the grade west of Green River, WY (above and five below).

Thanks for looking.

Chase of the Big Boy - Day 1

Hi, On May 4th I joined friends Jim and Jay Kleeman, and Bill Kalkman for a trip west to photograph UP #4014 (Big Boy) on its trip from Cheyenne, WY to Ogden, UT. The 4014 trip was part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the completion of the first trans continental railroad.

I met Bill and Jim at BWI for a flight to Denver where we joined up with Jay when he arrived from Chicago. Our ride for the trip was a Chevrolet Tahoe which I really enjoyed driving.

Our first photo location was in Medicine Bow, WY where the special was scheduled to stop at 4:00 PM. It was the first place where we would have good sun. Before the special arrived a manifest freight and a double stack train went east (above and below).

A few minutes before 4:00 PM the special came into view for an on time arrival (above and two below).

While the special spent some time in Medicine Bow we headed west to the bridge where US 30 crosses the tracks. Here we photographed a couple of freights, this one in good sun, and

4014 (above and below).

Our last 4014 photo of the day was on the west side of Sinclair, WY.

We set up on the west end of the yard in Rawlins, WY hoping to get one more photo of 4014. It was not to be, however, as the special spent the night buried in the east end of the yard. While we were there this stack train came through.

Thanks for looking.