News & Current Events

This page shows interesting railroad happenings as well as breaking railroad news.   Check it often as you may learn the location or schedule of some interesting equipment in time to go out and get some great photographs! If you do go photo 'fanning, please share your pictures with and contact News Page Webmaster Wally Weart.

Photo specs: 800 X 600, max of 1024 X 800 72 dpi or ppi is standard for the web. GIF or TIF is preferred as these are considered lossless versus lossy  (A lossy compression (JPG) method is one where compressing data and then decompressing it retrieves data that may well be different from the original). I reduce some pictures to 559 x 380 if I put them side by side.

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Please remember that the photos are copyrighted and neither the pictures or text can be used without permission of the owner.

Walsenburg station and caboose

On our way back from Monte Vista, we did a bit of railfanning in Walsenburg

A "red" D&RGW caboose? maybe this the primer? Needs paint for sure. ©2021 Walter Weart	The Walsenburg station's west side ©2021 Walter Weart
Walsenburg station's east side  ©2021 Susie Weart	The truck loading dock of the Walsenburg freight house  ©2021 Susie Weart
The freight car door. ©2021 Walter Weart

Sugar Junction

On our way home, I saw the sign "Sugar Jct." so Susie shot both pictures. This is the connection with the fabled San Luis Central.  A Google Earth review shows most of the track intact and it appears there is some business. The SLC is owned by  Rail World, Inc., which is controlled by Ed Burkhardt.   ©2021 Susie Weart

Surprise findings at Monte Vista

We were going to look at the Monte Vista passenger when I spotted what I thought was the freight house. Susie suggested a route and because of this, look at what we found.  ©2021 Walter Weart	Directly across from the south side of the  freight house. a D&RGW baggage car, appears to be a reasonably good shape. ©2021 Walter Weart
Beyond the  baggage car is a  RGS coach and short D&RGW caboose. The coach is too far gone but the  caboose could probably be saved. ©2021 Walter Weart	RGS 254?  ©2021 Walter Weart
Your guess is as good as mine. Needs a motor, transmission and on and on ©2021 Walter Weart
A standard gauge flanger on the north side of the station ©2021 Walter Weart Another flanger thtaloks to be in good condition. Note the roller bearing trucks. ©2021 Walter Weart Lost in weeds across the flangers are two narrow  gauge box cars and gondolas. Shame to see these rot away. I'd love one in back yard as a shed by my HOA wouldn't allow it :-(  ©2021 Walter Weart

An Officer Train near East Portal

The Rocky Mountaineer at the Moffat Tunnel

For the September 14 meeting

Amtrak Southwest Chief between Trinidad and Santa Fe ©2021 Bechtold	El Paso  ©2021Bechtold

4014 on the move

Union Pacific 4014 Big Boy passed the miniature train at the fairgrounds leaving Sharon Springs, Kansas, Sunday, September 5, 2021.  The 4014 was on the Limon Subdivision headed for Denver with stops at Kit Carson, Hugo, Deer Trail and Strasburg, Colorado.  Large crowds welcomed the Big Boy across eastern Colorado.   ©2021 Chip	Westbound Union Pacific 4014 Big Boy met eastbound loaded unit grain train from Cheyenne Wells, CO, at the Jim, Colorado, siding September 5, 2021.  The 4014 was on the Limon Subdivision headed for Denver with stops at Kit Carson, Hugo, Deer Trail and Strasburg, Colorado.  Last leg of 4014's 35-day outing was September 7th Denver to Cheyenne, WY. ©2021 Chip

A contrast of motive power

The ADM Shuttle Wagon assigned to Oakley, Kansas was moved temporarily to Monument, Kansas. On September 4 it was switching the grain elevator at Monument. Monument is located 8.7 miles west of Oakley.  ©2021 Larry Dilts	Saturday September 4, 2021, Big Boy passed through Collyer, Kansas on its way to Denver.  ©2021 Larry Dilts
Saturday September 4, 2021, Big Boy crossed Monument Creek trestle west of Monument, Kansas.  ©2021 Larry Dilts

Stored power in Denver?

Fire destroys old D&RGW car shop building

A fire gutted the former Denver & Rio Grande Western RR Burnham Shops coach shop (UP Building #3) once used by the Ski Train at Denver, CO, early 30 August 2021. The property is now owned by the Colorado Department of Transportation as of 1 June 2021. Union Pacific RR closed Burnham Shops 14 February 2016.  ©2021 Chip Coach Shop (Caboose Shop) This building is the oldest remaining structure on the site. Company records list a 1901 construction date, but there is some evidence that the building incorporated an earlier 1881 or 1885 wood-clad Paint Shop inside the north-south wing. The 1901 building is a lofty 1-story industrial building with an L plan, 240 feet on its south elevation, 225 feet on its east elevation, and 20 feet high at the eaves. The building is constructed of load- bearing brick walls and a wood interior post-and-beam roofing system, with regularly spaced tall, narrow, 24- light wood windows on its west and east elevations, large railcar doors on its south elevation (some infilled with concrete blocks), and 3 large modern roll-up railcar doors on the east end of its south elevation (see photo), which were added in the early 1980s. The roof is a shallow-pitched cross-gable clad in composite materials with intermittent vents along the east-west and north-south ridgelines. The roof once included a series of skylights that are filled in but still evident through the framing system visible inside.

Boreas Pass days

New power for the Royal Gorge

The Royal Gorge Route painted recently acquired CRRX 601, SD40-3 ex-Escalante Western 601, and had it run on their train August 23, 2021. On August 24th they pulled it off the train and sent her back to their Cañon City shop. ©2021 Chip	CRRX 603, SD40-3 ex-Escalante Western 603, made some moves past the former Denver & Rio Grande Western RR depot which now serves as the Bank of the San Juans. Cañon City, CO, August 24, 2021. Great to see ‘new’ power on The Royal Gorge Route. ©2021 Chip

RGS 20 on the Cumbres & Toltic

The Rocky Mountaineer

On August 22, Your webmaster decided to get out and do some railfanning. I took 4 pictures of the Rocky Mountaineer at the 80th st. crossing. Sorry for the quality of this shot, sun or train was in the wrong location :-) ©2021 Wally Weart	The leased motors "show off"  the wrap to place the RM logo and name on them. ©2021 Wally Weart
The cars show off the RM paint scheme  ©2021 Wally Weart	As neither of the locomotives have HEP equipment, the RM supplied a power car. ©2021 Wally Weart
Rocky Mountaineer added nose logos to the leased Union Pacific motors. UP 5107 is shown Sunday, August 22, 2021 at UP's 36th Street Yard. ©2021 Chip	Rocky Mountaineer passed the almost completely demolished Interstate 70 viaduct Sunday, August 22, 2021. UP 5107 and 5105 departed UP's 36th Street Yard, Denver. ©2021 Chip (Editor's note: RTD would not "allow" the Rocky Mountaineer to use DUS causing this circuitous route to reach Utah Junction. Why?)

Great Western "dinkies"

August 5, 2021, Ovid, Colorado. GW 0-4-0 dinky was donated to the City of Ovid and is displayed in the city park.  ©2021 Larry Dilts	August 6, 2021, Sterling, Colorado. GW 0-4-0 dinky was donated tothe city and is display in a small park by the water tower.  ©2021 Larry Dilts
August 6, 2021.  One GW 0-4-0 dinky is owned by Western Sugar and is displayed at the Western Sugar plant in Fort Morgan, Colorado.. It came from the Loveland plant and was the last GW Colorado dinky to operate. ©2021 Larry Dilts	Fort Morgan, Colorado. Another GW 0-4-0 dinky is owned by the City of Fort Morgan and is displayed at the Fort Morgan power plant. It was the first Fort Morgan dinky. There was until a few years ago another GW 0-4-0 dinky  displayed in Fort Morgan at the museum/library but has since been moved to Gering, Nebraska for display. Fort Morgan was not able to keep the locomotive in good condition so they disposed of it. It came from the Brighton plant.  ©2021 Larry Dilts

On the Brush sub

Pictures from Nebraska and Colorado

Rail 1320, 1321, 1322, and 1323 were stored at Huntsman, Nebraska, August 6, 2021. They have been stored for several years and are out of service.  ©2021 Larry Dilts	Farmers Elevator Company Chappell, Nebraska, August 6, 2021. They use this GP9 to switch their elevator.©2021 Larry Dilts
Amalgamated Sugar’s trackmobile at Ovid, Colorado, August 6, 2021. Amalgamated Sugar stores sugar at the former GW plant. ©2021 Larry Dilts	UP northbound local past through Sedgwick, Colorado, August 6, 2021. This former UP mainline now only serves a few customers mostly in Sterling. ©2021 Larry Dilts
HERZOG 167 was on a work train on the BNSF at Brush, Colorado, August 6, 2021. ©2021 Larry Dilts

20 on the move

Rio Grande Southern #20 was loaded up on 12 August, and headed for Antonito for a special event.  Along the way, it spent two days on display in Cripple Creek, where it had run from 1899 to 1912.  Images by Dave Schaaf  ©2021

Pictures from Kansas

The Mountaineer on the Moffat sub

The Rocky Mountaineers’ 10-car train was parked next to the Glenwood Springs, CO, depot, August 15, 2021. Passengers  enjoyed the Canadian company’s hospitality on the first leg (Denver to Glenwood Springs, CO) of their two day train ride to the Moab area of Utah. The luxury train will make 56 trips between mid-August 2021 and mid-November 2021. Next year the Rocky Mountaineer plans to begin operations in April 2022. ©2021 Chip

Rocky Mountaineer lettering wrap was applied to the cleaned up Union Pacific 5107 and 5105, SD70M, units leased to the luxury train. The first revenue westbound train was reflected in water at Bond, Colorado, Sunday, August 15, 2021. Train had 10-cars on its UP 36th Street Yard, Denver, to Glenwood Springs, CO, run. ©2021 Chip

PVs on Amtrak

PV's Berlin and Frank Thomson on Amtrak train 5 at Fort Morgan, CO, August 12, 2021.  Train was running 5-hours late account BNSF freight hit someone back east near Chicago 11 August. ©2021 Chip

Private Varnish (PV) Frank Thomson ex-PRR 8423 and sleeping car Berlin were on 4-hour 30-minutes late Amtrak train 5, the California Zephyr, August 12, 2021 at Fort Morgan, CO. Amtrak train 5 was running late account a BNSF train had a pedestrian fatality incident near Galesburg, IL, the previous day. ©2021 Chip PV Berlin was built in 1956 by Pullman-Standard in Lot #6958 to Plan #4198 as Union Pacific 11-DB sleeper PLACID LAKE. Today it carries reporting marks RPCX 2263 - named Berlin sleeper.

4014 on the move.

Lodgepole NE Four photos ©2021Erik Lindgren	Leaving Sidney, NE Four photos ©2021Erik Lindgren
Leaving Julesburg, CO Four photos ©2021Erik Lindgren	East or Ogallala, NE Four photos ©2021Erik Lindgren

Union Pacific's 4014, Alco built 4-8-8-4 Big Boy, began their month-long trip from Cheyenne, Wyoming, August 5, 2021. The huge steam locomotive will visit numerous towns and cities including Kansas City, Missouri, Houston, TX, and New Orleans, Louisiana. ©2021 Chip	Union Pacific's 4014, Alco built 4-8-8-4 Big Boy, stopped at Pine Bluffs, Wyoming, August 5, 2021. The huge steam locomotive ran well and ahead of the first day's schedule making stops at Kimball, NE, and overnight at Sidney, Nebraska, August 5, 2021. ©2021 Chip
Union Pacific's 4014 engineer Ed Dickens ran the massive 4-8-8-4 Big Boy. Special stopped at Pine Bluffs, Wyoming, for service and an inspection August 5, 2021. The month-long trip will visit Denver in September 2021.©2021 Chip	Union Pacific 4014, Alco Big Boy 4-8-8-4, at Sidney, Nebraska, passed by UP 1983 Western Pacific heritage unit on train from Roper Yard, Salt Lake City, Utah, to North Platte, Nebraska. 5 August 2021 - ©2021 Chip

Activity at Limon

After the power was cut off, the locomotives move over to siding for the weekend. ©2021 Limonrail	The Union Pacific tied down the local power for the weekend. > ©2021 Limonrail
G&W was in town with painted and lettered loco along with a leased ex BNSF motor. ©2021 Limonrail

The BNSF fire train in action

The BNSF fire train in Greenville, CA. This photo was published in the Plumas News, an "on line" paper by Ken Donnell, a Greenville resident.

More "friends" from Canada

Southbound Canadian Pacific 8152, AC4400ACM, moved BNSF train Sweet Grass, Montana, to Modesto, CA, 100-car unit grain train down the Joint Line at Monument, CO, 31 July 2021.

A Canadian visitor passes the Olympic Museum in Colorado Springs

Southbound Canadian Pacific 8152 on 100-car loaded grain train passed Pikes Peak and the new pedestrian bridge at Colorado Springs, Colorado, Saturday, 31 July 2021 on BNSF's Pikes Peak Subdivision.  Chip

Who owns this locomotive?

Kansas City Southern leased 50 ex-BNSF Dach9-44CWs and and purchased an additional 50 locomotives. The locomotives are in the BNSF 4700, 4800 and 4900 series. These were returned to the BNSF to repay horsepower hours owed the company. (Editor note: I apologize to the photographer as I cannot credit him as I "lost" the original e-mail. If you  will let me know, I will be pleased to credit you.)

BNSF Heritage locomotive in Denver

Surprised by BNSF 6163 25th BNSF Anniversary DPU on an eastbound lntermodal train Seattle, WA, to Omaha, Nebraska, at Barr, CO, 29 July 2021- ©2021 Chip

Klondike Kate sustains serious mechanical damage during a test run

Klondike Kate #4 was undergoing a test run Friday, July 23, 2021. The wedge holding the crosshead to the piston rod failed. This drove the piston into the cylinder head.. Examination of the photo shows the piston itself at the end of the cylinder and the nut holding the piston rod extending out of the cylinder. Como, Colorado, Saturday, July 24, 2021 image. © 2021 Chip Como Days will be held as planned. Contributions are welcome to help cover the cost of a new wedge and cylinder head! Contributions can be made out to the South Park Rail Society.

Denver, South Park & Pacific Historical Society volunteer looked at bent threaded supports after Friday, July 23rd incident with narrow gauge 2-6-2 Klondike Kate at Como, CO. © 2021 Chip

BNSF fire cars

© 2021 Ben Helsel	© 2021Ben Helsel
	Ben Helsel was in Pueblo when these cars arrived from the Builder in Late March early April this year. I was actually on hand when all 6 cars in this set were fired up for the first time in the yard in Pueblo. The tank cars rebuilt at the Progress Rail Plant on the Wichita Falls Sub in Amarillo TX. The set for Colorado is BNSF 933014-933019. 6 Cars total. It is one of 3 sets on the system. None are assigned east of Colorado. The sets are assigned to Barstow CA, Spokane/Pasco area in WA state and the set in Colorado, which are currently in Denver at the 31st St Shops.  Cars have a capacity of 20,000 Gallons and the Spray Nozzles on them can reach 150-200 Ft.
© 2021 Ben Helsel

UP 1979 on display in Denver

Union Pacific 1979 "WE ARE ONE:" was in Denver and was on display. It was painted to celebrates employee diversity    © 2021David Grothe

A new paint scheme for the ex-WP&Y locomotive

The latest paint scheme for an ex-WP&Y locomotive.

A different location on the Joint Line

On 17 July, 2021 BNSF 9319 is on the rear of a southbound coal train as it passes over the iconic Rio Grande bridge in Monument, CO. © 2021 Chris Paulhamus

PV's on the Moffat Sub

PVs on Amtrak No. 5, left to right Union Pacific, Milwaukee Road Super Dome 53 Cimmerian River Sleeper near Tunnel  5. © 2021 Chip	Private varnish  ex-Pennsylvania Frank Thomson was on Amtrak train 5, the California Zephyr at Denver, Colorado, July 21, 2021.  Rare for this eastern based PV to travel this far West. © 2021 Chip

D&S CATS Tour part 2

On June 26, we rode the only steam powered D&S scheduled trip of the day. The other train was powered by ex WP&Y 107.

This was one of the first runs of 493 after it's conversion to oil. If you look in the background, you can see one of the new diesel locomotives awaiting testing and start of service.  ©2021 Walter Weart	The D&S crew really did a nice job with the conversion but I sure missed the smell of coal smoke. ©2021 Walter Weart
WP&Y 107 awaits tomorrow's call to service. ©2021 Walter Weart	A far cry from I was last here. ©2021 Walter Weart

BNSF Officer on the Raton Pass Line.

BNSF'˜s new CEO Katy Farmer was aboard seven car inspection train that stopped at Lamy, New Mexico, July 14, 2021.  Officials disembarked to fly back to Fort Worth, Texas.  Inspection train continued to Albuquerque, NM.  ©2021 Chip	BNSF'€˜s new CEO Katy Farmer was aboard inspection train from Kansas City, MO, to Albuquerque, NM.  The westbound train spliced the semaphores at Chapelle, NM, July 14, 2021.©2021 Chip

Rocky Mountaineer test run

©2021 Erik Lindgren	©2021 Erik Lindgren

4014 on a test run

Test run July 16, 2021 at Speer, Wyoming blends 2 Overland Route historical pieces together at the Water Tank. Soft overcast light and thunderstorms over Terry Bison Ranch make for a pleasant afternoon photographing Union Pacifica’s Big Boy soon departing on a special tour in the Midwest. ©2021 Erik Lindgren

Eaton Colorado  ©2021 Erik Lindgren	Ed Dickens and crew roll into the warm light of a hot July evening south of Cheyenne on their way to Denver performing a test run.  ©2021 Erik Lindgren
UP's Senior Manager of Heritage Operations and engineer Ed Dickens ran the Big Boy UP 4014 from Cheyenne, WY, to Denver’s 36th Street Yard on July 8, 2021. The Steam Team had a Positive Train Control screen in the cab. ©2021 Chip	UP's Big Boy UP 4014 operated from Cheyenne, WY, to Denver's 36th Street Yard on July 8, 2021. The Steam Team used the        'New Way  ' past the Steam Shop to negotiate the Cheyenne Yard. ©2021 Chip
Union Pacific's 4014 Big Boy first move after COVID-19 pandemic was July 8, 2021 at Cheyenne, WY. UP steam operations were suspended in 2020 by the pandemic. The UP 4014 will leave Cheyenne August 5, 2021 headed east for Sidney, Nebraska. This will kick off a month long trip to Kansas City, Missouri, Houston, Texas, and New Orleans, Louisiana. The steam special will again visit Denver in early September. ©2021 Chip

A test run of the Rocky Mountaineer Moab train

Rocky Mountaineer operated a training trip from Union Pacific's 36th Street Yard, Denver, Colorado, USA, on Friday, 2 July 2021. Train operated over Union Pacific rails to Glenwood Springs, CO, that day. Next day, 3 July, train ran from Glenwood Springs, CO, to Moab, Utah, and returned to Glenwood Springs. Train used UP 5107 and 5105, SD70M units, and handled 11-cars. ©2021 Chip

The San Juan Express on the CATS

On Sunday, .June 27, we rode the San Juan & New Mexico Express between Antonito and Osier. This is the start of a recreation of the original San Juan Express. In addition to the cars on our train, they are restoring a:Pullman sleeping car, a RPO and a Pay Car. The RPO Express car on our train is the concession car and has the wheelchair lift.. The Pullman sleeper was to have been on our train but it had a bearing that was running hot and they did not want to take any chances. The restoration has to be seen to be believed as the cars look like they wer e juist delivered. They even had reproduction Pinstch gas lamp that were period correct. This was the first of what will be several trips over the summer. On Saturday,  June 26, we rode the Durango & Silverton and I'll post some pictures from that trip.

The restoration of T-12 was an incredible piece of work as this engine sat in a park in Colorado Springs since1938. The last time I saw this locomotive it was wrapped with Christmas lights and covered with bird poop. It ran flawlessly and even had the whistle that seems so appropriate for this locomotive. ©2021 Susie Weart
I wanted to take a picture of the firemen side because the extent of the restoration really must be seen to be appreciated. Photographs don't quite do this work justice. ©2021 Walter Weart	As the water capacity on this locomotive is limited we've made frequent water stops and they placed a water car from the Rotary at Lava Loop to make sure that there were sufficient water availability for the course of the trip. ©2021 Walter Weart
Photographs do not do justice to the quality of the restoration of these cars.. As you would expect the bodies were in very poor condition and required significant work to bring them back to their current appearance. I had heard that as much as $750,000 was spent on each car and I don't doubt that as I supervised the $500,000 restoration of Denver Tramway streetcar .04 at that was cosmetic only.   ©2021 Walter Weart	I thought this was a great picture because there were three narrow gauge engines is that were hot. The 489 has just been converted to oil and was still being evaluated before being put in service. ©2021 Walter Weart

KCS power on the UP near Leyden

Standing, hoping, awesome gust front and super dramatic sky and the train an eastbound sand working with EMD SD70ACE 4117 was slow, make that really slow.. after a few minutes then a half an hour the storm was passing just enough and that warm afternoon sunlight from the east was bathing the area through the cool darks and falling rain and hail just in time for this colorful classic to come into view punctuated in a kiss of warm sunlight through the storms of the mountain high meadows east of Big Ten. ©2021 Erik Lindgren

Double headers on the D&S

Southern Pacific 4-6-0 number 18 used as a helper to K-37 number 493 on a 15-car Silverton train. Photographed between Trimble and Hermosa. The 18 was rented for the summer for helper service when one of the three oil burning K engines is getting a boiler wash. June 24, 2021. ©2021Jerry Day	The Silverton train with 15 cars has Southern Pacific 4-6-0 number helping K-37 number 493. Photographed between south of Trimble Lane. June 24, 2021.  ©2021Jerry Day
Double header SP18 and D&S 493 roar across Highway 500 at Hermosa. June 24, 2021. ©2021Jerry Day

Storm damage

On June 19, 2021, a severe windstorm with winds in the 80 to 90mph range passed through north western Kansas damaging many buildings and grain storage bins. On the Kyle Railroad at Breton east of Colby, wind destroyed or damaged a number of grain bins next to the Kyle RR. The Kyle didn’t suffer any damage. Only a month earlier, a tornado passed through Selden 15 miles farther east. ©2021Larry Dilts

An Officer Special

BNSF 7-car officer special with William B Strong theater inspection car passed Prospect Junction , Denver, CO, June 23, 2021.  Train originated at Billings, Montana and ran down BNSF’s Front Range Subdivision that morning.  Special turned East at Denver, Colorado, for run over the Brush line.  Ultimate destination was Topeka, Kansas.  Copyright 2021 Chip

Pictures from eastern Colorado

2 & 3 June 14, 2021 Stratton, Colorado. On the west side of Stratton, Kyle 2128 and 6843 were parked on the mainline with a long eastbound freight. Parked next to the close Stratton depot was B&P 3319 and Utah 5006. Also, the wye at Stratton was removed last year leaving only the wye at Limon in service on the west end of the line. The turntable at Phillipsburg is in place but out of service leaving only the wye at Beloit on the eastern end of the Kyle for turning locomotives. ©2021Larry D. Dilts
June 11, 2021. When the Colorado Pacific rebuilt the Towner line, they abandoned the spur at Galatea. The townsite of Galatea is just a ghost town with a few abandoned homes north of the railroad and some concrete foundations along the abandoned railroad spur.   ©2021 Larry D. Dilts

 

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