Photo ID: 103191 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 12 (CP DS012) 514 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rio Grande On days when the forecast calls for heavy snow in the mountains, UP will often dispatch a "Snow Bus" train west out of Denver. If roads are impassible and a crew needs to be relieved on a train, the Snow Bus will use the rails to pick up the old crew and replace it with a fresh crew. Here, the Snow Bus at Leyden is led by UP 1989. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103192 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 23 715 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rio Grande A good look at UP's Snow Bus as it makes its way west on the Moffat. A freshly painted bay window caboose is used to shuttle crews via the rails to and from trains that need a crew change in bad weather. UP 1989 (the Rio Grande Heritage Unit) and an SD9043MAC sandwich the caboose, allowing the train to easily move in either direction. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103193 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 38 (CP DS038) 406 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific With UP 1989 running on the point of the Snow Bus, I was hoping to get setup at the west switch of Cliff for a shot of the train heading west. However, slow speeds on snow-packed CO-72 kept me from getting in position in time. Instead, I had to settle for this shot of the train heading away from me along South Boulder Creek. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103194 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 43 (CP DS043) 592 (2 Comments Posted) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rio Grande I was very lucky to be able to get this shot. The Snow Bus was running well ahead of me (hindered by slow speeds on icy roads). However, the switch heater at west Rollins was not working and the switch was out of correspondence. UP 1989 had to stop so the conductor could walk up to the switch and swing/pick the snow out of the switch points, allowing me to grab a couple of nice shots, like this one. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103195 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 43 (CP DS043) 364 (4 Comments Posted) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Ahh, the not-so-glamorous side of railroading! With the switch heater out of order at the west switch of Rollins, the conductor had to use a pick to clear the switch points of snow and ice. After throwing the switch a few times by hand, DS-82 was again able to throw the switch remotely from her desk 500 miles away in Omaha, NE. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103196 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 43 (CP DS043) 410 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rio Grande After getting the switch at west Rollins clear of snow and ice, UP 1989 and crew met an eastbound coal load, seen here taking the siding at Rollins. UP 1989 was originally going to meet the train at Tolland, but a frozen switch at west Rollins changes the location of the meet. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103197 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 49 374 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rio Grande About a quarter of a mile away from the Moffat Tunnel, this Snow Bus has come to a stop on the siding at East Portal. DS-82 has informed the train that they will be meeting at least one (and possibly two) trains here before they will get their change to run through the tunnel. The temperature outside for this shot was a rather brisk 2°F (-17°C)... Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103198 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 49 426 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rio Grande One last shot of UP 1989 leading the westbound Snow Bus, sitting on the siding at East Portal. The train is scheduled to head west to Phippsburg, CO. This will mark the first time the Rio Grande Heritage unit has ever traveled on the Craig Branch. This will mean that the Rio Grande Heritage unit will have finally traveled on all of its namesake major routes, save Tennessee Pass (which no unit has run on in well over 10 years). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 103199 Date Shot Photo By December 6, 2009 Kevin Morgan Rail Location Times Viewed MP 14 328 (1 Comment Posted) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Feeling chilly yet? Behind the clouds, the sun has actually set behind the Colorado Rockies as this eastbound coal load heads east toward Leyden with a clear signal in to town. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.