As the Zephyr continues to gain altitude, the amount of snow still on the ground is increasing. The Zephyr is just about to enter Tunnel 8, which has a pretty significant bend to the left as you head west. This is the final opportunity for passengers to look out over the Colorado plains to the east. After emerging from Tunnel 8, the train is will in Eldorado Canyon, and the plains will no longer be visible.
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Just outside of the west end of Tunnel 5, in the midst of the lower half of the Tunnel District, the westbound Zephyr is moving along at track speed, the scenery making the popular of the train pretty apparent.
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Rolling through the cut between Tunnels 2 and 3, the westbound Zephyr is right on time as it approaches the east portal of Tunnel 3. There was a light dusting of snow overnight, some of which is still slightly clinging to the trees.
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The west end of Plain is surprisingly cluttered with some poles and a few power lines. But it is also incredibly beautiful as the siding collapses back into the main, the westbound Zephyr rounding the curve toward Tunnel 2.
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At the west switch of Plain, the crew on the head end of the Zephyr just called in "checkpoint Plain", which the conductor on the train acknowledged. Just around the bend in the foreground, the train will disappear into the east portal of Tunnel 2.
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Overnight, there was a light dusting of snow that fell in the Denver-Metro area. This might be the last snow of the 2024-2025 winter season, but that certainly is not guaranteed. The morning Zephyr rolls west on the main at Plain.
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From a railfan "keeping an eye on the rails when I can" perspective, it seems as though UP has been running more trains on the Moffat lately. Note only has there seemingly been an slight uptick in oil train traffic, but I have noticed several coal trains run on the Moffat in the last 10 days as well. Here, an eastbound oil train, with three GEs on the point, is approaching the west end of Leyden.
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An eastbound UP oil train rounds the curve that will take it to a clear (green) signal at the west end of Leyden. If you look closely, you can spot the trio of DPUs that have been cut in to the train, roughly 2/3s of the way back.
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This GP40-2 (now designated as a GP40N after UP did some rebuilding) is no stranger to these rails! It has been roaming on the Moffat off and on for 53 years! It was delivered to Rio Grande as DRGW 3105 in April 1972. Today, it is leading the West Local back toward North Yard with a string of 41 gondolas in tow.
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A former Rio Grande GP40-2 (ex-DRGW 3105), now a UP GP40N, leads the West Local east at the intermediate at MP 9.8 on the way back toward North Yard. These 41 gondolas have been stored in the siding at Leyden for six months! With the local taking them back to town, the siding is finally available again for the dispatcher to use for meets.
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With the West Local airing up, about ready to return to Denver with a string of 41 gondolas that have been stored in the siding of Leyden for six months, the train will have to wait a little bit longer. A westbound UP coal empty charges west on the main track, a freshly painted C44ACM leading the way.
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The engineer on the West Local is hanging out in the cab as the conductor walks back along the train, knocking off hand brakes on a strand of 41 gondolas.
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When I was a kid, I remember seeing "Rail Box" boxcars and "Rail Gon" gondolas. Rail Box boxcars are pretty rare in 2025, but you can definitely still find Rail Gon gondolas. One such example is one of 41 gondolas that have been tied down in the siding at Leyden for the past six months.
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While waiting for the dispatcher to flag the west local onto the siding at Leyden, here is a closeup look at the top of the cab of UP 1358. Note that it was last repainted at North Little Rock (NLR) on October 14, 2021.
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The crew on the West Local is waiting patiently for DS-378 to throw the switch and flag them past a red signal into the siding at Leyden, against a strand of 41 gondolas in the siding.
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