Photo ID: 110898 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Coal Creek (MP 23) Arvada, CO 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Just east of the bridge over CO-72 at the base of Coal Creek Canyon, three units (elephant-style) make their way through a cut. Clouds are moving in, and the relatively gentle looking clouds seen here will give way to dark storm clouds within an hour or so. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110897 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 1 (MP 23.4, 366 ft) Arvada, CO 40 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A loaded eastbound oil train winds through the S-Curve east of Plain, on the approach to the west portal of Tunnel 1. This is, of course, the final tunnel (when heading east). The train is just a few miles from the open plains. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110894 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS024 (East Plain) Arvada, CO 43 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak At the east end of Plain, the westbound Zephyr is overtaking an empty UP oil train, sitting in the siding. The oil train fit in the siding by less than one car. If there had been one more tank car on the train, it would not have fit! You can see how close the end DPU is to the signal at the east end. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110893 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rocky (7,330ft) Arvada, CO 44 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak Afternoon clouds are starting to roll across the mountains and out onto the Plains. Meanwhile, the Zephyr, cast in shadows, is four hours late as it heads west on the main at Rocky. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110892 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS012 (East Leyden) Arvada, CO 31 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific For a couple of years, UP's schedule for the MGJNY seemed to be such that it often arrived in Denver in pre-dawn hours. Sometimes, on the longer days of the year, it might arrive in early morning light. However, something seems to have shifted a bit as it has become more common for it to show up in the mid-morning to mid-afternoon. Here, the manifest rolls east out of Leyden one minute before 1 o'clock in the afternoon. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110891 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific I was a little bit surprised to find UP 1100, a GP60, on the eastbound MGJNY. Why surprised? Well, I caught the same unit also going east exactly two weeks earlier. Heading east again so soon, makes me suspect that it has some sort of mechanical issue that needs to be sorted out. If that's the case, it is likely headed for North Platte, NE. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110890 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 37 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A little over halfway through Leyden, UP's thrice weekly MGJNY (Manifest, Grand Junction to Denver) is accelerating toward track speed as it passes by the numerous western Arvada neighborhoods, most of which were built in the last 25 years. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110889 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 42 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Can you spot both the trains in this shot? The eastbound UP manifest is pretty obvious. But, less obvious, is the oil train off in the distance, crossing like a thin black stripe across the mountain in the distance. This westbound oil train is at Eisele (Clay) after meeting the manifest at Rocky. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110888 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele to Plain (MP 21.8 to MP 24.0) Arvada, CO 40 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rocky Mountaineer On the climb up the roughly 2% grade toward Tunnel 1, a pair of UP SD70Ms lead ten cars on the Rocky Mountaineer. As we get closer to fall (and fall colors), passenger volumes on the Rocky Mountaineer will continue to increase to enjoy the colorful trip from Denver to Moab (or back). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110887 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Detector (MP 22.6) Arvada, CO 42 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rocky Mountaineer Just west of Blue Mountain Road, the Rocky Mountaineer passes by the hotbox detector at milepost 22.6. This detector will report the number of axles, train speed, and temperature to the crew. In this case, if the detector reports anything other than 52 axles, the crew will have to either inspect the train, or reduce speed until the next detector. However, the detector reliably reads out 52 axles this morning. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110886 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS022 (West Eiesle (Clay)) Arvada, CO 40 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rocky Mountaineer SD70Ms have the reigns on the westbound Rocky Mountaineer this morning, the train running right on time past the green foliage at the west end of Eisele (Clay). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110885 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden to Rocky (MP 13.4 to MP 17.4) Arvada, CO 39 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rocky Mountaineer This season has seen the power on the Rocky Mountaineer consistently inconsistent! Seemingly on a weekly basis, the power has switched from Rocky Mountaineer GP40-3s to UP SD70Ms and back again. On this Wednesday, UP power is on the point again as the train blasts west of Leyden, the Denver skyline in the distance. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110882 Date Shot Photo By Monday, August 12, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rainbow Cut Arvada, CO 54 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak For the first time in a couple of months, a Phase 7 P42DC makes an appearance on the Amtrak. The train is right on time as it approaches rainbow cut, roughly halfway through the siding of Plain. AMTK 167, sporting the Phase 7 scheme, is the first Phase 7 unit we've seen on the Zephyr in a couple of month. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110881 Date Shot Photo By Monday, August 12, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Plain (6,530 ft) Arvada, CO 38 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The westbound Zephyr rolls by the house track that holds a single gondola. Stacks of panel track lie on the ground by the house track as well. The Zephyr will be the final train through here for the next six hours or so, as UP has a work window starting behind Amtrak Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110880 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, August 8, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Blue Mountain Drive (MP 22.43) Arvada, CO 87 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak A UP C44ACM emerges from fog with the westbound Zephyr behind it. One of the two P42DCs developed mechanical issues, necessitating the need for UP 5941 to be added to the train at North Yard. The temperature, currently 54°F (12°C) according the hotbox detector, is a welcome break from weeks of heat that has frequently gotten close to 100°F (38°C) in the afternoons. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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