As AMTK 77, leading the westbound Zephyr, kicks up some snow with its plow at the grade crossing of Blue Mountain Drive, one of the engineers in the cab offers a friendly wave.
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The bitter cold that has enveloped the Denver area is starting to lift, but a strong wind has moved in. With gusts of 40 MPH, the westbound Zephyr, running about 45 minutes late, approaches the grade crossing at Blue Mountain Drive.
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The Zephyr is running just a couple of minutes late as it passes by Oberon Lake 1, out of sight behind the camera. The train is moving at track speed, around 45 MPH, which is kicking up plenty of snow from the ground. Indeed, the powder appears to be semi-enveloping the Superliners.
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An inch or so of (unexpected...at least to me) snow fell overnight last night, adding to the nice blanket covering the city. The temperatures are also the coldest they've been all winter so far, with an overnight low of -8°F (-22°C). Here, as the westbound Zephyr approaches 66th Avenue in Arvada, the temperature has climbed to -2°F (-19°C). Not much of a difference!
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The California Zephyr emerges from the west portal of Tunnel 1. Right after a snow storm, when the ground is still covered in white and the skies are blue, is one of my favor conditions to shoot trains.
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From above Tunnel 1, we see the California Zephyr as it climbs the roughly 2% from the base of Coal Creek Canyon up to the east portal of Tunnel 1. This, of course, is the first of 28 tunnels the train will pass through prior to reaching the Moffat Tunnel. Four inches of fresh snow remains on the ground and in the trees this morning, setting up a perfect winter scene.
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I cannot see much of the tracks from my current vantage point, but I can see just enough to catch the two P42DCs and baggage car as the California Zephyr makes its way west just west of the CO-72 overpass at the base of Coal Creek Canyon.
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The morning Zephyr is moving along at track speed west of Leyden on a frigid January morning. The distance, you can see the surface of Welton Reservoir has half frozen over with ice. The temperature is a chilly 6°F (-14°C) at the moment.
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West of Leyden, the morning Winter Park Express is about 30 minutes late as it kicks up fresh snow. The train encountered an issue with a switch in Denver, causing the delay of getting out of town.
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When it comes to a picture of the Winter Park Express, you simply could not ask for better conditions! An arctic front moved in yesterday, bringing around four inches of snow and below zero temperatures. Today, thanks to the cold weather, the snow is sticking around under clear skies. The Ski Train is approaching the east portal of Tunnel 1 on its trip west.
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In early morning light, Amtrak's Winter Park Express Ski Train is climbing the 2% grade in the snow on the approach to Tunnel 1.
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The Winter Park Express Ski Train rolls by the hotbox detector at MP 22.6, at Blue Mountain, between Eisele (Clay) and Plain. The detector will correctly report 36 axles on the train, and a chilly 0°F.
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AMTK 146 and AMTK 75 have been the power on the Winter Park Express all season long thus far. This morning, AMTK 146 has the duty to lead the train west by snow frozen to pine trees in temperatures that are less than 0°F. The orange bag covering the front coupler will protect it from snow and ice, keeping it clear and allowing the crew to easily run around the train at Fraser.
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The morning Winter Park Express is finally in a scene better representative of its name! Snow covers the ground as well as the trees here at the west end of Eisele (Clay) as the train heads west toward the Winter Park Ski Resort.
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While the engineer works with the PTC Help Desk to resolve a PTC issue, the conductors trek their way through snow in -2°F (-19°C) weather toward the switch at the west end. They'll have to put the switch in hand throw and align it for the main for the train to continue west.
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