Photo ID: 114252 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, August 16, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 49.2 to Crossover 55.8 Campbell County, WY 36 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF We are along the stretch of the triple track between South Black Thunder Mine and the Black Thunder Mine. BNSF 3375 is headed west on Main 2 for a mine north of Black Thunder. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114251 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, August 16, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 55.8 to Crossover 49.2 Campbell County, WY 28 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF Not far south (timetable east) of the South Black Thunder mine lead, a westbound BNSF empty meets an eastbound UP load. Some mist hangs low to the ground off in the distance. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114250 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, August 16, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 55.8 to Crossover 49.2 Campbell County, WY 29 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF This westbound BNSF coal empty is on Main 2, running around a sweeping curve on the northeast side of the Antelope Mine. You can see a crane, busily working to extract more "black diamonds". Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114239 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 42.1 to Crossover 33.0 Campbell County, WY 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) Union Pacific West of Reno Junction, a UP coal empty is on Main 2 and headed for the Belle Ayr mine at MP 16.4. It is one of the mines further north on the Orin Sub. It is worth mentioning that while BNSF can access the Orin Sub from the North and South end of the 127-mile sub, UP only accesses from the south end. So all westbound (geographic north) UP coal trains are empty, and all eastbound (geographic south) UP coal trains are loaded. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114238 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Reno Junction Campbell County, WY 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) Union Pacific After several hours of overcast and rainy conditions, the storms have moved east and the sun is shining on a beautiful scene here at Reno Junction. The UP empty is headed toward the Belle Ayr Mine. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114237 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Reno Junction Campbell County, WY 32 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) Union Pacific After some afternoon storms have passed through, a westbound UP coal empty passes under the Black Thunder West Conveyer Belt at Reno Junction, headed toward a mine further north (timetable west). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114236 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed MP 39.9 Campbell County, WY 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF An eastbound BNSF coal empty is slowing toward a red signal ahead on Main 1. Interestingly, the first two hoppers directly behind the lead units are loaded, even though the rest of the train is empty. I have no explanation as to why! Anyway, the train will continue south (timetable east) to the North Antelope mine. A second eastbound empty on Main 1 can be seen behind this train in the distance. That train will go in to Black Thunder for loading. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114235 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 45.7 to Crossover 43.5 Campbell County, WY 32 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF The Black Thunder Mine has expanded further west, and the pit is now a few hundred feet east of the triple track mainline south of Reno Junction. A pair of SD70ACes head to Logan Hill to help a train over that is having issues on the wet rails. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114234 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 43.5 Campbell County, WY 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF A pair of SD70ACes is headed toward Logan Hill on Main 3. In the era of Precision Scheduled Railroading, more and more coal trains run with 2x1 power. A single DPU is not always sufficient to get a loaded train over Logan Hill, so manned helpers come down from Gillette to help. Way off in the distance, a coal train crests the hill on Main 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114233 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed MP 59.7 Campbell County, WY 40 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) Union Pacific Here at MP 59.7, where Main 4 ends on the north side of Logan Hill, the rain has started as a UP coal empty heads west on Main 2. On the intermediate on the signal bridge, you can see a green signal on Main 1 for an eastbound train a few miles out. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114232 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Black Thunder Mine Campbell County, WY 29 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF A loaded BNSF coal train is on one of the tracks that lead to Black Thunder Mine. The train was positioned here by coal mine contractors that operate the trains through the load out. Note the orange cones indicating where the train should be spotted. A BNSF crew will show up to take the train back out onto the main. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114231 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 43.5 Campbell County, WY 29 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF An eastbound empty coal train on Main 2 runs by the Black Thunder mine. It is impressive seeing the mining operations throughout the Powder River Basin. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114230 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 43.5 Campbell County, WY 30 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF One of the interesting things about BNSF coal trains on the Orin Sub is that trains enter and exit from both the north end and south end of the sub. This means that coal loads meet each other and coal empties meet each other. Here, an empty heads east (geographically south) on Main 2 through Reno Junction, headed for a mine further south. The load out, with an impressive conveyor belt reaching it, is the Black Thunder West load out. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114229 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 45.3 Campbell County, WY 33 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) Montana Rail Link, BNSF Nice to come across an MRL SD70ACe working in the Powder River Basin. MRL 4309 was in between two BNSF units. The three units might be serving as manned helpers on Logan Hill. Since the MRL units do have PTC installed, that might explain why it is in the middle of two BNSF units. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 114228 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, August 15, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crossover 45.3 Campbell County, WY 44 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Orin (BNSF) BNSF Three light units head east on Main 3 at Crossover 45.3 east of Reno Junction. BNSF does run manned helpers up Logan Hill for some underpowered trains, but those helper sets are usually two units. Not sure if this is a three-unit helper set, or something else. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

Previous Page     Next Page