Photo ID: 113411 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Greenland to Palmer Lake Douglas County, CO 54 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Like the thousands of coal trains over decades before it, another southbound wraps its way through the S-curves just south of "The Sag" on Main 1 on the approach the Palmer Lake and the top of the climb. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113410 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Larkspur, CO Douglas County, CO 43 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF I really liked to look of these two relatively new BNSF GEs right above the largely faded Santa Fe heralds and lettering on the bridge on the south side of Larkspur. The head end of the 120-car coal train is moving toward Greenland down Main 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113409 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Larkspur, CO Douglas County, CO 46 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF These ES44ACHs were both delivered in latter half of 2023 as Tier-4 credit units. the two are crossing over West Fox Farm Road, East Plum Creek, and Spruce Mountain Road on Main 1 on their journey south toward Palmer Lake and beyond. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113408 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Larkspur, CO Douglas County, CO 46 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF There might be no location on the Joint Line as recognizable as the old Santa Fe bridge on the south side of Larkspur! Two shiny ES44ACHs lead a southbound coal train across the bridge, which still sports a (highly faded) Santa Fe herald and lettering. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113407 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tomah Road to Larkspur Douglas County, CO 37 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Exit 173 off of southbound I-25 is visible at the base of the shot, the exit used to get from the interstate to the town of Larkspur, CO. Main 1 follows this exit and the Main 1 continues through the eastern edge of Larkspur on the journey south. Two relatively new ES44ACHs (or ES44AHs) lead this southbound coal. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113406 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tomah Road to Larkspur Douglas County, CO 50 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF This particular spot at MP 41 along Main 1 north of Sedalia is great spot to get a little color in your shots, even at the end of December when most of the deciduous plants have lost their leaves. A southbound coal load is climbing up the 1.4% grade along I-25. Main 1 here is owned by BNSF while Main 2, on the other side of I-25, is owned by Union Pacific. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113405 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Sedalia Douglas County, CO 41 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF It has been an unusually temperate fall this year, with not appreciable snow seen through all of October and November. The first light dusting of snow came just 24 hours earlier along the Front Range. Here, on the final day of November, it is a frigid 17°F and overcast, but no real snow to be found as a southbound coal load comes through Sedalia. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113404 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Louviers to Sedalia Douglas County, CO 58 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Coal production in the United States has been on a steady decline since 2011, with a few exceptions or spikes between 2016 and 2019. Coal production in Wyoming in the Powder River Basin is no exception, with the peak production coming in 2008 when 466 million short tons were mined. By comparison, that number dropped to 191 million short tons in 2024, and is forecasted to drop even further to 185 short tons in 2025. That's rough 40% of the peak production from 2008. Despite the decrease, there are still plenty of coal trains to be found on the Joint Line, with this southbound load making a good case-in-point just north of Sedalia. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113403 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, November 30, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Acequia Douglas County, CO 45 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF With the implementation of the EPA Tier 4 standards in 2015, railroads have all but stopped purchasing new locomotives from EMD (Caterpillar) and GE (Wabtec). The Tier 4 locomotives available from both manufacturers are more expensive and more complicated, which has discouraged railroads from purchasing many. Most of the locomotives ordered new in the last decade have been "Tier 4 credit units". These are Tier 3 units (ES44ACs) that railroads have received from emissions credits. Both of the ES44ACHs (or ES44AHs) on this southbound coal load at Acequia are credit units, delivered in late 2023 and early 2024. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113250 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 19, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed "The Sag" Douglas County, CO 92 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF This southbound coal load is winding its way south on Main 1 through The Sag. With a telephoto lens, you can really see the winding of the track here, about two miles north of Palmer Lake. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113249 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 19, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed "The Sag" Douglas County, CO 86 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A southbound coal load winds south through the S-Curve on Main 1 at "The Sag", a few miles north of Palmer Lake. You can clearly see the bridge abutment from over a century ago when Santa Fe's mainline crossed over Rio Grande mainline. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113248 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 19, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Greenland to Palmer Lake Douglas County, CO 61 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF BNSF typically keeps a "protection" unit on the stub track off of Main 1 just north of Palmer Lake. Southbound coal load typically can just make the climb up the grade from Denver to Palmer Lake with four units. However, if one fails, a rescue unit is needed. BNSF 6035 currently has that job, sitting and waiting on the stub track if or when it is needed. A southbound coal load, with all four of its unit online, pass by on Main 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113242 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 19, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Acequia Douglas County, CO 61 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Just south of Big Lift, a BNSF coal load is pulling up the 1.2% grade on the climb up Palmer Divide. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113241 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 19, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Acequia Douglas County, CO 75 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF An ES44AC and an SD70ACe lead a southbound loaded at the Black Thunder Mine in Wyoming in the Powder River Basin. It is likely headed to a power plant in Texas. The trees are still looking pretty good here Plum Creek south of Chatfield Reservoir. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113240 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 19, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Acequia Douglas County, CO 92 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A southbound BNSF coal load is hard at work on Main 1 at Acequia near Chatfield Reservoir. Pikes Peak is visible in the distance as the train passes by some trees, many of whom have lost their leaves for the year, but a few are still sporting fall colors. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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