Photo ID: 109043 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, April 16, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Cliff (6,900 ft) Gilpin County, CO 397 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Rocky Mountaineer The 10-car westbound Rocky Mountaineer crosses CO-72 on the main at Cliff, meeting an eastbound BNSF manifest. The BNSF manifest had asked the dispatcher if it would be possible to meet the Mountaineer further east. However, the dispatcher informed the crew the siding at Crescent is out of service (for reasons not given) and that Plain was "loaded up with maintenance of way equipment". The Mountaineer was at Leyden when the request was made. There was not enough time to make it to Eisele (Clay), so the manifest was stuck here at Cliff for a little over an hour. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109042 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, April 16, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 29 (MP 36.4, 75 ft) Gilpin County, CO 411 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Rocky Mountaineer One of the perks that the Rocky Mountaineer features are the oversized windows and partial windowing on the roof on its cars. These windows offer the same types of views you'd find on Amtrak's sightseer lounge cars. Just one of the many items of added luxury you find on the Mountaineer. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109041 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, April 16, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 29 (MP 36.4, 75 ft) Gilpin County, CO 635 (1 Comment Posted) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Rocky Mountaineer Just west of Tunnel 29, the Rocky Mountaineer crosses the well-known bridge (amongst railfans of the Moffat, anyway) that crosses South Boulder Creek. The train is headed for a clear (green) signal around the bend at the east switch of Cliff. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109040 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, April 16, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 29 (MP 36.4, 75 ft) Gilpin County, CO 487 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Rocky Mountaineer The westbound Rocky Mountaineer: Rockies to the Red Rocks emerges from the shortest tunnel in the Tunnel District, Tunnel 29. The tunnel is only 78 feet long! The trains has been following South Boulder Creek for several miles, and only now is the elevation of the creek getting close to that of the tracks. This is the first revenue run of the Rocky Mountaineer for the 2023 season. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108693 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rollins (8,320 ft) Gilpin County, CO 831 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A look right in to the face of UP 8976, an SD70AH. The SD70AH is nearly identical to an SD70ACe. The only difference is that the "AH" model has an additional 8,000 pounds of weight, allowing it to have slightly better traction. Useful on heavy trains, such as coal trains! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108691 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Moffat Tunnel Gilpin County, CO 808 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific The east end of the Moffat Tunnel is a rather fascinating complex. The tracks enter a man-made structure about 500 feet before they actually enter the mountain. This structure at East Portal is where the equipment to ventilate the tunnel is located. Gigantic fans are turned on and suck fresh air in from the west portal and blow out exhaust here at the east portal. At one point in the past, the fans blew fresh air in from the east portal, blowing the exhaust out the west portal. However, the town of Winter Park was not thrilled with the exhaust being blow out and around the ski resort and town, so the fans were reversed. If you are ever near East Portal when the fans activate, you will definitely hear them. Also visible in this shot is the Moffat Water Tunnel. A tunnel built parallel to the tracks, which brings water from the west slope to the front range, ultimately winding up in Gross Reservoir. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108690 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East Portal (5,750 ft) Gilpin County, CO 769 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The westbound Zephyr comes around the final curve before the Moffat Tunnel alongside the siding and wye at East Portal. The Moffat Tunnel, as you can see, is dead ahead! The 6.2-long tunnel will take the train under the Continental Divide at the highest elevation of any remaining mainline in the United States, roughly 9,200 feet above sea level. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108689 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East of East Portal Gilpin County, CO 852 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak Just east of East Portal, the westbound Zephyr follows along South Boulder Creek and East Portal Road as it continues west toward the Moffat Tunnel. From the days before the Moffat Tunnel, the grade for Rollins Pass is visible on the left side of the frame. The old grade is now a dirt road that people enjoy driving, cycling, ATV-ing, and dirt biking on these days. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108688 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East of East Portal Gilpin County, CO 853 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The westbound Zephyr crosses over East Portal Road just east of the siding of East Portal, about 1 1/2 miles east of the Moffat Tunnel. The Zephyr has a clear signal at the east end of East Portal, and will pick up a little speed as it will head in to the tunnel. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108687 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Tolland Gilpin County, CO 811 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The landscape opens up a bit at (and just west of) Tolland. The westbound Zephyr passes underneath the "shifted load" detector - also sometimes referred to as a "high/wide" detector - just west of Tolland at MP 48. The Zephyr is currently under one of many slow orders, keeping its speed down to about 15 MPH. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108574 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, February 27, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS047 (East Tolland) Gilpin County, CO 1435 (1 Comment Posted) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Ferromex A pair of Ferromex SD70ACes are on the front end of a westbound coal empty at Tolland. The green and red units are likely not use to this high altitude and snowy weather as the train is just a few miles east of the Moffat Tunnel. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108573 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, February 27, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS047 (East Tolland) Gilpin County, CO 1121 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A westbound BNSF coal empty knocks down a clear signal at the east end of Tolland as it charges west in the snow, a few miles east of the Moffat Tunnel. This would end up being the one and only train that ran on the Moffat during daylight hours on this chilly Saturday! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108432 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, August 2, 2020 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 29 (MP 36.4, 75 ft) Gilpin County, CO 1286 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The engineers in the lead P42DC cross over South Boulder Creek and now have a clear view of the green signal at the east end of Cliff. Passengers on the seven car (well, seven Superliner car) Zephyr have a brief flash of dark as they quickly move in and out of Tunnel 29. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108431 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, August 2, 2020 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 29 (MP 36.4, 75 ft) Gilpin County, CO 1049 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The shortest tunnel on the east slope of the divide is Tunnel 29. It is only 78 feet long, an the Zephyr is just about to quickly pop in to and out of the tunnel. Toward the left side of the frame, you can see rock that is quite a bit more red than the rest. this was once the location of Tunnel 28, which was daylighted (blown up, essentially) many, many decades ago due to frequent cave-ins. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108430 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, August 2, 2020 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 27 (MP 36.4, 650 ft) Gilpin County, CO 1083 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak Just outside the west portal of Tunnel 27, the tracks and South Boulder Creek are just about at the same level. Looking straight down on the westbound Zephyr, it is cool to watch the train snake along the tracks alongside the river amidst the pine trees. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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