Photo ID: 111110 Date Shot Photo By Monday, September 23, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East Portal (5,750 ft) Gilpin County, CO 119 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific This UP coal load is about to cross Tolland Road at the grade crossing near the east switch of East Portal. If you look off in the distance, you can actually see the east portal of the Moffat Tunnel. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111109 Date Shot Photo By Monday, September 23, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East Portal (5,750 ft) Gilpin County, CO 121 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A UP coal load snakes out of the valley that the Moffat Tunnel is located in, following alongside the siding at East Portal on one side and South Boulder Creek on the other side. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111108 Date Shot Photo By Monday, September 23, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East Portal (5,750 ft) Gilpin County, CO 116 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A UP coal load passes by some maintenance of way equipment currently tied down in the house track at East Portal. The coal load has the standard 2x3x1 setup as far as power goes. Dynamic brakes are starting to whine in the valley as the grade downhill grade increases. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111107 Date Shot Photo By Monday, September 23, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Moffat Tunnel (MP 50.2, 6.2 miles) Gilpin County, CO 153 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific An SD70ACe and an AC4400CW lead a loaded coal train out the Moffat Tunnel at the end of September, just as fall colors are hitting their peaks. The coal train loaded at the West Elk mine on the North Fork Branch. There only seems to be about one coal train every few weeks on the Moffat these days, so this was a nice morning surprise. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111106 Date Shot Photo By Monday, September 23, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Moffat Tunnel (MP 50.2, 6.2 miles) Gilpin County, CO 126 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific An eastbound coal load...one of few that run on the Moffat these days...emerges from the tunnel in glorious morning light amidst a sea of fall colors. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111105 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Detector (MP 48.0) Gilpin County, CO 112 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific If you look close, you'll notice a few wires cutting across and near the top of the frame. These wires are part of the high/wide detector at MP 48.0. The detector protects against cars...or more likely anything sticking out from a car...that would not clear a tunnel. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111104 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS048 (West Tolland) Gilpin County, CO 109 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Just west of the west end of Tolland, a UP oil empty makes its way west amongst a sea of fall colors in the last bit of direct sunlight before the sun dips behind the mountains. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111103 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tolland (9,356 ft) Gilpin County, CO 98 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific As the sun approaches the western horizon (well...mountains), the crew of a UP oil empty approaches a clear (green) signal at the west end of Tolland. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111102 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS049 (East East Portal) Gilpin County, CO 141 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak A Phase 7 P42DC, AMTK 187, leads the eastbound California Zephyr out the east end of East Portal amidst a beautiful, vibrant sea of fall colors. The sun managed to peak out from mostly cloudy skies just in time to light the scene to perfection. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111091 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rollins to Tolland (MP 41.2 to MP 45.8) Gilpin County, CO 163 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific The clouds are finally starting to break up this afternoon, with one floating through the scene just west of Rollins. The head end of UP's MGJNY breaks into daylight along South Boulder Creek as it approaches the west end of Rollins. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111090 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS050 (West East Portal) Gilpin County, CO 170 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific The trees around and behind the Moffat Tunnel are at their absolute peak brilliance as an SD70ACe and two GEs lead UP's MGJNY east out of the tunnel. You can see the significant change in grade here at East Portal as the train really starts to head downhill. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111089 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Moffat Tunnel (MP 50.2, 6.2 miles) Gilpin County, CO 158 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific UP's eastbound MGJNY (Manifest, Grand Junction, CO to North Yard, CO) emerges from the east portal of the Moffat Tunnel under mostly cloudy conditions. 1 hour and 40 minutes earlier, I shot a westbound oil train going into the tunnel here. That time...1 hour and 40 minutes...is how long it took for the oil train to get to Tabernash and for the MGJNY to, in turn, reach East Portal. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111088 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Moffat Tunnel (MP 50.2, 6.2 miles) Gilpin County, CO 140 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific The crew on this westbound oil empty is prepping for 12 to 15 minutes of darkness as the train will pass beneath the Continental Divide in the 6.2 mile long tunnel. There is actually a lot of infrastructure here at East Portal, built to ventilate the tunnel from exhaust between trains. The tunnel itself (within the mountain) starts several hundred feet back. On a side note, you can see water spilling out of the Moffat Water Tunnel, transported to the east slope from the Winter Park area. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111087 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East Portal (5,750 ft) Gilpin County, CO 124 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Union Pacific has built two new buildings in the last 15 years up here at East Portal. You can see them both in this picture behind the oil train. They presumably house various maintenance of way equipment, protecting them from the elements...particularly in winter! Today, however, it is overcast and chilly near the Moffat Tunnel along South Boulder Creek. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 111086 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, September 22, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed East Portal (5,750 ft) Gilpin County, CO 180 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Five units lead a westbound oil train on the main at East Portal at an altitude of over 9,000 feet (2,700 meters) above sea level, the Moffat is the highest active mainline of any Class 1 Railroad in the United States. About 15 years ago, UP extended Tolland siding, increasing its length from 5,600 feet to over 9,000 feet. Consequently, the siding at East Portal is seemingly never used for meets these days. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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