Photo ID: 112069 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed MP 5 Grand County, UT 180 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Cane Creek (UP) Union Pacific Right around MP 5 on the Cane Creek Subdivision, UP's Potash Local is taking 36 cars down the 38-mile branch to the Potash plant near Moab. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112068 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP RG533 (East Brendel) Grand County, UT 123 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific As the Potash Local passes by the signals at East Brendel, we take note of a billboard along I-70, advertising the popular outdoor tourist destination of Moab, UT. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112067 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Thompson to Brendel Grand County, UT 164 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific For several years, UP has been operating a train on the Cane Creek Sub Monday-Thursday to clean up some radioactive waste. Atlas Minerals operated a uranium mill near Moab between 1956 and 1984. The mill produced 16 million tons of radioactive tailings. The Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project was created to prevent potential contamination of the nearby Colorado River. UP hauls roughly roughly 10,000 tons of tailings per week to a new disposal sight near Crescent Junction, where the buried tailings will not risk contaminating the Colorado River or any other ground water. In this shot, the Potash Local passes by the tailings train near Brendel. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112066 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Thompson Hill Grand County, UT 156 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific UP's Potash Local makes easy work of the 1% grade as it climbs through the S-Curve at the top of Thompson Hill. This is my personal favorite spot for shooting westbounds out in the Utah Desert! The clouds are even cooperating a giving a little sunlight on what is forecast to be an overcast day. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112065 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Sagers Grand County, UT 151 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific While UP's Potash Local waits for a signal out of the siding at Sagers, we take note of a new signal mast that will eventually replace the westbound mainline signal that still stands to the left. For many decades, railroads would try to always place block signals on the righthand side of trains moving toward them. However, that practice seems to have given way to placing signals where ever it is most convenient! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112064 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Sagers Grand County, UT 169 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific After meeting the eastbound California Zephyr, the westbound Potash Local is waiting on a signal to depart the siding at Sagers. The local has four units today, and is hauling 36 empty covered hoppers to the Potash plant. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112063 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP RG521 (West Sagers) Grand County, UT 194 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Amtrak The eastbound California Zephyr knocks down a clear (green) signal at the west switch of Sagers. Note the new signal past on the opposite side of the Zephyr. The mast has been standing there for over two years now, but UP has not yet gotten around to adding signal heads or hooking the signal up. For now, the old Rio Grande signal continue to take charge of the control point. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112062 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Brendel to Floy Grand County, UT 138 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Amtrak Along eastbound I-70, there is a very interesting Rest Area that looks over I-70 and the tracks. It makes for a great spot to get shots of eastbounds from an elevated perspective without the need for a drone. Here, the eastbound Zephyr is seen from that Rest Area. If you want to look for it, the Rest Area does not have an exit number, but it one exit west of exit 182. It is only accessible from eastbound I-70. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112061 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 28, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Brendel to Floy Grand County, UT 165 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Amtrak The eastbound Zephyr passes through some of the dirt mounds that makes the Utah desert so interesting and, in my opinion, extremely beautiful. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112046 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, March 27, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP RG527 (East Thompson) Grand County, UT 120 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific The last eight or so cars and DPU on this westbound coal load are hanging out of the east end of Thompson. The train is holding off the grade crossing in Thompson Springs until the westbound Zephyr, which will run around the train, gets a bit closer. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112045 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, March 27, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP RG527 (East Thompson) Grand County, UT 141 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific This westbound coal load is taking the siding at Thompson to wait for the westbound Zephyr to overtake it. Unfortunately, the next two sidings to the west (Floy and Solitude) both have cars being stored on them, so Thompson has to be the place to wait. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112044 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, March 27, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Sagers to Thompson Grand County, UT 126 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific Following on the yellow signals of a coal train ahead of it, another loaded coal train is making its way up Thompson Hill. This train, similar to the one it is following, is configured 2x(0)x1. However, this train only has 75 loaded hoppers in tow, make it quite a bit shorter and lighter. The 4th tallest mountain in Utah, Mount Waas, stands tall in the distance at an elevation of 12,331 feet (3,758 meters). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112043 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, March 27, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Thompson Curve Grand County, UT 159 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific This westbound coal load has been struggling to climb the 1% grade of Thompson Hill. And it is not too surprising, seeing has how the train only has three units, setup in a 2x1 configuration, to make the climb. This shot offers a great view of both the head end and the tail of the roughly 5,700 foot long train. The lead unit, incidentally, is former SP 265, delivered in scarlet and gray in June 1995. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112042 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, March 27, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Thompson Curve Grand County, UT 143 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific Just east of the siding of Thompson, you'll find this absolutely fantastic S-Curve. A westbound coal train, which loaded at the West Elk Mine in Colorado, is headed for Trona, not far from Mojave, CA. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 112041 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, March 27, 2025 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Sagers to Thompson Grand County, UT 148 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Green River (UP) Union Pacific Union Pacific has very slowly been replacing the signals out in the desert. By "very slowly", I mean I saw some signal masts that were up in 2023 that seemingly not been touched in the past two years! I'm not complaining, however, as it means there are still opportunities for shots like this! A westbound coal load passes by old Rio Grande intermediate signals on the approach to Thompson. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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