While there was no snow on the ground down in Denver, that is very much not the case here at 8,500 feet above sea level! The morning Ski Train glides through Rollinsville and the winter wonderland that it currently is.
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This westbound coal empty is about to knock down a clear signal at the west end of Rollins. The train met the eastbound Winter Park Express Ski Train here at Rollins, and will now have clear signals west to Tabernash. There, the train will hold the main to wait for a 2-hour-late Amtrak #5.
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It is a few minutes past sunset and, with the thick clouds, light is rapidly fading as a westbound coal empty pulls west toward a clear signal in the siding at Rollins.
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After meeting the eastbound Winter Park Express Ski Train, this westbound coal empty (headed for the North Fork Branch) is throttling back up after DS-82 set up a clear signal at the west end of Rollins. If you look in the distance, you can see the red signals at the east end of Rollins.
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This classic shot at West Rollins is likely only going to be possible for another year or so (without any obstructions). A couple of pine trees are threatening to block the view of the tracks! But, that hasn't quite happened yet on this frigid day as the westbound Zephyr, running 4 1/2 hours late, approaches the west end of Rollins.
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This right here is what inspired "Aspen Gold" as the main color for the Denver and Rio Grande Western so many decades ago. A grove of Aspen trees is right at the peak of their fall color transition as the westbound California Zephyr glides by on the main track west of Rollins.
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Tis the season! Deciduous trees in Colorado are blasting through beautiful fall colors and will be losing their leaves soon. A great way to observe the fall colors is onboard the California Zephyr, charging west out of Rollins in the background.
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For a couple of months during the "slow" season, the Zephyr was running with a mere six Superliners. Now that Spring is getting close, Amtrak has expanded the Zephyr back up to seven Superliners. Here, the westbound Zephyr has a clear signal as it heads out the west end of Rollins.
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It is a beautiful summer afternoon as UP's daily westbound manifest running from Denver to Salt Lake City (the MNYRO) heads down the main on a clear signal. The train is about to pass underneath CO-119 in the heart of Rollinsville. Rollinsville celebrated its 130th birthday in 2014 and no doubt most of its 181 residents (2010 census) attended the festivities.
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The westbound Zephyr passes by the west end of Rollins on the main, heading for some inclement weather. Notice the whitish-hue in front of the mountains on the far right side of the picture (above Amtrak)? That isn't fog, that is hail!
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As is rather common in the summer in Colorado, clear morning skies have given way to overcast and stormy afternoon conditions. There is a light rain at the west end of Rollins and a dime-sized hail storm between Rollins and Tolland. Neither of these facts slow down Amtrak, however, as it continues its journey west toward California.
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While UP is definitely becoming accustomed to using DPU's on their manifests on the Moffat, it is rather unusually to catch an EMD unit as the DPU. However, this SD70ACe was the sole DPU power on this Sunday morning!
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This manifest was waiting in the siding at Cliff to let the Zephyr run around it. As soon as the Zephyr was west of Cliff, this guy got the light to follow him. Unfortunately, the train only made it to Rollins before having to stop to wait for an eastbound on the other side of the divide. The coal train in the shot left Rollins as soon as the manifest cleared the east switch.
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The westbound Zephyr has two bonus cars on the tail end today. UP's Sunset and Stanford were added to the train in Omaha and are getting a ride to the west coast. The Zephyr is running about 90 minutes late this morning as it makes its way through the siding at Rollins.
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When the loaded coal train in this shot arrived at Rollins, maintenance on the siding meant the coal train had to hold the main line. With the maintenance now in the clear, the westbound Zephyr is coming through on the siding.
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