Photo ID: 110904 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, August 15, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rocky (7,330ft) Arvada, CO 53 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Two decades ago, coal train dominated the Moffat. Fast forward to the time of this shot and coal has been replaced by oil. A westbound empty sits on the siding at Rocky in the foreground, while an eastbound oil load slows to a stop on the main track at Eisele in the distance. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110903 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, August 15, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Blue Mountain Drive (MP 22.43) Arvada, CO 53 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A freshly repainted C44ACM, sporting UPs newest "go forward" scheme leads a loaded oil train through the crossing at Blue Mountain Drive, through the curves east of Tunnel 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110902 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, August 15, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 1 (MP 23.4, 366 ft) Arvada, CO 63 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific It is not uncommon to find a ex-SP AC4400CW roaming the rails, but it is less common to find an ex-SP C44-9W. UP 9576 happens to be exactly that! It was originally SP 8112, but was just recently rebuilt as a C44ACM, having its DC traction motors swapped out with AC traction motors. It and two other GEs lead an eastbound oil train at Tunnel 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110901 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, August 15, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS019 (West Rocky) Arvada, CO 60 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific At the time of this shot, the westbound Zephyr was delayed in Denver due to a mechanical issue. DS-380 was planning on bringing an eastbound oil train down the main here at Rocky, meeting a westbound empty on the siding. You can see the yellow (Approach) at the west end. Amtrak would resolve their issues and this signal would be taken back. The oil load would hold the main at Eisele (Clay). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110900 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, August 15, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rocky (7,330ft) Arvada, CO 51 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A westbound empty oil train is stopped in the siding at Rocky and will be holding here for a little while. The westbound Zephyr is going to run around the train on the main, and it will continue to hold for an eastbound loaded oil train as well. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110899 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Blue Mountain Drive (MP 22.43) Arvada, CO 68 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Underneath accumulating afternoon clouds, three elephant-style GEs lead an eastbound oil train at Blue Mountain Drive. Despite all wearing the same scheme, the schemes are clearly in varying states of "wear and tear". the tail end of the train is still on the other side of Tunnel 1 across the valley. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110898 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Coal Creek (MP 23) Arvada, CO 51 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Just east of the bridge over CO-72 at the base of Coal Creek Canyon, three units (elephant-style) make their way through a cut. Clouds are moving in, and the relatively gentle looking clouds seen here will give way to dark storm clouds within an hour or so. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110897 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 1 (MP 23.4, 366 ft) Arvada, CO 55 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A loaded eastbound oil train winds through the S-Curve east of Plain, on the approach to the west portal of Tunnel 1. This is, of course, the final tunnel (when heading east). The train is just a few miles from the open plains. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110894 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS024 (East Plain) Arvada, CO 100 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak At the east end of Plain, the westbound Zephyr is overtaking an empty UP oil train, sitting in the siding. The oil train fit in the siding by less than one car. If there had been one more tank car on the train, it would not have fit! You can see how close the end DPU is to the signal at the east end. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110893 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rocky (7,330ft) Arvada, CO 64 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak Afternoon clouds are starting to roll across the mountains and out onto the Plains. Meanwhile, the Zephyr, cast in shadows, is four hours late as it heads west on the main at Rocky. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110892 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS012 (East Leyden) Arvada, CO 54 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific For a couple of years, UP's schedule for the MGJNY seemed to be such that it often arrived in Denver in pre-dawn hours. Sometimes, on the longer days of the year, it might arrive in early morning light. However, something seems to have shifted a bit as it has become more common for it to show up in the mid-morning to mid-afternoon. Here, the manifest rolls east out of Leyden one minute before 1 o'clock in the afternoon. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110891 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 52 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific I was a little bit surprised to find UP 1100, a GP60, on the eastbound MGJNY. Why surprised? Well, I caught the same unit also going east exactly two weeks earlier. Heading east again so soon, makes me suspect that it has some sort of mechanical issue that needs to be sorted out. If that's the case, it is likely headed for North Platte, NE. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110890 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 55 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A little over halfway through Leyden, UP's thrice weekly MGJNY (Manifest, Grand Junction to Denver) is accelerating toward track speed as it passes by the numerous western Arvada neighborhoods, most of which were built in the last 25 years. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110889 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 58 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific Can you spot both the trains in this shot? The eastbound UP manifest is pretty obvious. But, less obvious, is the oil train off in the distance, crossing like a thin black stripe across the mountain in the distance. This westbound oil train is at Eisele (Clay) after meeting the manifest at Rocky. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110888 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, August 14, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele to Plain (MP 21.8 to MP 24.0) Arvada, CO 60 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific, Rocky Mountaineer On the climb up the roughly 2% grade toward Tunnel 1, a pair of UP SD70Ms lead ten cars on the Rocky Mountaineer. As we get closer to fall (and fall colors), passenger volumes on the Rocky Mountaineer will continue to increase to enjoy the colorful trip from Denver to Moab (or back). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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