Photo ID: 113585 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 28 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A pair of ES44ACs bring up the end of the eastbound Provo-Denver around the east edge of the Big Ten Loop. The train is relatively short with 63 cars, but BNSF has three units on the point and two points on the rear. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113584 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 28 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF Along the south edge of Big Ten Loop, this eastbound BNSF manifest is continuing east toward Denver. At the moment, it is running a bit below track speed. UP has some slow orders out due to some track work they have been doing in the area. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113583 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Blue Mountain Drive (MP 22.43) Arvada, CO 23 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF An eastbound BNSF Provo-Denver manifest, whose crew is running short on time, met the Zephyr up at Plain. DS-378 had a great meet setup, and neither train had to come to a stop. Here, the manifest is coming through the S-Curves at Blue Mountain Drive, with a typical three units on the head end. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113582 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 1 (MP 23.4, 366 ft) Arvada, CO 18 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak Last weekend, I saw my first Superliner sporting Amtrak's Phase 7 paint scheme. That was on a lounge car. Here is the second Superliner I've seen, a coach/baggage on the tail end of the train. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113581 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 1 (MP 23.4, 366 ft) Arvada, CO 19 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The east portal of Tunnel 1 is a fantastic spot for a shot of westbounds in the morning, as the tracks actually head (more or less) east, putting the train in great morning light. As a result, I like to try to explore some different perspectives. The lower view up toward the tracks was just right for the Zephyr with AMTK 176 and AMTK 203 on the point. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113580 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele (Clay) (5,780 ft) Arvada, CO 25 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak Despite the extreme dry weather, it does appear that the foliage is starting to green up a little bit here around Eisele (Clay). AMTK 176 and AMTK 203 lead the westbound Zephyr on the main track here near the east end of the siding. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113579 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak This seemed like the perfect angle, along the east side of Big Ten Loop, for a shot of the morning Zephyr as it heads west. You can see Tunnel 1 in the distance, and even the east portal of Tunnel 4 further off in the distance. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113578 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 30 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak On the lower north edge of Big Ten Loop, the morning Zephyr is starting its climb. As we move in to Spring, the Denver area is still in the midst of the driest winter season in recorded history. It is unlikely the foliage is going to green up as much this spring compared to a typical spring. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113577 Date Shot Photo By Friday, March 20, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS019 (West Rocky) Arvada, CO 30 (2 Comments Posted) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak At the west switch of rocky, the westbound Zephyr is sporting a colorful consist as it climbs toward Big Ten Curve, running precisely on time. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113576 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, March 18, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 51 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific The thrice-weekly MGJNY, with seven units on the point (including a GP40-2) heads east on the main track at Leyden. The train has been moving along at 10 MPH since Plain, due to high winds in the area. However, it will be able to pick up a little more speed after departing Leyden, for the remaining 8 miles or so to North Yard. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113575 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, March 18, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 42 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific It has taken nearly an hour for UP's MGJNY to get from Plain to down Leyden. It has been moving along at an average speed of about 10 miles per hour due to high winds. The train has a relatively low "blow over" speed. Consequently, the train has been moving along very slowly, to minimize any potential derailment. Fortunately, everything was totally fine for the train. Nearly all the structures in this frame were built within the last 25 years as the suburb of Arvada continues to expand to the west. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113574 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, March 18, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Plain (6,530 ft) Arvada, CO 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A former Southern Pacific GP40-2 is due for its 92-day inspection. It has been serving in Grand Junction, in the yard and/or on locals. With the closure of engine facilities in Denver, the unit will have to be forwarded on to North Platte for its inspection. This morning, it is deadheading on the head end of the MGJNY. The unit was originally delivered to Espee in February 1978. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113573 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, March 18, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Plain (6,530 ft) Arvada, CO 57 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific UP's MGJNY descended the first half of the east slope of the Moffat quite early this morning. However, the train has a relatively low "blow over" speed, meaning it is highly susceptible to high winds. It has been a morning of high winds, in excess of 55 MPH, on Big Ten. So, DS-378 held the manifest here in the siding at Plain. The wind speeds have died down, and it is time to slowly continue in to Denver. The train is around 7,000 feet long, and has a lot of power on the head end. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113572 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, March 18, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS024 (East Plain) Arvada, CO 56 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak When The Zephyr left Chicago, it was led by AMTK 4 and AMTK 5. AMTK 4 was swapped for AMTK 150 in Denver, resulting in a roughly two hour delay. It is unclear if AMTK 4 had a mechanical issue, or it was just swapped with AMTK 150, and AMTK 4 will show up on the Winter Park Express tomorrow morning. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113571 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, March 18, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele to Plain (MP 21.8 to MP 24.0) Arvada, CO 55 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak This morning's Zephyr is almost two hours late after a delay in Denver. The lead unit on the Zephyr, AMTK 150, was taken from the Winter Park Express power. It is unclear why it was necessary to swap power. It is possible that AMTK 150 is due for a 92-day inspection and, as a result, had to be swapped and sent west to Emeryville. In any case, the Zephyr is just west of Tunnel 1, coming up to Plain. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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