A trio of SD70s (an SD70ACe and two SD70MACs) run elephant style on the point of a westbound sand train. The paint schemes offer a nice "through the years" look at some of BNSF's more common schemes over the last twenty years.
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Despite the (relative) short length of this sand train, it is crawling along at only around 12 MPH. It is a loaded train and, as such, a heavy load for the five units in charge. The lake to the right, just above the DPUs, is Stanley Lake in Arvada and Westminster.
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A westbound loaded BNSF sand train (used for fracking) slowly pulls west near the east end of Barbara's Gulch on a beautiful November afternoon.
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In early morning light, a westbound coal empty works its way into and through Barbara's Gulch just east of Rocky. The train has some exceptionally unusual power as it is CSX and the lead unit is an SD40-2!
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A very rare occurrence on this particular morning as a CSX SD40-2 leads a westbound coal empty headed for the West Elk Mine on the North Fork Branch. Something else I noticed that I found even more interesting is that the trucks are originally from an SD40, not an SD40-2.
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This is the second coal train within a few weeks to arrive in Denver with a solid set of CSX power. The truly amazing part of this is that the SD40-2 that led was not removed or replaced when it arrived. Here, the train is headed west through Barbara's Gulch.
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Do not attempt to adjust your monitor! Here, in 2017, an SD40-2 is leading a westbound coal empty on the Moffat. Not only is it an SD40-2, but it is a Dark Future CSX SD40-2. Unheard of!
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Rail trains are actually quite cool as they transport welded rail. For those that are unaware, each rail that you see on this train is a single piece of steel about a quarter of a mile long. Each rail runs the length of the entire rail train. The rail simply bends around curves as the train moves down the track.
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A pair of SD70Ms lead a westbound rail train in Barbara's Gulch. The train is about to pass underneath CO-93 whose bridge was replaced about 15 years ago. The old bridge did not have a chain link fence along the road and allowed for photos from above the bridge.
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At the west end of Barbara's Gulch, a westbound rail train grinds up the grade toward a Diverging Approach (red over yellow) signal at the east end of Rocky.
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On a beautiful February day (that set a new record high in the Denver area at 72°F), an eastbound BNSF manifest glides past the old Mesa Oil plant located off CO-72. Mesa Oil moved to a new location in Denver over a year ago, removing a customer for UP's West Local to service. The plant has stood abandoned since Mesa Oil left.
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A Canadian National ES44DC - one of only 125 on the roster - visits Colorado on a BNSF manifest. I have to admit that I am a fan of the Canadian National paint scheme. Simple yet classy!
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After meeting a coal empty at Rocky, this Provo-Denver manifest is now rolling east through Barbara's Gulch with a clear shot the rest of the way into town. The original crew that took the train out of Grand Junction could only make it as far as Cliff. There, a Denver-based relief crew took over for the rest of the journey into Denver.
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The lead unit on this BNSF manifest is one of the newest units on BNSF's roster. BNSF had some "carbon credits" that they used to purchase some Tier-3 ES44C4s in 2017. BNSF 4204 is one such example of the credit units. It was delivered at the start of February.
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This westbound sand train, moving away from the camera, likely has all units on the train in Run 8 right now in order to maintain the 13 MPH they are currently mustering. However, they will likely throttle back to Run 7 as they come around Big Ten Curve, which happens to be visible near the top of the frame. High winds are necessitating a 10 MPH slow around for all trains around the curve.
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