In general, most trains on the Moffat do not exceed about 6,000 feet in length. However, there are sometimes exceptions. Such in the case today as a long string of military equipment stretches back nearly 8,000 feet from the head end here at Big Ten Curve, back to well over halfway west through Eisele (Clay). The equipment is headed for Fort Riley in Kansas.
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Both the Evelyn A. Henry and Warren R. Henry are on the back of the California Zephyr this morning after having been picked up at Denver Union Station. The cars just came through on the westbound Zephyr a three months ago in June, but after a bit of additional traveling around, they are here once again!
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AMTK 187 and AMTK 13 lead the westbound Zephyr around the eastern edge of Big Ten Curve. On the back of the train, both the Evelyn A. Henry and Warren R. Henry are catching a ride. The Zephyr is running a bit late this morning. The Rocky Mountaineer actually departed Denver first, but held up at Arvada to let the Zephyr by first.
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Five GEs and a single SD70ACe climb the north edge of Big Ten Curve on the point of a westbound oil train. As always, a single buffer car is located between the power and the tank cars. On this day, the buffer car is a Santa Fe open hopper.
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The skies are crystal clear and you could not ask for better lighting as the the westbound Zephyr climbs the north edge of Big Ten Curve. AMTK 187 (Phase 7) and AMTK 13 (Phase 5b) lead the train, elephant style, on the journey west.
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The transition sleeper is typically the first car on long distance Amtrak trains. In addition to some paying passengers, crew members that right the train generally sleep in this car. The car also connects to the baggage car on the lower level, so crew members on the train can access the car if necessary.
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Climbing out of Rocky, the morning Zephyr climbs along the north edge of Big Ten Curve on its journey west.
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With a westbound oil train in the clear in the siding at Rocky, the Zephyr is looking at a clear (green) signal at the west end of Rocky. When Daylight Savings time ends in November, the sun will have set here by the time the eastbound Zephyr arrives, even when it is running right on time.
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The Zephyr is creeping along at 10 MPH due to a slow order around Big Ten Curve. The slow order is in place due to the risk of sun kinks in the rails as a result of hot summer temperatures. Granted, at this point, it is only about 80°F (27°C) out. You can just barely see the east end of Rocky and the start of Barbara's Gulch in the top left portion of the image.
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As the Zephyr rounds Big Ten Curve, you can clearly see the roughly 2% grade of the tracks as they descend down from the mountains. Off in the distance, the buildings consisting of the skyline of downtown Denver stand tall. In an hour, give or take, the Zephyr will be amongst those iron giants for its station stop at Denver Union Station.
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The morning Zephyr makes its way up the north edge of Big Ten Curve under overcast skies. The cloud cover is resulting in cooler temperatures, and it is a comfortable 72°F (22°C). The train departed Chicago yesterday with a trio of P42DCs, including AMTK 203, which sports the Operation Lifesaver scheme.
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Two SD70ACes with an ES44AC spliced in between climb up and around Big Ten Curve with a very heavy coal load in tow. The crew just informed DS-380 that they'll be making a max of about 13 MPH on the climb up to the Moffat Tunnel. The dispatcher is working to figure out where the coal load will meet the eastbound Rocky Mountaineer.
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Following about 20 minutes behind a westbound BNSF manifest, a westbound empty oil train (with five units on the point) makes its way around Big Ten Curve. This perspective, looking east towards the plains, really helps to exemplify the amazing architecture of the Moffat route as it climbs to the Rockies, barely exceeding a 2% grade on the climb.
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We are a month away from the official start of fall, and the greens in the grass are definitely fading here in the latter part of August. It is still a very hot 90°F just a few minute before 11am. A pair of SD70ACes are the DPUs on this westbound Denver-Provo manifest, making its way from Big Ten Curve to Eisele (Clay).
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A pair of SD70ACes bring up the tail end of BNSF's Provo-Denver manifest around Big Ten Curve. Meanwhile, across the valley, BNSF's Provo-Denver sits on the siding at Rocky, the crew working to secure and tie the train down.
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