Photo ID: 109636 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed South of Castle Rock Douglas County, CO 159 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Along the I-25 frontage road, a southbound BNSF coal train passes by an intermediate signal at MP 38.6. The train is led by a pair of EMD SD70ACe. The train is heading almost directly into the sun, so both sides of the train are largely in the shadows. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109637 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Larkspur Larkspur, CO 296 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A pair of BNSF SD70ACes lead this southbound coal train across the old Santa Fe bridge on the south edge of Larkspur on a beautiful October morning. Unfortunately, this coal train had an ill-fated future as in 2 1/2 hours, it will derail just south of Bragdon when crossing over I-25. The crew on the train, thank God, will be okay. However, a semi truck driver, caught in the derailment, would not survive. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109638 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Greenland Greenland, CO 177 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A BNSF coal load slowly grinds up the grade just south of Greenland. The train is just a few miles away from the "top of the hill" at Palmer Lake. There, the train will have successfully conquered Palmer Divide, and will continue downgrade on the single track main. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109639 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Spruce Douglas County, CO 284 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A southbound BNSF coal train continues the journey south on Main 1 just north of Palmer Lake. A nice pod offers up a great scene on a Sunday afternoon. Between the train and the pond, you can see the rails for Main 2. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109640 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed The Sag Douglas County, CO 338 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Prior to World War 1, when Rio Grande and Santa Fe operated their own mains separate from one another, there were several places where the two lines crossed one another. Few places are as apparent of this old artifact as at "The Sag" just north of Palmer Lake. Here, Santa Fe's main crossed over Rio Grande's main. The abutments of the bridge are still quite apparent, even though the bridge itself has been gone for over a century. with the creation of the joint line, the crossover were removed and the tracks of each railroad were connected to create the Joint Line. Here, the head end of this coal train is now on track owned by UP and the back end of the train is still on track owned by BNSF. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109641 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed The Sag Douglas County, CO 176 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF The head end of BNSF 9015 is descending down "The Sag" just north of Palmer Lake. On warm summer days when the traction motors on units are really hot, southbound coal loads will sometimes stop here at The Sag to allow the traction motors to cool before continuing south. On this October afternoon, the temperature is around 60°F, so the train will continue rolling south to Palmer Lake. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109642 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Palmer Lake Palmer Lake, CO 347 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF This southbound coal load has reached "the top of the hill" at Palmer Lake. Here, the Joint Line crests the Palmer Divide at 7,300 feet above sea level. This is now single track territory for the next 25 miles or so. The train will shifting in to dynamic brake mode now for the downgrade journey. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109643 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Palmer Lake Palmer Lake, CO 142 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Three units bring up the end of this southbound coal load, which is now on the single track main at Palmer Lake. The train is sadly less than two hours away from disaster. Right around 3:30pm, the train will derail when crossing I-25 just south of Bragdon. No injuries to the crew, but sadly, a semitruck driver caught up in the derailment beneath the bridge will parish. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109644 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed South of Castle Rock Castle Rock, CO 147 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF BNSF coal trains are, by far, the most dominating type of train you'll find running on the Joint Line. These trains originate in the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and are destined for power plants in the south. The approaching train is no exception as it parallels the I-25 frontage road and I-25 itself, just south of Castle Rock, which is visible in the distance. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109645 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP 363 Castle Rock, CO 207 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF BNSF 8561 splits the signals at the control point at CP 363. A few years ago, BNSF installed CTC on Main 1 between Littleton and Palmer Lake. Two "hold" signals were installed on Main 1. These are absolutely (dispatcher-controlled) signals. They allow for track and time to be given to MOW while trains from the north can still approach. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109646 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed South of Castle Rock Douglas County, CO 134 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF For two decades, SD70MACs ruled coal trains on the Joint Line. Now in 2023, they have largely been replaced by SD70ACes and ES44ACs. However, it is still great to catch one now and then. Such is the case with BNSF 8948, the second unit on the head end of this southbound coal load. It is still sporting an aging Heritage 2 paint scheme. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109647 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Castle Rock Castle Rock, CO 171 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A northbound BNSF coal empty has stopped 200 feet from the back of a northbound military train on Main 2 alongside the Plum Creek golf course in Castle Rock. Unfortunately, the UP crew on the military train reached their hours of service at 12:30pm, forcing them to stop their train. They are legally prohibited from operating it any further. Another crew will not show for a few hours, bringing northbound traffic on the Joint Line to a complete hault. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109648 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Castle Rock Castle Rock, CO 145 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Northbounds are stacking up on the Joint Line at Castle Rock! The crew on this military train "died" (not literally...they reached 12 hours on the clock and can no longer operate their train) at 12:30pm. 2 1/2 hours later and there is no relief crew on the horizon just yet. The BNSF coal empty is stuck, and four additional trains further south also have nowhere to go until the military train can start rolling again. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109649 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Castle Rock Castle Rock, CO 147 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF BNSF 9798 still sports the "green and cream" paint scheme that Burlington Northern adopted in the early 1990s, shortly before the BNSF merger. If you look at the nose, you'll see a slight discoloration. This is where the "BN" herald was once located. After the merger, it was covered up. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 109650 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, October 15, 2023 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Castle Rock Castle Rock, CO 181 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF At first glance, this might appear to be a southbound on Main 2 on the Joint Line, just south of Castle Rock. However, it is in fact a northbound that has three DPUs on the tail end. 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