Photo ID: 110761 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rocky (7,330ft) Arvada, CO 45 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak On a very hazy July morning, the Zephyr makes its way west on the main at Rocky, approaching little Ten Curve. The haze in the area is due to (common-in-summer) forest fires currently burning in Oregon and North California. Unfortunately (as far as the smoke goes), the winds are calm and there is no rain in the forecast, so haze it is. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110762 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 41 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak This is something of a "go to" shot for me in the mornings as, during this part of the climb to Big Ten, westbound trains are technically headed geographically east, creating great light. AMTK 72 leads a standard Zephyr consist on this particular morning. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110763 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele (Clay) (5,780 ft) Arvada, CO 38 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak With Amtrak's Phase 7 paint scheme being the new official scheme moving forward, the days of predominately silver long distance trains is, to an extent, coming to an end. The silver Zephyr rolls west through Eisele (Clay) on a July morning. The big question is what will happen to the Superliners? Will they continue to roam the rails in the Phase 4b scheme, or will Amtrak also turn them blue and red (with some white) in a type of Phase 7 scheme? Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110764 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele to Plain (MP 21.8 to MP 24.0) Arvada, CO 47 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The morning Zephyr snakes its way west through the S-Curves just west of Tunnel 1. Around the bed ahead, the train will face an approach (yellow) as a long UP manifest...too long to fit between switches, waits in the siding. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110765 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Plain (6,530 ft) Arvada, CO 44 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific UP 9811 is leading UP's MGJNY, currently stopped in the siding at Plain to allow the westbound Zephyr to pass by. UP 9811 was originally a C44-9W. However, the unit has been converted from DC traction motors to AC traction motors and it is now designated as a C44ACM. Rebuilding older units is the way Class 1 railroads are moving, rather than buying new Tier-4 compliant units. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110766 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Plain (6,530 ft) Arvada, CO 40 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A Phase 3 SD70M is second out on UP's MGJNY (Manifest, Grand Junction, CO to North Yard, CO). In general, locomotives are not tagged by graffiti...unless they've spent some time in the LA or Houston area! A small amount of tagging is behind the cab on this particular SD70M. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110767 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele to Plain (MP 21.8 to MP 24.0) Arvada, CO 57 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific At the base of Coal Creek Canyon, a UP manifest rolls east with six units on the head end. This is, indeed, the only regularly scheduled manifest that UP still runs on the Moffat. It runs three times a week (each direction) between North Yard in Denver and Grand Junction. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110768 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Blue Mountain Drive (MP 22.43) Arvada, CO 60 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific When this manifest departed Grand Junction, it had four units (three on the point, one DPU) and 84 cars. When it departed Bond, three more units had been added to the head end, and 57 cars had also been added to the train! The 57 cars were from industries located on the Craig Branch in the Steamboat and Craig area. The train is making its way through the curves below Tunnel 1 and at Blue Mountain Drive. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110769 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele (Clay) (5,780 ft) Arvada, CO 397 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific It is only 10 o'clock in the morning, yet it already 80°F (27°C) as UP's MGJNY rolls east on the main at Eisele (Clay). Several strings of covered hoppers were picked up at Bond after being dropped off by the Phippsburg Local. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 110770 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, July 24, 2024 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS020 (East Eisele (Clay)) Arvada, CO 71 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific UP's MGJNY is approaching the east end of Eisele (Clay). The crew just called up DS-380 to inform him that the hotbox detector at MP 22.6 gave an axle count that did not match the count in the crew's paperwork. The detector indicated five more cars than what the crew believes they have. Consequently, operating procedures indicate the train cannot exceed 30 MPH for the rest of the trip in to Denver. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.