Photo ID: 113958 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Littleton to Acequia Littleton, CO 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF A storm that generated dime-sized hail in Denver, and could possible release quarter-sized hail on the plains, makes for a dramatic backdrop to BNSF 2026, which just finished its southbound run from Denver to Littleton. The train will shortly depart north to go back to Denver. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113957 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Littleton to Acequia Littleton, CO 37 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF I really like the flags that BNSF decided to add to the 2026 here in Denver for the journey south on the Joint Line to Littleton. The Employee Appreciation Special will shortly depart north to head back to Denver to unload passengers and load new passengers before a second departure this evening at 6pm. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113956 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Littleton to Acequia Littleton, CO 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF I was very fortunate to come across this American Flag along the tracks. A perfect subject in the foreground with BNSF 1776 in the background. BNSF 1776 is painted in a special scheme to celebrate the 250th Anniversary of the United States this year. The unit is on an Employee Appreciation Special here just south of Littleton on Main 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113955 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Littleton Littleton, CO 33 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF At Littleton, the triple track ends and the two tracks of the Joint Line begin. This BNSF Employee Appreciation Special heads south on Main 1 along Santa Fe. Another mile or so to the south and the train will come to a stop. The crew will move from BNSF 2026 to BNSF 1776 and then head north back to Denver. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113954 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Littleton to Englewood Littleton, CO 28 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Some very dark clouds from a major thunderstorm linger toward the east as BNSF 2026 accelerates toward a green signal on Main 1 at Littleton. The train will only go a bit further, down to the C-470 overpass, before switching directions and returning back to Denver. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113953 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Littleton to Englewood Littleton, CO 30 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF Just north of Littleton on Main 1, BNSF 2026 is rolling slow right now as they face a red signal at Littleton. A Major thunderstorm, which include dime-sized hail, passed over the downtown area just as the special was departing. The storm has moved more out to the east at this point, creating a dramatic scene. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113952 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed 20th Street Denver, CO 37 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF In the OS at 20th Street, BNSF's Employee Appreciation Special prepares for a departure south on the Joint Line on Main 2. This is an area that has radically changed in the last 25 years. These tracks were in what was mostly a dirt field back at the start of the 2000s. Now, it is surrounded by apartment and office buildings. The track that runs straight to the left leads to UP's North Yard and BNSF's Rennicks Yard. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113951 Date Shot Photo By Monday, June 1, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed 20th Street Denver, CO 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Colorado Springs (UP)/Pikes Peak (BNSF) BNSF The previous day, I made the 4 hour drive up to Alliance, NE for some shots of BNSF's 250th Anniversary units on an Employee Appreciate Special. The train came down from Alliance to Denver overnight to make two runs south on the Joint Line to Littleton for Denver-based employees able to participate. BNSF 2026 will lead the train south. It is currently sitting on Main 2 at 20th Street as passengers load. BNSF placed an American flag and a Colorado flag on the cab of BNSF 2026. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113950 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont to Crossover 419.8 Dawes County, NE 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF Crawford Hill in Nebraska is one of the relatively few places in the country in which manned helpers are still in use. The grade on Crawford Hill varies between 1.5% and 2.0% on the eastward journey. Coal loads from the Powder River Basin (and even some manifests) are too heavy to make the climb with the standard 2x2 configuration BNSF employees on most coal trains. However, extra power is not needed on the train other than on the west slope of Crawford Hill. It would be a waste of power to run extra DPUs the entire distance the train runs. As a result, a helper crew is based at the small town of Crawford, NE. Here, a pair of ES44ACs are the manned helper, shoving behind the pair of SD70ACes on the end of this coal load. In another few miles, at the Belmont Crossover at the top of Crawford Hill, the helpers will cut off the train and return down to Crawford to wait their next assignment. The entire length of the journey for the helpers is only about 12 miles (one way)! One additional thing to note in this shot. If you see the white puff spraying up near the base of the power, you are seeing some sand kicking up from the sanders that are currently active, helping the train to keep and maintain traction on the climb. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113949 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Breezy Point Dawes County, NE 34 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF If you haven't been to Crawford Hill before, you might underestimate the beauty of the Black Hills that the BNSF Butte Sub have to get over. This eastbound coal load is doing exactly that, grinding slowly up the grade on Main 2. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113948 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Breezy Point Dawes County, NE 32 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF A pair of SD70ACes lead an eastbound coal load up the steep grade of Crawford Hill, passing by the intermediates at the location know as Breezy Point. This area forms essentially a huge S-curve, and you can see the back of the train in the distance to the left. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113947 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont to Crossover 419.8 Dawes County, NE 31 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF One final shot of BNSF's Employee Appreciation Special as it climbs the grade on Main 1 on Crawford Hill, moving away from the camera. It was an incredible day of chasing, but with a 4½ hour drive ahead, it was soon time to hit the road. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113946 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Breezy Point Dawes County, NE 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF While BNSF's Employee Appreciation Special is climbing east on Main 1, you can see a loaded coal train in the distance on Main 2, also working on climbing the grade toward the top of Crawford Hill. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113945 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Breezy Point Dawes County, NE 42 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF After the crew was moved by crew van from the west end to the east end of the train, getting on BNSF 2026, the train is now headed east back toward Alliance. The crew received permission to make a reverse move on Main 1 back to Belmont and, eventually, Alliance. You can see the tracks in the distance, several thousand feet away (by rail). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113944 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont to Crossover 419.8 Dawes County, NE 35 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF On an absolutely beautiful Sunday evening, an eastbound BNSF coal train slowly grinds east on Main 2, cutting into the grade on Crawford Hill. The train is creeping along at no more than 10 MPH. This particular train loaded at the Black Thunder Mine in the Powder River Basin, and is headed to a power plant in Georgia. The train will be turned over to Norfolk Southern in Memphis, TN. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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