Photo ID: 108660 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele (Clay) (5,780 ft) Arvada, CO 1043 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The eastbound Zephyr rolls east on the main at Eisele as it continues the journey east toward Denver and points beyond. Eisele is really the last place the eastbound Zephyr will skirt the front range of the Rockies before leaving the mountains behind after descending down from Big Ten Curve ahead. The siding was originally called Fire Clay, due to the red clay rock found in the area. When Rio Grande shortened many siding names on the system, it was shorten to just Clay. Then, just over eight years ago, on April 2, 2013, UP changed the name from Clay to Eisele in honor of Charley Eisele, a UP official that retired. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108659 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS019 (West Rocky) Arvada, CO 811 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF, Norfolk Southern After meeting its eastbound counterpart, the Denver-Provo continues to hold the siding at Rocky to meet an eastbound hyrailer! This track maintainer observed a defect in the rail around Coal Creek Canyon that is going to require repair before the westbound can get underway. The hyrailer will meet with a crew from Leyden that will head up to Coal Creek and conduct repairs. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108658 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Rocky (7,330ft) Arvada, CO 819 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF, Norfolk Southern Near the west end of Rocky, BNSF's westbound Denver-Provo sits in the siding, waiting patiently. The train has just met an eastbound BNSF manifest, but now needs to wait for some track repairs that were found by a hyrailer up at Coal Creek Canyon. The crew has been told to get comfortable and expect to wait for at least 90 minutes, and quite probably longer. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108657 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 779 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF In the distance, a westbound BNSF manifest sits in the siding at Rocky while its eastbound counterpart slowly makes its way around Big Ten Curve, descending from Eisele (Clay). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108656 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 1014 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF You have to appreciate the design and engineering that went in to the create of Little Ten and Big Ten curves. In a time before computers or drones, engineers found a way for the tracks to rapidly gain elevation over a very short distance (as the crow flies). An eastbound and a westbound manifest demonstrate the architecture in this shot. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108655 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 768 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A pair of ES44C4s and an SD70ACe lead the Provo-Denver east out of Eisele (Clay) and around Big Ten Loop. Waiting down at Little Ten Loop in the siding at Rocky is the counterpart to the Provo-Denver, the Denver-Provo! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108654 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele (Clay) (5,780 ft) Arvada, CO 745 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF An eastbound BNSF manifest heads down the main at Eisele (Clay) while a westbound BNSF manifest waits for the meet in the siding at Rocky. Due to the geography of the area, both trains are facing geographically south right now. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108653 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, June 3, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Tunnel 1 (MP 23.4, 366 ft) Arvada, CO 798 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF The eastbound BNSF Provo-Denver has a trio of units on the head end as the train rolls east out of Plain and toward the west portal of Tunnel 1. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108652 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, June 2, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS016 (East Rocky) Arvada, CO 831 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The eastbound Zephyr rushes away from the Rocky Mountains and the rapidly setting sun in order to reach Denver and continue on to points east toward Chicago. The just passes a Clear (green) signal at east Rocky and is now headed in to Barbara's Gulch. While you probably cannot tell at first glance in this shot, but the lead unit was one of the 44 P40DCs Amtrak took delivery on. It has since been upgraded to P42DC specs, but it still wears the number of a P40. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108651 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, June 2, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Coal Creek (MP 23) Arvada, CO 833 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Amtrak The eastbound Zephyr wraps around the curve at the base of Coal Creek Canyon, having just descended from Tunnel 1. Mother nature can sometimes be cruel. I had selected this location because it is one of the few spots on the Moffat where you can get an eastbound headed into the sunlight in the evenings. Of course, two minutes before the Zephyr showed up, a large, fluffy cloud floated by and obscured the sun. Two minutes after the Zephyr was gone, the cloud cleared. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108650 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, June 2, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Leyden Arvada, CO 919 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A single SD70ACe brings up the tail end of this east UP coal load as is wraps around the fill into Leyden. The train will enter Bypass 2 at C&S Jct. The inbound crew (currently on the train) will cut out the mid-train swing helpers and leave them on Bypass 1. The outbound crew has been called and will take the train east later in the evening. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108649 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, June 2, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Leyden Arvada, CO 903 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific A shorter-than-normal coal train (79 cars) has resulted in only two mid-train swing helpers instead of the typical three. It does appear that the first mid-train swing helper may have a bit of an issue as it is smoking a bit more that is usual these days. This unit was once an AC6000CW, a 6000 HP unit from the late 90s. When the 6000 HP experiment was essentially deemed a failure (for both GE and EMD), the existing AC6000CWs were downgraded to 4400 HP. They have many different designations now, depending on where you look. I go with "C44/60AC". Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108648 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, June 2, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Leyden Arvada, CO 917 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) Union Pacific When I set out to get a picture of an eastbound this afternoon, I was expecting BNSF's Provo-Denver. I was surprised to find a loaded UP coal train rolling east instead! The train is actually shorter than most coal trains that run on the Moffat. Instead of the normal 105 (give or take) cars, this train was only 79 cars. As a result, there are only two mid-train swing helpers, and you can clearly see the end of the train stretched along the straightaway here alongside CO-72 and Welton Reservoir. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108647 Date Shot Photo By Friday, May 28, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP DS013 (West Leyden) Arvada, CO 837 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A nice, elevated shot of a long Provo-Denver heading east down the main at Leyden. Note the new construction to the left of the train, including a new "Kum & Go" gas station that just opened a week ago. The houses to the left of the train make up the neighborhoods of Five Parks and Whisper Creek. Construction on Five Parks took place around 2000, and Whisper Creek around 2005. In the distance is man-made Stanley Lake. Because the lake is downwind from the former Rocky Flats - a plant that used to build triggers for nuclear bombs - locals often joke that Stanley Lake is home to three-headed fish and glowing plants. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108646 Date Shot Photo By Friday, May 28, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Leyden Arvada, CO 875 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF An exceptionally long BNSF Provo-Denver manifest glides downgrade by two new "self storage" facilities, both built in the last 18 months. In the distance, you can see Welton Reservoir, which was constructed about 20 years ago as a water supply for the ever-increasing population in the Denver-Metro area. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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