Photo ID: 108605 Date Shot Photo By Monday, May 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Simms Street Arvada, CO 875 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF About five years ago, BNSF experimented with a rebuild program in association with Progress Rail. A total of 24 SD70MACs were give brand new electronics and traction motors. Their designation was changed from "SD70MAC" to "SD70MACe". Not sure the reasoning, but it appears those 24 units were the only ones to go through the program. BNSF 9730 is one of the two dozen units to receive the rebuild (and a fresh coat of paint, going from the Heritage 2 scheme to the New Image scheme). Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108604 Date Shot Photo By Monday, May 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Simms Street Arvada, CO 755 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF It has been a particularly wet spring along the Front Range here in Colorado. No complaints from me as the moisture is really starting to green up the entire Denver-metro area! A pair of mid-train 70-series mid-train swing helpers roll by nose-to-nose in this BNSF coal train. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108603 Date Shot Photo By Monday, May 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Simms Street Arvada, CO 799 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF BNSF continues to be the railroad that runs the most trains on UP's Moffat Tunnel Subdivision. Here, an eastbound BNSF coal load, which loaded in Utah, rolls east near the Simms Street grade crossing just east of Leyden. This is actually one of two BNSF coal loads on the Moffat at the time of this shot. The second was just out of Grand Junction. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108602 Date Shot Photo By Monday, May 10, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Simms Street Arvada, CO 782 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF An eastbound BNSF coal load rolls east on the main just east of Leyden. Although not super common, BNSF does sometimes load coal trains in Utah and run them over the Moffat via their trackage rights. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108601 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, April 29, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Chemical (MP 14.5) Arvada, CO 801 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF BNSF 7350 passes by what used to be Chemical at the east end of Barbara's Gulch. Until a few years ago, Mesa Oil was located here, right off the Moffat. They ended up becoming very unhappy with the service UP was providing and moved to another location in Denver. There, they are serviced by the short line Denver and Rock Island. The rumor I heard was that UP was refusing to bring the west local out to Mesa Oil more than once a week. A year or two after Mesa Oil left, UP removed the frog for the switch that runs up the spur...a spur that very possibly will never be used again. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108600 Date Shot Photo By Thursday, April 29, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Barbara's Gulch (MP 15.9 to MP 17.2) Arvada, CO 866 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF At the east end of Barbara's Gulch, BNSF's Provo-Denver slowly makes its way east over the final few miles in to Denver. As is usually the case, the Provo-Denver appears to be well-blocked. It also looks like spring might finally be breaking through along the front range! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108597 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crescent (5,550 ft) Boulder County, CO 1009 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF An ES44AC and two SD70ACes bring up the tail end of a westbound coal empty at Crescent. Due to the thick fog and crazy winter weather (near the end of April), the train will quickly disappear in to the mist as it continues its journey west. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108596 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crescent (5,550 ft) Boulder County, CO 938 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF This westbound coal empty consists of bathtub gondolas with rotary couplers. All of the gons are either BNSF or BN. What is particularly interesting is that the symbol for the train suggests that it is in fact a UP train. Despite having all BNSF power and BN/BNSF gondolas... Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108595 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Crescent (5,550 ft) Boulder County, CO 906 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF Ten days until May! Really mother nature!? Colorado loves drawing out winter as long as it possibly can, as you can seen here. A BNSF coal empty heads west through thick fog on the main at Crescent. Despite being a month in to spring, there is a few inches of snow on the ground and it is only 30°F (-1°C) outside. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108594 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Eisele (Clay) (5,780 ft) Arvada, CO 811 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A BNSF coal empty makes its way west on the main at Eisele (Clay). If you look in the distance to the left, you can see a trio of BNSF units bringing up the end of the train. The train is heading for the Axial mine on the Craig Branch. Presumably, the train will pull straight in under the loader and then head back east with the three units leading the train and the two units here bringing up the rear. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108593 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Big Ten Curve (MP 19.5 to MP 20.2) Arvada, CO 816 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A pair of ES44ACs lead a westbound BNSF coal empty out of Rocky and up Big Ten Loop. The train is heading toward the Axial mine at the west end of the Craig Branch. While there have been BNSF trains on the Moffat in the past, they will go to Utah to load on the Utah Railway. Believe this is the first BNSF coal train to load on the Craig Branch. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108592 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Leyden Arvada, CO 892 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF On a rather gloomy Wednesday morning, a rather unique test train shows up west of Leyden. The train is doing a test run, loading at Axial mine on the Craig Branch! From there, it will run to a power plant in Tucson, AZ. That plant typically receives coal from New Mexico, but if the mine likes the Colorado coal from Axial, then there is a chance this train could be seen more often on the Moffat! Note: The train symbol CGJGJ is something of a mystery as the train is loading at Axial! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108591 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 792 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF Compare and contrast! Two C44-9Ws are nose-to-nose and this shot gives a good look at the original Heritage scheme, which was not used for long, and the Heritage 2 scheme, which was widely used on C44-9Ws and SD70MACs. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108590 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 770 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF The BNSF merger occurred 26 years ago and the original "Heritage" scheme showed up not long after. In 2021, there are still quite a few of these Heritage-painted C44-9Ws roaming BNSF's system. These units are referred to as "Goat Boats". The "goat" refers to the Great Northern railroad, which largely inspired the Heritage paint scheme. Great Northern used a goat in their logo. The "boat" refers to the old nickname of GE engines as "U-Boats" in the 1970s. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 108589 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, April 21, 2021 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Leyden (7,020ft) Arvada, CO 760 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Moffat Tunnel (UP) BNSF A GP35 that has undergone a rebuild and is now a GP39-3 is the fourth unit on the Provo-Denver, sitting in the siding at Leyden. The unit is most likely one of the BNSF switchers either at Grand Junction or Provo and is probably due for a 90-day inspection in Denver. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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