Photo ID: 105155 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 3, 2015 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Watkins Watkins, CO 1388 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific There is a long curve and nice wooden bridge just a few miles west of Watkins, CO. There is some rain in the area as the next week is predicted to bring a LOT of precipitation in Colorado. The train is moving at a descent clip...in fact, if you look closely, you can see a bit of coal dust blowing off the hoppers on the left side of the shot. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 105154 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 3, 2015 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed West of Watkins Watkins, CO 1528 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific An eastbound coal train just west of Watkins, CO has an eastern visitor helping out on the point. It was good to frame up a coal train in the viewfinder as it is getting harder to find and shoot coal train, particularly UP coal trains, in the Denver area. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104848 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, October 1, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP K627 (West Mesa) Aurora, CO 1487 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific This eastbound coal load is slowly approaching a red signal at the west switch of Mesa. The conductor was copying a new track warrant from DS-86, and a green signal would shortly follow. The bridge in the distance is new and will carry the commuter rail line north to Denver International Airport. A major fall thunderstorm is moving in to town from the west. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104847 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, October 1, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed MP 634.5 (Sandown) Denver, CO 1465 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific This scene shows another example of the large amounts of construction. The bridge and track this coal load is on was here five years ago. The other bridges and three tracks were not. Once activated, UP will have two main tracks here, both controlled by CTC (instead of the track warrants the currently control it). The two rails in the background are commuter rail tracks that will be activated in 2016. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104846 Date Shot Photo By Wednesday, October 1, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed MP 634.5 (Sandown) Denver, CO 1415 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific Just as on the northwest side of Denver, there is a lot of construction going on along the east side as well. Commuter rails are being constructed between Denver Union Station and Denver International Airport. Much of the commuter rail trackage parallels UPs Limon Sub. UP is also adding a second main track for several miles as well as CTC to part of the Limon Sub. Here, a UP coal load heads east on what will become Main 1 once the second main is brought in to service. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104581 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Roydale Denver, CO 1498 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific Just west of Roydale (and Havana Street), we see the progress on the construction of Main 2 on the Limon Sub. This second main will be about four miles long, paralleling the existing main to the right. The addition of this main, as well as CTC, will make it much easier for through trains to get around locals that frequently work the existing main track. In the distance, you can see the relatively new Central Park Blvd overpass just a bit east of Ulster Street (and the old Sandown Junction). Once upon a time, this shot would have contained a tunnel (for the tracks) underneath the north/south runways of Stapleton International Airport! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104580 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Roydale Aurora, CO 1371 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific When RTD approached UP and asked to build the "East Line" along the Limon Sub right-of-way, UP had a few conditions. Specifically, they are getting CTC installed between the yard in Denver and Mesa. A stretch of about nine miles. In addition, a second main track is being added between the yard at Roydale (about four miles). There are several locals that work between Denver and Roydale and the addition of the second main will allow through trains to get through the limits much easier and faster. In this shot, you can see new signals - not yet fully installed or activated - near the west end of Roydale at Havana Street. Here, the second main will go back down to a single main. The track closest to the photographer is not yet active, but will become Main 2 once it is active. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104577 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1715 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific The crew on board this westbound coal train sits patiently in the cab of the sole leader, waiting on the arrival of a van to drive them the rest of the way in to town to North Yard. Another crew will take the train the rest of the way to Denver so additional power can be added for the trip west to the mine. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104576 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1422 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific When one (or both) of the bypass tracks are open at North Yard, DS-86 will generally take westbound coal empties to one of the two tracks to tie down. However, when the tracks are not available, westbounds will generally tie down either in the siding of Sable or Mesa. Such was the case on this day as this westbound empty, led by a single C44AC-CTE, ties down in the siding at Mesa. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104575 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1740 (1 Comment Posted) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific I'm always a sucker for a roster shot of an EMD unit! Even when said EMD unit is a (not-so-aesthetically pleasing) SD70ACe. Not to say that I think they are ugly; they have grown on me. But they still don't match up to a spartan cab...or even the wide cab on an SD70M. It is somewhat hard to believe that it has been nearly 10 years since these units were being "sent through the wringer" by EMD. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104574 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1512 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific While most of the major rail lines in to and out of Denver have changed ownership (as the result of mergers) over the course of the past 30 years, the KP line has not. 30 years ago, this was UP's line to Denver from the east and that is still the case today. The line operates under track warrants with some CTC "islands" at seven sidings along the 200 mile stretch from Denver, CO to Sharon Springs, KS. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104573 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1788 (1 Comment Posted) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific This is probably my favorite shot of the day. A light dusting of snow from flurries over the weekend remains on the ground as the eastbound MDVSI (Manifest, Denver to Salina, KS) cruises along just east of Mesa with a warrant to MP 595, right at Byers, CO. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104572 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1314 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific The dispatcher set up a perfect meet at Mesa between a westbound coal empty (to the right, in the siding) and an eastbound manifest (to the left, on the main). The coal empty would ultimately tie down here in the siding as there was no spot for it (yet) on either of the bypass tracks at North Yard. The manifest is the daily MDVSI and would continue east to Salina, KS. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104571 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, March 2, 2014 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Mesa (8,880ft) Aurora, CO 1443 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific While loaded coal trains can be some of the heaviest trains on a railroad, empty coal trains can be some of the lightest. This westbound empty, entering the siding at Mesa, has a pair of units for power. They are distributed and running in a 1x0x1 setup! Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 104495 Date Shot Photo By Saturday, October 19, 2013 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed CP K627 (West Mesa) Denver, CO 2012 (2 Comments Posted) Subdivision Railroad Limon (UP) Union Pacific, Regional Transportation District Just a short distance west of the west switch of Mesa, construction on a new overpass for EMU commuter rail is making progress. Once complete, this bridge will be nearly 5,000 feet long! It is here that the commuter rail will leave the UP right of way and swing north, crossing the track, Airport Blvd, 32nd Avenue and I-70. This 22.8 mile long line from Union Station to Denver International Airport is scheduled to open in 2016. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

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