Photo ID: 113950 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont to Crossover 419.8 Dawes County, NE 14 (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 13 (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 11 (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 13 (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 14 (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 17 (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 14 (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. Photo ID: 113943 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont Dawes County, NE 13 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF The setting sun is just barely high enough to light BNSF 2026 on Main 1 at Belmont at the top of Crawford Hill. The train will continue west a few more miles before the crew will switch ends to return the train back to Alliance. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113942 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont Dawes County, NE 15 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF Could not ask for better lighting as BNSF 1776 and BNSF 3336 reach the top of Crawford Hill on BNSF's Butte Subdivision. This is the final of four Employee Appreciation Specials (two yesterday, and two today). This final run departed Alliance just over an hour earlier, arriving here just after 7pm. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113941 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Belmont Dawes County, NE 14 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF BNSF 1776 just knocked down a green signal at the crossover of Belmont at the top of Crawford Hill. The sun is approaching the horizon, offering up some golden light on the red, white, and blue unit. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113940 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Niobrara River Box Butte County, NE 12 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF While BNSF has not followed other Class 1 railroads in repainting some engines in a "heritage" scheme, they painted two units that look extremely classy for the semiquincentnnial celebration of the United States. The two units are numbered 1776 and 2026, with 2026 seen here on the east end of a BNSF Employee Appreciation Special, crossing the Niobrara River near Marsland, NE. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113939 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Niobrara River Box Butte County, NE 10 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF A few clouds hang in the sky as BNSF 1776 and BNSF 3336 cross the Niobrara River on Main 1 on the journey west on the Butte Sub on the east slope of Crawford Hill. The train is an Employee Appreciation Special, which BNSF runs from time to time. BNSF employees and their families were welcome to board the train in Alliance, NE for a trip over Crawford Hill. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113937 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Alliance to Berea Box Butte County, NE 12 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF At this time of year, the 6pm departure from Alliance resulted in some absolutely fantastic light on BNSF 1776 as it heads timetable west (geographically northwest) on the Butte Sub toward Crawford Hill. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113918 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Alliance to Berea Box Butte County, NE 15 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF BNSF 2026 is leading a mix of former Burlington Northern and Santa Fe passenger equipment a few mile west of Alliance. A pivot is currently running, showering growing crops in water under partly cloudy skies. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture. Photo ID: 113917 Date Shot Photo By Sunday, May 31, 2026 Kevin Morgan Location Times Viewed Niobrara River Dawes County, NE 12 (Add a Comment) Subdivision Railroad Butte (BNSF) BNSF A cloud rolled in and cast a huge shadow on the Niobrara River bridge just before BNSF's Employee Appreciate Special showed up. However, the going away shot just to the east of the bridge was not a bad view at all, as seen in this shot. Email Questions or Comments to the Webmaster or add a comment to the picture.

Next Page