A former Electro-Motive Division Oakway leasing SD60 speeds past the former DMIR depot at Saginaw, Minnesota with a limestone empty train. Steve Smedley photo
A nice, clean 5411 and two SD40-2Ws bring limestone loads north out of Saginaw.
Snow falls as a healthy consist leads the MRF south towards Proctor (only two units on-line, the rest headed to Proctor for balance of power or repairs/inspections). Leading the train was CN GP40-... (more)
Crews exchange greetings as an empty limestone train passes a stopped empty ore train north of Proctor.
Spring melt provides some reflections on a snowy winter.
A trio a B&LE units look good together as they roll southbound down the Missabe Subdivision with U.S. Steel Minntac taconite pellets steaming away behind them as they head for Proctor.
With a seemingly endless train of ore cars in tow, the infamous (and rare!) trio Bessemer motors thunders down the Missabe towards the Iron Range.
A pellet train from United Taconite rolls through Saginaw and north Coons as they continue towards Proctor. The lack of snow so far this year probably has more to do with no visible snowmobile tr... (more)
BLE 906 and BLE 904 lead 141 ore empties all out through Saginaw.
A classic "hotbox" on a loaded ore car that was caught by a detector. The train is stopped and the crew will place this quad on the set-out track near the Saginaw depot. Journal oil fires are just... (more)
An ore car that will be 60 years old next year is still earning its keep for CN.
CN and LORAM have been busy replacing rails, ties and ballast. These empties kick up fresh ballast dust heading north.
Stacks on the Missabe?!? In the woids of Slip Mahoney, "My eyes must be receivin' me."
The Missabe was always known for having very well maintained rail and ballast. After the CN takeover, things went downhill. Just a few weeks ago an engineer remarked that he was amazed the Missabe... (more)
The death stars soldier on hauling ore as the IC 6251 leads a sister and newly painted SD40-2W north on a slow moving empty for U-Tac