Amtrak’s “Phase I Heritage” locomotive, GE P42DC No. 156, pilots the eastbound California Zephyr around Big 10 Curve west of Rocky, Colorado, on the afternoon of June 1, 2014. Nice, clean air provides a good look at Denver in the background. On my hike up to this location, stepping on numerous rocks through the tall grass, I thought I stepped on a rock that looked like a “cow pie,” but it sure felt strange. After a couple more steps, I turned around to find a now pissed off rattlesnake flailing around, rattling like mad, looking for who woke him from an afternoon nap. I stepped directly onto his head when he was coiled up, surely preventing a bite! After Amtrak went by, I found a slightly different route off the slope…
