A Montana Rail Link work train is westbound in the Jefferson River Canyon between Sappington and Whitehall, Montana, on June 26, 2016. Two MRL SD40s (rebuilt and labeled SD40-2XRs) Nos. 257 and 264 power the train, which includes ballast cars for loading at the Spire Rock ballast pit—the current end of track on MRL’s Fifth Subdivision. The trackless grade on the other side of the river is that of Milwaukee Road’s Pacific Extension.
