Hauling an empty coal train out of the now idled Argus Cogeneration Plant in Trona, CA, TRC SD40-2 #2008, recently acquired UP SD60 #2159, and TRC SD40T-2 #2004 throttle their way past the Pinnacles on their way to the UP interchange in Searles, CA. Six months later in February of 2026, the Argus plant would be idled, effectively cutting about 55% of their employees. For a brief moment Trona was running little to no trains, and now runs on a skewed schedule, completely different from what once was. The future for the railway remains unknown, with various rumors spreading around always seemingly changing by the week. I certainly don’t regret my three outings out there from the east coast as I probably won’t ever get a chance to revisit one of my favorite railroads in the country.
Trona is the railroad that got me back into shooting freight trains, so it'll always hold a special place to me. Here are any photos I've captured of TRC trains operating in the Mojave Desert
