Machinist Tony Bueno uses a fusee to thaw out frozen grease caps on Rio Grande SD40T-2 No. 5371 in the small enginehouse at Helper, Utah, on a frigid December 1, 2004. Once the caps are off, he wi... (more)

By this date in 2002, there were only seven Rio Grande SD40T-2 Tunnel Motors still working the Union Pacific system in original paint and numbers. While sister motors Nos. 5349, 5354 and 5356 wand... (more)

Rio Grande EMD SD40T-2 Nos. 5390, 5377 and 5401 power the westbound LJP45 “dirt train” just east of Mounds, Utah, on the Sunnyside Branch on May 22, 2002.

Rounding the broad curve leaving Maxwell, Utah, is Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” on a pretty May 4, 2004. On this day, three Rio Grande “Tunnel Motor” SD40T-2s bracket a yellow SD60... (more)

Clearing a slow order east of Wash, Utah, westbound Union Pacific LJP45 “dirt train” powered by three Rio Grande SD40T-2s belches black smoke crossing Bridge 607.46 on October 8, 2004.

Heading up the Sunnyside Branch on October 25, 2007, Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” is led by Rio Grande SD40T-2 No. 5371, with wrinkled paint and weathered Rio Grande logo still emblazo... (more)

Powered by four Rio Grande Tunnel Motors, Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” departs Wellington Canyon and heads eastbound into the desert east of Wash, Utah, on July 27, 2002.

Rio Grande SD40T-2 Tunnel Motors are parked at mile 14.4 on the Sunnyside Branch as the crew of Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” local has lunch on October 6, 2004. Parked next the locomot... (more)

Union Pacific’s LJP45 local crew switches the yard at Helper, Utah, on a crisp February 8, 2005. Normally, this local hauled contaminated dirt and municipal trash (and other waste) to a landfill... (more)

With snow still falling on a stormy-looking Bookcliffs in the background, westbound Union Pacific “dirt train” local LJP45 rolls into brilliant sunshine as it passes the east switch at Banning... (more)

In really nice springtime weather, the crew of Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” has lunch at the Valdez Drive-In at East Carbon, Utah, on May 4, 2004. As food is prepared, a couple of loca... (more)

On May 4, 2004, Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” local approaches Mounds, Utah, westbound on the Sunnyside Branch. Rio Grande SD40T-2 “Tunnel Motors” Nos. 5349, 5371 and 5390 bracket U... (more)

Union Pacific’s LJP45 “dirt train” local crosses Bridge 607.28 east of Wash on January 30, 2003. Four aging, but more than capable, Rio Grande Tunnel Motors power the train; Nos. 5354, 5390,... (more)

In an unusual visit to the west slope of the Wasatch Mountains, Union Pacific’s LJP45 local exits Thistle Tunnel on the long climb to Soldier Summit on May 5, 2004. Three Rio Grande SD40T-2 “T... (more)

It really does snow in the desert, as this scene on Union Pacific’s Green River Subdivision in Utah illustrates. A short UP LJP45 local, also known as the “dirt train,” is about to pass over... (more)