An eastbound Southern Pacific hauler departs the West Colton Yard and rounds the balloon track. (All trains depart eastbound, with the Los Angeles-bound trains rounding this 360º curve to revers... (more)

Yes, it's the desert ... Just look at the Joshua Tree! On a bright January 1988 day, Amtrak train #35, the now-discontinued Desert Wind, threads its way through Cajon Pass's Mormon Rocks a... (more)

When snow comes to Cajon Pass, southern California's railfan descend upon the area in order to get photos for next winter's Christmas cards. In January 1988, a westbound Santa Fe train, in the ch... (more)

The summit of southern California's Cajon Pass is about 3770' in elevation, high enough that it receives snow several times per year - anything from a light dusting to heavier snow that lasts seve... (more)

A Santa Fe westbound rounds the curve on its approach to Cajon Pass's Blue Cut on a snowy January 1988 day. The power on this train is a pair of SD40-2s, and SD45 and an F45.

A Union Pacific freight passes through Cajon, in (where else?) Cajon Pass, on a gray April 1995 day. The fourth engine, UP 3300, painted for the United Way charity, adds a touch of color to the s... (more)

A Santa Fe GP60M in the iconic Superfleet scheme leads a freight down Cajon Pass in April 1995. Time was running out for the Santa Fe, as a merger with the Burlington Northern was less than two y... (more)

A typically motley assortment of power at Southern Pacific's West Colton Yard in Bloomington, California, on August 31, 1988: SP SD40T-2 8315 (in the "Kodachrome" scheme for the ill-fated SPSF me... (more)

A typically eclectic mix of Southern Pacific power (SD40, SD45, SD45T-2) brings a westbound freight into the Industry Yard in (where else?) the City of Industry, California, on July 2, 1979.

All trains assembled in Southern Pacific's large West Colton Yard, in Bloomington, California, depart eastbound. Here we see a westbound negotiating the reverse curve used for trains heading to L... (more)

Four GE Dash 8-39B diesels, with one EMD Tunnel Motor, bring a double-stack container train into Southern Pacific's Dolores Yard in Carson, California, on August 22, 1988.

A westbound Santa Fe freight slams across the diamonds at Colton, home still (at this time) to the wooden Colton Tower, which controls the Santa Fe / Southern Pacific crossing. The ATSF train is ... (more)

Upon reaching the summit of Cajon Pass, at Highland (on SP's Palmdale Cutoff), this westbound SP train had to stop and line the switch to enter the siding for a meet. Cotton Belt SD45 8980 and th... (more)

A Southern Pacific westbound approaches the large West Colton Yard in Bloomington, California, with a typically eclectic late-1970s consist that includes U33C, SD40T-2, SD45 and SD45T-2 models. I... (more)

Running with a clean stack, which is probably a disappointment to the Pentrex cameraman, Santa Fe 4-8-4 3751 hustles the special to the Grand Canyon westbound through the Victorville Narrows in so... (more)