The first snow of the season in Minnesota has started to fall. The trains still run and the world moves on. Here the raw taconite from the mine moves south down the Missabe Subdivision to the pr... (more)

DMIR 401 and 409 motor south through Iron Junction on a loaded T-Bird. This was just 3 months before the 401 was totaled in a head-on-collision near Two Harbors.

I was told that DMIR 212 had been working Two Harbors for quite some time, but when I was at Iron Junction it had been stuck onto a T-Bird. Even though it is no longer maroon and gold, it is still... (more)

A colorful consist leads 98 taconite cars back from Fairlane to Largo to load more rock at United Taconite's north crusher.

One of only two remaining DM&IR units in maroon pulls and empty T-Bird back to the Thunderbird Mine.

A pair of B&LE units assigned to the former Missabe prepare to shove back and begin loading taconite rock at United Taconite's north Fairlane load-out pocket on a nice spring evening.

Although not rare, it is quite unusual to catch both of the B&LE tunnel motors assigned to the Missabe on a train together without a CN-painted unit in the consist. Here 903 and 909 lead an empty... (more)

Can't believe only two Maroon and Gold units remain...

A hopper train is seen in the distance rolling north on the former Missabe as the DMIR 403 leads raw taconite to the processing plant.

Raw taconite shuttles meet at Largo. The DMIR 403 will take the loads south while a pair of repainted tunnel motor body SD40's lead empties into the plant for loading.

One of two remaining Maroon and Gold DMIR locomotives leads a raw taconite train enroute to Unitac where it will be processed into taconite pellets. For some reason the train went into emergency ... (more)

Nothing like a good ol' fashion TRAIN RACE! Limestone empties are overtaking a loaded raw taconite shuttle south of Forbes as both trains click and clack over the line with their shorty cars. Th... (more)

On a crisp and cool second day of spring the DM&IR 405 and DM&IR 407 team up to move taconite rock southward rolling over the somewhat swollen almost ice free St. Louis river.

The DM&IR 403 and Illinois Central 6257 pass over the mostly ice free St. Louis River on a crisp spring morning with 72 loads of taconite rock for the United Taconite plant.

The last maroon 400-series tunnel motor leads a raw ore train towards the Fairlane processing plant of United Taconite.