UP6031 twists thru the 10 degree curves of Coal Creek Canyon. It is an unrelenting 50+ mile climb to the Moffat Tunnel. The toughest section of grade is between Leyden and Plainview. The Moffat i... (more)

Utah 5001 climbs into the beginning of the 2%+ near Castle Gate. In a couple miles the grade will increase to a ruling 2.4%, but this Utah Load will still make excellent time with 11 high horsepow... (more)

BNSF 9179 is shiny and new, as the last rays of sunshine light up Skyline Trestle. There was only 15 minutes of light left as the head-end passed over the trestle. On the rear and swing are man... (more)

UP7490 pulls Hindman hill with a westbound intermodal in tow. The head-end of the train sits on a 1% grade while about half-way back in the photo grades drop off on a mountainous 2.2%.

DRGW 12633 rests at Granger Wyoming on a cold January Morning. This car is noteworthy for being the only DRGW hopper repainted into Southern Pacific's speed lettering paint scheme. It also has not... (more)

Looking thru my slides I certainly shot a handful of trains at Mitchell. Here is another coal load climbing the 3% on a Colorado July Morning. Note the new CTRN hoppers.

The first 1/2 of the grade from Minturn to Red Cliff could go head to head with any of the toughest grades in the USA. From Red Cliff west however there is a clear winner, a long twisting high al... (more)

A battle worn Tunnel Motor screams up the 3% with a heavy lumber train.

A meet on Crawford Hill.

The 6000HP SD90MACs had a short career. Perhaps the most challenging was at the end of their lives battling the Tehachapi Mountains. On this April morning two of these beasts lift a heavy lumber... (more)

SP347 thunders out of the 3% onto the "level" near Pando....

From the precarious perch high above Little Gore Canyon an eastbound load of Colorado coal tackles the 1% grade along the Colorado River.

A SP tunnel motor leads a westbound hotshot upgrade near Granite, CO.

Amtrak exits tunnel 26 deep inside South Boulder canyon. This was the site of a horrible wreck that occurred in 1991 that took the lives of two crewman. A memorial is at the tunnel. The plaque c... (more)

High in the Front Range of the Rockies 2 SD70M's struggle with a short ballast train. The train doesn't look like much, but it has these two SD70Ms down to a crawl....