The venerable ES44AC has the duty of leading the BNSF coal trains on the Joint Line.
BNSF 6382 (ES44AC) runs through the trees at Sedalia, Colorado.
A solid train of double stacks from the west coast crosses over a frozen Lake Ashtabula on the Karnak trestle near Luverne, ND.
A lengthy manifest crosses Peruque Creek coming out of the siding at Gibb, near O'Fallon, Missouri.
The "east local" out of La Crosse rumbles down the Aurora Sub near Genoa. The train will do some cabbing work with dead trains ahead and also local work to Savanna. A couple of easy roll... (more)
As slow as this Q-train was going, I wouldn't be surprised that the date "22" was January date out of Seattle! A 1x1 South Seattle to Chicago intermodal is doing all it can to save fuel ... (more)
A Grand Fork to Kansas City manifest train rolls south along the Mississippi River near Victory on the BNSF Aurora Sub. The train is working towards Galesburg and then west on the Transcon to KC. ... (more)
The Grand Forks to the BRC freight, is rolling down the Aurora Sub along side the Mississippi River. Here the train passes back waters south of Genoa.
The crew on this loaded ore train is happy they didn't have the track washout under them at MP 268.8. Unfortunately, the Z-train an hour behind them wouldn't be as lucky. Now, BNSF has quite a mes... (more)
Yard engines taking the day off
Snow for the day's storm blankets the county road as BNSF 6382 runs a loaded coal train south on the Joint Line through Greenland, Colorado.
A loaded BNSF coal train runs south on the Joint Line through Greenland, Colorado in the last minutes of sun for the day.
BNSF 6382 (ES44AC) leads a loaded coal train through Castle Rock on the Joint Line.
An empty coal train heads north along the UP main 2 track towards Denver on Colorado's Joint Line as the DP motors shove through Acequia.
A Denver, CO to Provo, UT manifest train grinds up the 2.1% grade of Coal Creek Canyon as the headend nears Tunnel 1.
With a fresh crew on board, a westbound loaded coal train departs Sterling off the UP Pass as it begins its trip across eastern Colorado to Denver.
Over 17,600 tons of train are on the drawbar of the two EMD motors as they pull an Eagle Butte Mine, WY to Smithers Lake, TX coal train up the 1.6% grade near the Palmer Lake.
Three GE motors hold back a heavy Spokane, WA to Alliance, TX intermodal Q-train as it descends down the Palmer Divide through Monument. Even though this train is classified as an intermodal train... (more)
A line of BNSF heavy motors runs through the servicing island at the engine facility in Denver, Colorado.
The hottest train on the system, the Willow Springs, IL to North Bay, CA Z1, races down the nearly 1% grade of Walapai at 70 MPH as it hauls 7,200' of train with 36 UPS loads for Northern Californ... (more)
The hot Willow Springs, IL to San Bernardino, CA Z-train races west out of Valentine as it starts to reach track speed of 70 MPH.
An eastbound BNSF coal empty meets a westbound BNSF coal train at Winston, Montana, on September 26, 2007. Montana Rail Link’s 840 local power was used to help the westbound coal load up Winston... (more)
The Chilli Sub was a complete mess on this Monday afternoon. Lots of westbounds were backed up from Niota back thru Stronghurst. A few eastbounds trickled out of Fort Madison keeping things rollin... (more)
BNSF 7828 (ES44DC) leads a freight towards Larkspur, Colorado on the Joint Line.
BNSF 1899 (SD40-2) brings a freight to Denver on the Greeley Sub.
BNSF 1590 (SD40-2) runs long hood forward and drags some stack cars to the yard in Denver, Colorado.
Snow has provided a white backdrop for BNSF 2530 (GP39-3) as it waits for a crew in Longmont, Colorado.
BNSF 6152 (ES44AC) hits the signals at Nixon, Colorado as it heads north on the Joint Line.
A westbound BNSF Q train flies across Bridge 62 at Tuscor, Montana on July 4, 2022. This bridge spans the inlet for Swamp Creek into the Clark Fork on Montana Rail Link’s Fourth Subdivision.
A beat up Santa Fe warbonnet leads HGALBRC by the Amtrak depot at Plano, IL.
BNSF 6258 (ES44AC) runs an empty coal towards Keenesburg, Colorado and into a golden sunrise.
BNSF 3127 (GP50) waits in the engine servicing yard for its turn in the Denver Yard. Also visible is the special cars for fighting fires along the tracks. These were not needed this year, thankf... (more)
BNSF 6893 provides rear end support as a DPU on an eastbound grain empty traveling through the Little Blackfoot River valley east of Garrison on its way to Mullan Pass and Helena on Montana Rail L... (more)
A BNSF yard job takes headroom towards the BRC as an eastbound suburban takes the signal at Cicero. In the foreground is the former Manufactures Junction Railway which lost its last customer some... (more)
A BNSF grain train reflects in the Missouri River as it traces the banks of the Missouri River through Lombard Canyon just west of Lombard, Montana, on the clear afternoon of September 22, 2009. T... (more)
Snow from the day before covers BNSF 2530 (GP39-3) and the historic Longmont Depot in Colorado.
An empty grain shuttle rolls east on Montana Rail Link's former BN/NP mainline through Lombard Canyon just southeast of Toston, MT. The Missouri River winds through the canyon, just downstream fro... (more)
BNSF's version of the "Salad Shooter" is the Stockton, CA to Willow Springs, IL Z-train. With containers filled with frozen goods, what makes this train stand out over the rest of interm... (more)
Climbing out of Ludlow towards Ash Hill, five GE locomotives notch up as they hustle 73 UPS loads on a hot LA to Willow Srpings, IL Z6.
A powered up Willow Springs, IL to San Bernardino, CA Z-train has no issues doing track speed of 50 MPH up the 1.4% grade of Ash Hill near East Siberia.
BNSF priority intermodal races east near Denair Ca. on a cold Friday afternoon.
As BNSF Railway ethanol unit train U-HERWAT7-22A makes its way to Watson, near the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, from Hereford, Texas, it meets BNSF train B-LACLAC6-26D (Los Angeles to Full... (more)
A BNSF stack train runs south on the Joint Line through Palmer Lake, Colorado.
Ouachita Nightfall | Descending the Rich Mountain grade in the heart of the Ouachita Mountains, a southbound coal train passes through the community of Eagleton, AR on a cool Saturday, Nove... (more)
BNSF coal empties on the 'new' alignment west of Branson
BNSF 5233 leads two more GE's east on a stack train along the Wenatchee River at the confluence of Peshastin Creek near Dryden, WA. The train is about 20 minutes out of Wenatchee, the first crew c... (more)
H-GALMEM crossing the Cuivre River on a cold day, which was causing air pressure problems with the train.
BNSF 9297 wears BNSF's initial experimental "Heritage" orange and green paint scheme. It featured a solid 3" red pinstripe that separated the orange and Brunswick green along the right carbody... (more)
BNSF 4298 leads a intermodal West through Hinsdale.
BNSF 7735 (ES44DC) whips up the snow as it catches a ride with four other BNSF units on the Brush Sub.
Snow is falling as a pair of BNSF Geep 39-3's leads three heavies in a light move to Denver through Tonville, Colorado on the Brush Sub.
A Willow Springs, IL to North Bay, CA Z-train begins to gain speed as it clears the permeant 55 MPH speed restriction at Valentine. For the next 30 miles, this hotshot UPS train will be doing all ... (more)
A high priority BNSF westbound with FedEx and stacks races to the west coast as it nears Arizona.
BNSF 6928 leads a JB Hunt stack train through Colorado Springs, Colorado on the Joint Line.
A trio of BNSF engines pay a visit to the Union Pacific's North Yard in Denver, Colorado.
A trio of BNSF engines sit in the Union Pacific's North Yard in Denver, Colorado.
G415 with a colorful lash-up and BNSF 9525 in the lead has just completed a crew change while CSX 968 & 5375 cruise by pulling a westbound K-Train.
On the west end of CSX DeWitt Yard, G415 an empty grain train lead by BNSF 9525, prepares to depart while CSX 668 in-charge of an intermodal thats just arrived creeps up alongside and is about to ... (more)
BNSF 5331 East, near Chana, IL, 10/25/13
The coldest day I ever railfanned was out on the BNSF Transcon near Marceline, Missouri. A long-awaited westbound stack train passed under highway 36 so I could run back to the warmth of the car.
BNSF ACe 8538 shoves an empty coal train through the girder bridge in Nixon, Colorado.
BNSF 6928 (ES44C4) runs south on the Joint Line towards Colorado Springs, Colorado.
BNSF 7131 leads a grain train through Evaro on MRL's 10th sub.
BNSF 7158 leads an eastbound manifest train out of Logan towards Bozeman and points east.
BNSF 7147 (ES44C4) passes under the RTD Commuter Rail line that runs out to Thornton, Colorado.
BNSF 1899 (SD40-2) leads a freight towards Denver, Colorado on the Brush Sub.
Monday, Nov. 20th, was the official start of "Peak Season". From now till Christmas Eve, supply chain companies will see their highest volume of packages of the year. To tackle this logi... (more)
An EMD SD70MAC and a GE AC4400CW bring up the rear of a Smithers Lake, TX-bound coal train as it crest the 7,200' summit of the Palmer Divide as Palmer Lake, CO.
A new locomotive passes under an old signal bridge. Unfortunately, these old signals are gone now.
Its' Throwback Thursday at the BNSF engine servicing facility as 1656 (SD40-2) waits for service or assignment.
BNSF 7828 (ES44DC) runs south on the Joint Line, leaving Castle Rock and heading towards Larkspur, Colorado.
BNSF 4119 leads an auto rack train around the sharp curve at Windy Point, MT. Between snow sheds 6 and 7 on the west side of Marias Pass, this is near a location known as Snowslip, presumably in r... (more)
There are some storms brewing to the north as an eastbound BNSF coal train rumbles through the massive cut at East Stokes, Wyoming, on June 21, 2020. In the spring of 1998, BNSF daylighted Sunset ... (more)
Norfolk Southern train 98Z crosses the Chattahoochee River, from Phenix City, AL, into Columbus, GA, with a BNSF warbonnet leading a 32-car Herzog ballast train for loading at a nearby rock mine i... (more)
BNSF 6582 rolls down Curtis Hill through Curve 41.
BNSF 5831 & 9105 lead an eastbound loaded coal train.
The crew of BNSF 2549 (GP39-3) makes a stop at the Longmont Depot to add some water before heading to the yard.
BNSF 6928 (ES44C4) leads a stack train through the S curve in Monument, Colorado.
The crew on BNSF Railway train M-BARLAC1-05A has their sun visors down as the train heads west into the setting sun on its way from Barstow CA to Hobart Yard in Los Angeles. BNSF ES44DCs 7718, 77... (more)
Pond is an unincorporated community in California's Kern County, in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley. It is located 8.5 miles (14 km) north of Wasco. Pond was established around 1889, and a p... (more)
BNSF 6015 strains to pull a loaded coal train around the horseshoe curve in Palmer Lake, Colorado.
BNSF 6928 (ES44C4) leads a stack train through the trees at Palmer Lake on the Joint Line.
BNSF 8538 (SD70ACe) muscles a coal train towards a girder bridge in Nixon, Colorado.
There are a number of original Rio Grande bridges on the Joint Line between Larkspur and Monument, Colorado. BNSF 6928 (ES44C4) leads runs over one in Monument as it heads south on the Joint Line... (more)
BNSF 6928 (ES44C4) leads a stack train through Nixon, Colorado on its way to Pueblo.
BNSF manifest through Allard on a hazy afternoon.
A northbound mixed freight prepares to enter the horseshoe at South Folsom
Another northbound hopper train climbs out of Folsom into Oak Canyon on its way towards Trinidad
An empty Georgia Power coal train from Plant Scherer exits Oak Canyon on its way north on the Twin Peaks Sub. This train would usually run through Kansas City and Alliance but due to severe floodi... (more)
