I had a business trip to southern California last week and I had a chance to sneak in a day of railfanning at Tehachapi. It's no secret I'm obsessed with this little plot of land, so I created this Ode to honor it. Nothing special photographically, but the Tehachapi foamers among you might enjoy it. :
Saw several trains driving over from Mojave on Thursday morning (4/15), but I'll start the Ode with a long BNSF manifest traversing the Loop. First the obligatory angle: (note the end of the train still crossing the creek below)
The lead units entering Tunnel 10:
The mid-train helpers emerging from Tunnel 10:
A few more trains, then an afternoon lull -- time for some sightseeing....
The mountains start here, just outside Bakersfield: (note that the grass on the south-facing slopes is already turning brown at these lower elevations)
Up close:
Higher in elevation, some interesting lines:
Still higher in elevation, trees and wildflowers (just beyond Tunnel 2):
Back to trains. A UP stack train exits Tunnel 3 and emerges into the late day sun:
I chase it down to Caliente and get this shot of the stacker on the far side of the horseshoe curve (the head of the train is behind me):
In the background, up on Cliff siding about 800' above Caliente, a BNSF manifest is coming down the hill; it will be where the stacker is in about 15 minutes. Meanwhile a BNSF stack train is meeting this UP stacker at the siding in Caliente. Muy Caliente! Some more action into the evening, but the photography is getting poor. Back up at the Loop, I meet a father-son duo who are setting up camp for the night. They offer me dinner. I accept. Thank you Brothers.
Friday morning - overcast. Start off early with a UP rack train heading into the Loop: (the curve really is that sharp and steep)
It's all green through Tunnel 9: (you'd never guess there was a raging inferno in this tunnel less than 2 months ago)
This one is for Warren Buffet:
A stack of racks:
The earthworm emerges from the fog below Tunnel 2:
It moans and groans around the Caliente horseshoe: (this is my favorite train to watch on the hill)
Another interlude:
But not for long:
Later in the morning I head back up towards summit. They're working on track 1 near the Cable crossover, so the southbound UP manifest has to come up track 2:
It takes the crossover for a meet with a northbound waiting just around the curve: (nice to see some lumber loads returning to these trains)
The meet ensues, the noise is thunderous:
Farewell thy Golden State:
It was fun while it lasted.
[The thing that surprised me most about this trip was the number of UP trains: 13 of the 23 I saw were UP, way more than the usual 1:3 UP:BNSF ratio.]
