Western Railroad Discussion > HQ sound of roaring coal trains at Palmer Lake, CO

This video follows up from a previous one showing two trains following each other closely on the Joint Line: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,2558488

The first train is seen coming down the very strange track profile where I've heard there used to be a bridge. The second is shown at Palmer lake, just about done with the grade. The third train I decided to take pictures of the head end - and failed, due to glint, see above - but decided to get the video+sound of the DPU.

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I have to go on a road trip!
Roger Beckett

Nice series of videos! Always good to see all EMD consists working hard, too.

inRVA Wrote:

> The first train is seen coming down the very
> strange track profile where I've heard there used
> to be a bridge.

Yup, back before the Joint Line was joint, and D&RGW and Santa Fe were operating their parallel single tracks independently, the Santa Fe had a flyover there at Spruce and two others at Sedalia and Fountain. This is what the one in Sedalia looked like:

http://douglascountyhistory.org/images/687519.jpg

The flyovers were eliminated and the tracks stitched together in 1918 when the joint operation commenced.

Good job catching the high purity "four nines" SD70MAC.

Evan_Werkema Wrote:
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> The flyovers were eliminated and the tracks
> stitched together in 1918 when the joint operation
> commenced.

Just to add a little bit, those who are astute at dates will recognize that 1918 was during World War I, when the United States Railroad Administration took control of the nation's railroads in order to keep war supplies and other railroad traffic moving. They looked at the two railroads running between Denver and Pueblo, crisscrossing each other at several places, and realized they could kill two birds with one stone by eliminating the bridges and creating a double main line. First, increase rail capacity by being able to run directionally, and second salvage steel from the unneeded bridges for the war effort.