Western Railroad Discussion > Mexicali Mx FXE Action From Yesterday..

Yesterday TO member natemuhl as well as myself headed across the border into Mexicali Mx to see what we could catch running on the old FC Sonora Baja California mainline south of Mexicali. I had never chased the FXE on a Saturday and was curious to see how busy the railroad was on weekends. Heading south on HWY 2 it did not take long to catch up to an FXE local yard job that was getting set to switch the CEMEX plant.

I’ll let the photos tell the rest of the story….

1) FXE 3015 a highnose GP40-2 needs to run around its train in order to switch the CEMEX plant
2) The train here is sitting on the main as the unit heads south on the siding…
3) One more going away shot of 3015..



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/06/12 19:27 by zuco74.

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4) With the unit now in the correct position they pull up, then shove back into CEMEX
5) This is the first unit I have caught switching Mexicali in FXE's current paint scheme..
6) There are houses on both sides of the track here. CEMEX lies beyond the gate.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/06/12 20:56 by zuco74.

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7) With work complete at CEMEX, the unit runs light as we chase him to Pascualitos.
8) At Pascualitos they pick up a string of hoppers that are in the siding.
9) After pulling back out onto the mainline, they now begin shoving towards Ejido Puebla…

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10) We jump in the car and head down to Ejido Puebla .. it takes some time but they finally show up..
11) Even the brakeman’s COKE is enjoying the ride !
12) The train continues across this busy HWY…

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How safe is this area?

13) 3015 will now shove its cars into a side track and leave them there..
14) Now on its own once again, 3015 jumps back onto the main and heads north..
15) Here we figure it’s time for lunch as we hear the crew on the scanner talking about “tortas” .. tortas are a Mexican type sandwich .. kinda like a SUB…



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/06/12 23:09 by zuco74.

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16) After their break its back to switching duties. The next job is Agricultores Unidos De Mexicali
17) These cars were taken out of the plant then shoved back in… A lone hopper car was all that was pulled out after all the maneuvering..
18) 3015 and its lone hopper.. At this point I yell up at the engineer to ask what’s next and he states, they are heading back towards the Mexicali Yard.

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19) We jump back in the car and head back towards Mexicali. We get ahead of them and they eventually show up with a cut of cars that were picked up at the siding in Pascualitos.
20) Here they are about to enter the FXE Mexicali Yard…
21) A crew member riding the last car gives a wave to natemuhl who is standing off to the side..

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22) After the chase was complete we headed off to Blvd Independencia Bridge where we get a bird’s eye view of the yard. After taking its train to the north end of the yard, 3015 finally calls it a day and heads towards the engine house
23) View of the yard, with the Intermodal tracks on the left and the engine house to the right..
24) One last shot of the FXE engine house with a nice assortment of power present.

That’s it for my pretty lengthy report from Saturday. We had a fantastic time out in Mexicali chasing the FXE and I look to get out their soon to do it all over again… !

Thanks for looking . !

Tony

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westernking Wrote:
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> How safe is this area?

Andy... I have never had a problem out railfanning in Mexicali. Now with that said, I am always aware of my surroundings and always on the lookout for anyone that might be up to no good. To be honest I am more concerned with getting hit by a car then anything else. Its pretty much the INDY500 on the streets of Mexicali 24/7 ... :)

Tony

zuco74 Wrote:
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> westernking Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > How safe is this area?
To be honest I
> am more concerned with getting hit by a car then
> anything else. Its pretty much the INDY500 on the
> streets of Mexicali 24/7 ... :)
>
> Tony


And....you better have Mexican auto insurance to drive in there or IF you have any problems, they instantly become major problems! Nice photos zuco!

KC

Tony,
Great pictures and report, thanks for sharing.
Spencer

Posted from iPhone

Those riding locations they're picking sure wouldn't fly north of the border...

Pump

Muy interesante!

Great selection, Tony. I believe the 3015 is a former passenger GP40-2, with the high nose for the steam generator. Seeing the photo with the signs for Hwy 2 and Tijuana reminds me of the trip I took by bus between TJ and Sonora via 'La Rumorosa' back in 1994. It was hard to look out the window with all the drops.

Rich

PasadenaSub Wrote:
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> Muy interesante!
>
> Great selection, Tony. I believe the 3015 is a
> former passenger GP40-2, with the high nose for
> the steam generator. Seeing the photo with the
> signs for Hwy 2 and Tijuana reminds me of the trip
> I took by bus between TJ and Sonora via 'La
> Rumorosa' back in 1994. It was hard to look out
> the window with all the drops.
>
> Rich

Yup.. La Rumorosa sure is an adventure. Usually on a bus I tend to get a bit sick so I try to fall asleep as we head down the hill ! 3015 was in fact at one point equipped with a steam generator for passenger service. I caught 3014 the last time out - only difference was that unit was still in the blue NdeM paint scheme.

Tony

Very cool - and great report... Need to get down there.

What a treat to see! I had no idea Ferromex had their own container and chassis fleet. Almost looks like a mini J.B. Hunt operation!

Doing what was done by the guy in the middle of the car in pic 11 got me a 3 year level S from the BNSF.

Great photo essay, Love that high nose engine! Fantastic framing in Pic's #8 and #20, Thanks for taking the time and sharing your efforts here for us!

Tony,

Absolutely outstanding series! Thanks for sharing.

D.J.