Western Railroad Discussion > Wrapping up my Spring Break (Day 1): Trona and High Desert Action

With my spring break ending tomorrow, I figured I'd start posting the photos from my end of break trip up the central part of California. Without further ado, a description!

I had business to attend to in Brentwood, California, so my father and I took that as an opportunity to head up the spine of California, through the Central Valley, passing through a number of locations both old, new, and never photographed by him or me. Our goal on day one was the Trona Railway, for probably our last time up there for the foreseeable future, but first we hung around the UP Mojave Subdivision for a bit. Without further ado, here are the photos!

• A southbound UP manifest train crosses over the California Aqueduct in Phelan, California.
• A few minutes later, another southbound with a Tier IV GE passes by the same location.
• The manifest makes its way downgrade at Canyon, California, heading into the north end of the siding.

There's more...

Zach
http://www.z-trains.com

---

---

---

• A few minutes after the southbound cleared the siding, the autorack train continues its descent through the Mormon Rocks at Canyon.
• On the Lone Pine subdivision, a northbound coal train struggles up the grade approaching the US 395 grade crossing behind a brace of GE's
• At Pinnacles, the southbound daily Trona turn to Searles climbs out of Searles Valley, California.

There's more...

Zach
http://www.z-trains.com

---

---

---

• And finally, the same train continues its climb in front of the famous pinnacles.

That's all for now! More photos will be coming tomorrow.

Cheers,

Zach
http://www.z-trains.com

---

Nice set, love the last one best!

Dig that last shot!

Nice pics!!

Really great photos.

Ronda Thomas

Love the Trona pictures. Still don't know how they can have a coal fired power plant in CALIFORNIA?
must be the only one in the State. Was this grandfathered in? I've gone through Trona for 50 years now on my way to Death Valley and it seems the only thing that has changed has been the various owners of the salt operation and the changes in locomotives from Baldwins to EMD's to current UP power.
George Andrassy
 

It's the only one indeed George. The vast majority are natural gas and renewable energy powered. Wonder how they snuck that one through?

Posted from iPhone

Nice shot of the coal train....looks like it's powered by a brace of braces!

Absolutely beautiful! Thanks so much for posting!

Would be interested to know what day of the week that Trona coal train ran if possible please?