Steam & Excursion > Quadruple Header

I don't know what they were hauling, but that is an awful lot of power on the front end. Two Union Pacific articulateds, and looks like a pair of Southern Pacific ten-drivered giants as well. It's a very small image, so I'm unfortunately unable to make out any of the numbers.

Enjoy, Taylor

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Possibly these are helpers returning downgrade in a bunch.

Yardclerk

That's certainly possible, unfortunately I don't have any additional images of the train to see if there is actually freight in tow.

Taylor

An interesting puzzle, here. Unlikely that UP would be using 4-6-6-4s in helper service, at least on any grades it shared with SP. UP did lease a couple 2-8-8-0s to SP in the 1940s. They ran out of Dunsmuir.

Those look more like Challengers to me. Doesn't look much like Dunsmuir either.

Posted from iPhone

yardclerk Wrote:
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> Possibly these are helpers returning downgrade in
> a bunch.
>
> Yardclerk


That would make sense, and makes life easier on the Dispatcher. At Kansas City, sometimes several sets of power would accumulate at AY waiting for an out and back into the Diesel Service facility. If it was busy, with trains running helter skelter, either he or one of the crews would suggest coupling everybody up and moving through the plant and back to the DSF in one move. After the joints were made, each engineer would keep his brakes released and his head cut in, while the lead engineer ran east, and the rear most engineer pulled them back west after he got the signal.

Looks like Beaumont Hill in California. I think I read that SP had some UP 3800s there during the war.

Whatever the reason, don't we all wish we were there.

Dennis Livesey
New York, NY

What's that in front of the first engine?

Possibly a switchstand, it looks like they're coming up on a block signal.

Posted from iPhone

Copy19 Wrote:
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> Looks like Beaumont Hill in California. I think I
> read that SP had some UP 3800s there during the
> war.

Glad you said that. I never would have figured this one out.