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Nostalgia & History > Utah - January 1979 - Part 1Date: 10/31/14 20:51 Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: mcfflyer Welcome aboard, kids, time for another trip back in time.
In 1978, I left employment with the State of California to accomplish something I always wanted: to go to work for a railroad. Thing is, working for Union Pacific Corporation is not working for Union Pacific Railroad. Matter of fact, the job was always remote from the railroad itself as you don't need to be on the property to handle its property taxes. It was also not the brightest move I ever made, but that a subject for a different time. Quite a change from the mild weather of Sacramento to being back in a place that had real winters. And in that time from when I moved to Utah, I bought a motor home, got married and bought a house. However, all of my friends were still back in the Golden State. And so over the weekend of January 12-14, 1979, my friends, Don, Walt and Tom flew to Salt Lake City for three days of going out to chase trains - in the motor home - in the snow! And I present to you the results of our weekend, starting with Friday, January 12, 1979. The first stop for me with visitors to Salt Lake City was the Kennecott operation between the pit and Garfield. However, use of the electric power was winding down in the pit, and the road electrics had recently been replaced by seven brand new SD40-2s. Photo 1 - KCC pit electric 719 was coupled to extended height cab GP39-2 789 in between assignments. Photo 2 - Out on the road, new KCC SD40-2s 101 and 106 were bringing loaded ore cars down to the smelter. Photo 3 - KCC SD40-2s 107 and 105 had the empties heading back up to the pit. Lots more to come - Lee Hower - Sacramento Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/01/14 12:06 by mcfflyer. Date: 10/31/14 20:52 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: AlcoRSD15 Off to a great start. Can't wait to see the rest of your trip.
- Eric B. Date: 10/31/14 20:59 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: mcfflyer After leaving the Kennecott operation, we headed down over Solider Summit to Price where we parked for the night. What we didn't realize is that we parked in the Price municipal snow disposal area! We wondered why it was so open and clear there with high snow mounds all around. We awoke in the morning of Saturday, January 13, to the sounds of the plow trucks dumping snow and front end loaders piling it up around us!
Photo 4 - DRGW GP40 3080 lead a eastbound freight through Price. From there, we were off to shoot the Utah Railway and their small fleet of former Santa Fe RSD15 Alligators. We caught them out on the road. I'm not entirely sure where this is - Hiawatha? - , but here is some of the action we saw there as the gators switched cars. Photo 5 - The train arriving in Hiawatha, led by Utah 400 Photo 6 - Power cuts off of their train. More to come! Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/14 23:07 by mcfflyer. Date: 10/31/14 21:01 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: mcfflyer More in Hiawatha
Photo 7 - Utah 400 Photo 8 - Utah 403, the Warbonnet Photo 9 - Fetching the Utah caboose. More to come! Date: 10/31/14 21:04 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: mcfflyer Hiawatha, Utah, January 13, 1979
Photo 10 - Front detail shot of Utah 400 Photo 11 - Detail shot of Utah 400 Photo 12 - Coupled up to the train More to come - Date: 10/31/14 21:09 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: mcfflyer Photo 13 - Actually the train is pushing the train out of Hiawatha to the end of the line at Mohrland, and ended our visit with the Utah.
Photo 14 - Just west of Soldier Summit we saw a headlight, pulled off and through the swirling snow came Rio Grande SD45 5332 leading and eastbound freight. Photo 15 - Here are my friends, Tom, Don and Walt in the shelter of the motor home from the stiff - and cold wind! And that guy on the left, Tom Gibson, is still my best friend - and we still go camping every summer - in the same motor home I've had for 37 years! Okay, that ends Part 1. We drove back to Salt Lake that night and stayed at my house. Later this weekend, I'll try to post Part 2, which we went up to Ogden and then east on the Overland Route. And the weather sure wasn't as nice as it was on the prior Saturday. Lee Hower - Sacramento Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/14 23:10 by mcfflyer. Date: 10/31/14 21:43 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: MartyBernard The photographs turned out great. Thanks for showing them to us. I'm ready for more.
Marty Bernard Date: 10/31/14 23:24 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: bradleymckay Picture #13 - looks like a bunch of blue Rock Island hoppers. I remember seeing a UP coal train going east through Evanston, WY that was 100% blue RI hoppers back around this same time.
Excellent photo's of the "Gators"! Allen Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/14 23:25 by bradleymckay. Date: 11/01/14 07:16 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: icancmp193 I did a 9-month job change from California to Utah in February 1981 (and then returned to California) and visited just about all those same places!
Tom Y Date: 11/01/14 07:40 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: 3rdswitch Great bunch, that area was way more interesting than today, you sure can't go back.
JB Date: 11/01/14 07:51 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: hwb36604 the guy on the left, Earl Hickey? "My Name is Earl"??
Date: 11/01/14 08:10 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: Milwaukee bradleymckay Wrote:
------------------------------------------------------- > Picture #13 - looks like a bunch of blue Rock > Island hoppers. I remember seeing a UP coal train > going east through Evanston, WY that was 100% blue > RI hoppers back around this same time. > > Excellent photo's of the "Gators"! > > > > Allen Can anyone explain the blue Rock hoppers for us here on TO? I'm sure the Rock had high hopes for luring some unit coal trains but I'm not aware of that really every happening but perhaps I'm wrong? Thanks for sharing the photos for this era of Utah railroading. What a treat that was to have all that variety back then. Date: 11/01/14 09:37 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: WAF They had a coal train that ran from KC to near St Louis and wrecked the track so badly that the SSW couldn't use it when they got the ROCK
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/01/14 09:39 by WAF. Date: 11/03/14 11:53 Re: Utah - January 1979 - Part 1 Author: RGDave Excited to see more of this!! Great Rio Grande stuff :-)
~RGDave |