Nostalgia & History > few SP at Garnet . . .

.   .   .   spent a little time one day back in July '76 at Garnet, CA, located along SP's Sunset Route Yuma Sub at the east base of the hard climb up Beaumont Hill west of Indio, CA.
top: Obvious hotshot eastbound with reefers on the head end and auto racks on the rear descending into Garnet with westbound seen in the distance putting out some exhaust as well as a set of pushers ahead of the caboose in pre wind farm days. Today this is UP and there are THOUSANDS of wind generators located on the surrounding hills. This is not snow on the ground, it is sand sand and more sand, somehing which SP has spent a lot of money trying to control along this stretch of desert railroad.
middle: A westbound is approaching from Indio an about to tackle the hard climb up Beaumont Pass.
​bottom: Another eastbound *corrected has conquered Beaumont Pass and will be stopping in Indio for a crew change just a few miles ahead. SP's big U33C's seem to be the power of choice on this route.
JB 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 02/07/16 07:34 by 3rdswitch.

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Excellent look back at those gorgeous GEs in the prime of their careers!  No doubt their bark was as good as their bite.  We didn't how good we had it back in those days.

Steve Zahn
Glenview, IL

3rdswitch Wrote:
   Another westbound has conquered
> Beaumont Pass and will be stopping in Indio for a
> crew change just a few miles ahead. SP's big
> U33C's seem to be the power of choice on this
> route.
> JB 

Eastbound, Joe.


Allen

Great look back, JB.  I wonder how long the phone booth had been out of service?  Thanks for posting.

JCL

Good Stuff JB ... being the PCs nut I am, I'm always full of questions about the lay of the land ...

I see a pot signal for the other track ... was this the start of double track or a siding ??? ... what confuses me to which one it would be is the signal bridge in the background with the eb Home signal a good distance from the switch but it also looks to have a westbound intermediate signal on it ...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/07/16 18:34 by Out_Of_Service.

Great pictures. Interesting they put autos on the rear of te WCESP. Must have maxed out tonnage on the LAHOTs

Garnet was the east end of two siding at Garnet, a north and a south siding. The south siding, furthest track away, was only 5280 feet long so not used as much as the north siding, closest track, which was 17,121 long and being used by one of the eastbounds.
​JB

3rdswitch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Garnet was the east end of two siding at Garnet, a
> north and a south siding. The south siding,
> furthest track away, was only 5280 feet long so
> not used as much as the north siding, closest
> track, which was 17,121 long and being used by
> one of the eastbounds.
> ​JB

​thx ... i just looked at a sat image ... the main line is now double track from that west switch east under the N. Indian Canyon Dr ... kind of interesting how the south siding at the time started about a mile east of the north siding west switch and ended at the signal bridge a little past where the north siding started in your photo ... basically a long lap siding ...

   A comment about those concrete phone booths.  I worked that territory for many years as an SP trainman, and it was advisable to check for black widow spiders and rattlesnakes before you stepped inside.  I encountered both many times.  Nice pictures, Joe. Brings back memories.

Brian Black
Castle Rock, CO

3rdswitch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> .   .   .   spent a little time one day
> back in July '76 at Garnet, CA, located along SP's
> Sunset Route Yuma Sub at the east base of the hard
> climb up Beaumont Hill west of Indio, CA.
> top: Obvious hotshot eastbound with reefers on the
> head end and auto racks on the rear descending
> into Garnet ...

Excellent shot of the Smoky.

Best regards,

Rob L.

A very nice series of photo of the SP in the desert. They really show the sand that was a problem between Garnet and Indio that caused the SP to maintain a windbreak of plants to help control the drifting (often strongly blown) sand.

Cliff

At one time there was a "wye" off the north siding. You can see the east leg in the first photo.

3rdswitch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Garnet was the east end of two siding at Garnet, a
> north and a south siding. The south siding,
> furthest track away, was only 5280 feet long so
> not used as much as the north siding, closest
> track, which was 17,121 long and being used by
> one of the east bounds.
> ​JB

Great photos Joe!! Lots of memories.

In photo #1 can be seen the switch, about 5 cars behind the power, that led off to an industry track. This is all that
remained of what was once a wye that helper steam engines used to turn themselves prior to working back westward
up the hill. John Signors "Beaumont Hill" has a nice photo showing the west switch of said wye which was
removed sometime after 1950. In my days, the 'Mountain Local' would switch this track.
I recall loads of Gypsum wallboard on bulkhead flats being spotted on the  far reaches of the spur.
BO's could be seen to by car department forces there also. Brian Black would be the one to know more.

Sometime after 1965 SP changed their system of showing track capacity in units of 50 feet, supposedly then 
an 'average length' car. In old timetables the "Short" or West siding held 105 cars while the "Long" or East siding
held a whopping 344 cars.

Charlie

 

Super--these have got to be some of the best ones you have shared.  The clean GEs are very impressive.
Brian Stevens

cewherry Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 3rdswitch Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Garnet was the east end of two siding at Garnet,
> a
> > north and a south siding. The south siding,
> > furthest track away, was only 5280 feet long so
> > not used as much as the north siding, closest
> > track, which was 17,121 long and being used by
> > one of the east bounds.
> > ​JB
>
> Great photos Joe!! Lots of memories.
>
> In photo #1 can be seen the switch, about 5 cars
> behind the power, that led off to an industry
> track. This is all that
> remained of what was once a wye that helper steam
> engines used to turn themselves prior to working
> back westward
> up the hill. John Signors "Beaumont Hill" has a
> nice photo showing the west switch of said wye
> which was
> removed sometime after 1950. In my days, the
> 'Mountain Local' would switch this track.
> I recall loads of Gypsum wallboard on bulkhead
> flats being spotted on the  far reaches of the
> spur.
> BO's could be seen to by car department forces
> there also. Brian Black would be the one to know
> more.
>
> Sometime after 1965 SP changed their system of
> showing track capacity in units of 50 feet,
> supposedly then 
> an 'average length' car. In old timetables the
> "Short" or West siding held 105 cars while the
> "Long" or East siding
> held a whopping 344 cars.
>
> Charlie
>
>  

 this 1972 view shows some cars on that siding ... you'll have to zoom yourself ... this is the only view i can get for the link

 http://historicaerials.com?layer=1972&zoom=19&lat=33.89910389292225&lon=-116.54820442199707 via @historicaerials

 

South siding is now where the Amtrak passenger platform is located.  Main lines is now doublle track.

mundo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> South siding is now where the Amtrak passenger
> platform is located.  Main lines is now doublle
> track.

So is the station building at the 'old' location 5+ miles west of Garnet still standing?
What does Amtrak call the 'new' ?

Charlie

The old West Palm Springs building west of Garnet has been gone many years.

Amtrak calls it Palm Springs,  however its also known as North Palm Springts.


For info, this is location that Greyhound uses for its Palm Springs stop,since its just off the I-10 off Ramp.   So folks on the Dog sure get a surprise when they end out in a pile of sand.
Security cameras are viewed by the Palm Springs Airport Police.  Not sure now, but at one time the Airport Police met each Sunset and would unlock the restroom and Pay Phone if necessary.

 

Fantastic photos!
So I had to do a double-take not seeing a passenger depot in the first photo.   Things have changed.
And as much as I disliked the SP U33C's, you made em look grand here!
Thanks for sharing.

I thought there was a dusting of snow on the ground, but evidently not in July!  Must be the exposure!

Cheers, Jim Fitch