Western Railroad Discussion > Top 10.......

I normally post on the Eastern board but I am planning to vist the Western states this summer in early July. Since I have never been out West I hope you can help me with your top ten favorite places. I am planning to vist about 5 or 6 places this comming summer with two of them being in the East.


Thanks for your support, And happy railfanning.

-railfanner

BNSF's Marias Pass. Beautiful scenery, helper locomotives, tunnels, trestles, snowsheds, the Empire Builder, 30+ freight trains daily, the Izaak Walton Inn, Glacier National Park. Why go anywhere else?

In NO particular order, circling west / north / east

BNSF around Flagstaff AZ
BNSF/UP Cajon
BNSF/UP Tehachapi
UP/BNSF Moffat Route west of Denver
UP Donner Pass
UP/BNSF Feather River Canyon & BNSF Gateway sub north of Keddie
UP around Dunsmuir / Mt. Shasta
BNSF Stevens Pass
BNSF Marias Pass
UP/BNSF Powder Rover Basin operations

P.S.- I'd rate the BNSF Needles Sub above over half of the above, but
during the summer, you might not enjoy the heat.

Now I have only photographed trains in Arizona/CA/ and a little N. Mexico, so here are my favorites.
1. Tehachapi- Very busy, you can shoot east and westbounds pretty much all day long in good lighting at some locations (ie. Caliente), plus I am from Bakersfield, and started my railfanning in those hills. Summertime gets hot in these hills.
2. Seligman Sub- Very scenic, anywhere along I-40 from CA to NM, some parts are flat, my favorite area around Flagstaff. VERY busy, and easily accessable when the roads arent muddy. Very nice weather for railfanning in the summer.
3. Donner Pass- I love this place all year round, but in the summer time its easy to get around to placed virtually impossible to access in the winter. This pass isnt very busy, but if you know the traffic patterns, you can come away with a ton of great shots. Very nice weather for railfanning in the summer.
4. UP Through AZ- I have only been from Yuma to Cochise, but there is a lot of great desert scenery along this route. Sometimes the scenic locations can be miles apart, but I think its worth it. The line is busy also, and its single track for many miles east of Yuma to Tucson. I am not going to lie, it gets damn hot down there. around Gila Bend/Shawmut the tar melts.
5. Feather River Canyon- Great scenery, somewhat busy, if you go on a good day. Watch out for the logging trucks though. Very nice weather for railfanning in the summer.
6. Cajon Pass- Busy, some great scenery, if you can get away from the power lines. The 3 tracks can make you miss a few trains though. You start chasing one train, and then spot another train on a different line. Also a little warm in the summer.
7. Yuma Sub- between Redlands and Thousand Palms- Busy line, windmills, tall mountains. The freeway runs right next to this line from Banning to Fingal, and there are a ton of billboards. Sometimes the billboards can enhance the photo-my favorite one is a shot of a winged unit leading a stack train with a Hooters billboard off to the left. Between redlands and Banning the line runs through Foothills. We are in the desert again, and it too gets hot on the Yuma Sub
Hope this helps a little bit,
Raymond Lewis

Depends on where yopu're going and what direction, but Memphis is a nice place to visit. A lot of diversity, nice scenes of BNSF and UP in nearby East Arkansas. Don't forget Kansas City either, said to be the second busiest railroad town in the country. I went through there a few times going to Colorado, but didn't spend near as long as I wanted to.

Speaking of Colorado, did you say you're going west this summer? The Royal Gorge and many other tourist lines make this state a nice place to visit for a railfan. Plus, the state is simply beautiful. I think I left my heart out there.


Joe H.

To the above I would add:

UP in the Blue Mountains of Northeast Oregon, where there are heavy trains with DPU, good frequencey, and pretty good access.

Columbia River Gorge - UP on the Oregon side and BNSF on the Washington side. East of Hood River/Bingen you can even cross the river back and forth free (The Dalles, Maryhill, and Umitilla bridges).

Marias Pass, as pointed out above, is great. Mullan Pass on the MRL is very good, too, although a little less readily accessible.

This picture was taken at Bison on the east side of Marias Pass 7/4/01.

The one time that I have gone to Chama, NM and Durango, CO to visit the ex-D&RGW narrow gauges, I planned to spend two days on each railroad---I ended up spending four days on each, and that wasn't enough! The C&TS and D&SNG may be tourist roads, but they are big time railroading---well worth the visit!

All of the above locations are great. However.......

I'm a west coast person that lived on the east coast for several years and have this observation. Many folks on the right hand side of the map can't grasp the distances on the left hand side of the map.

Tehachapi to Glacier/Marias Pass is roughly the same as Boston to Atlanta.

Donner to Colorado, Donner to Arizona, Donner to Glacier, are all in the same ballpark as Boston to Charlotte.

Probably more trains in Southern California/Arizona. Not as hot up north. (I know, I know, its a "dry" heat)

In July, I would like Marias, Moffat, Columbia Gorge/Blues. In the spring, Southern California and Arizona.

jb

Argo, Washington. MP 4 on BNSF Seattle Subdivision. UP crosses here. Everything short of coal (although BNSF does run some to Canada once in a while) passes on weekdays.

From northbound Interstate 5, take the westbound Boeing access road exit, spin 270, cross over the tracks and turn right.

I don't see anyone mention East Portal of the Moffat. Any visit to the west wouldn't be complete without a stop there, while you are in Colorado, of course.

I see others mention Chama and the Royal Gorge. Both of these are high on the list.

Then there's a stop at Cheyenne, on your way back east. After Cheyenne, a stop at North Platte, then further east to Gibbon. Gibbon ain't very scenic, but where else in the country can you find a junction with 140 trains a day typically passing through, some at 60MPH?

Have a great trip!
Tolland.
http://colorado.railfan.net

Railfanner:

Not sure what your schedule/budget will permit, but many excellent choices are named above. As pointed out, the distances for travel in the West are immense....and the average person generally only has a week or two to spare. If I had to pare down my choices (and I would), I'd suggest coming west through Colorado, hitting the narrow gauge tourist lines, then come west on I40 and hit Flagstaff, Kingman, Needles, etc....on the way to your final destination -- Tehachapi. Tehachapi has to be seen to be believed. As also pointed out, very very hot during the summer in these places...and the heat will cause some haziness which might mar the photos. For that reason, I'd suggest May or June as the time to hit these places if you have schedule flexibility. If you can't get away to mid-July or later, I'd head for Colorado..and then go north into Montana or Eastern Oregon. If in Oregon, I'd definitely go west into the Columbia Gorge. Just one man's opinion. Happy planning...and hunting !




Straight and narrow is the road....



Nickatnight

I've only had the most brief personal glimpses of it, but between them and the books by Schmollinger and Signor, I'd have to recommend Tehachapi as THE PLACE you can't afford to miss.

Having said that, my personal favorite locale is still the Columbia Gorge. When the weather's nice and the trains are rolling, there's no place I'd rather be shooting. One advantage it has over Tehachapi, in my book, is that the trains get to stretch out their legs and run.

I wouldn't quarrel with the Marias Pass line, although you've only got the one railroad.

Some largely unremarked, but nonetheless very fertile territory where you don't need very many trains at all to completely clean up is the BNSF's Trinchera Pass line in northest New Mexico. Lots of exploration to do betwen Walsenburg, CO, and Des Moines, NM. Bonus is that you're right there for the former ATSF Raton Pass line as well.

UP Sherman Hill and Weber Canyon are also both worth spending some time on. There's nothing like the feel you get from experiencing the UP across southern Wyoming in person.

If you go to any of the places that have been mentioned in this thread, you won't go wrong.

Bryan

If you're going to the north west states, you could try come up here into Canada and spend time in the Fraser and Thompson canyons...in a number of spots you can shoot across the canyon with as little as a 55 mm lens and get good results, though an 80-200 would be more versatile. Directional running is in place, with anywheres up to 50 trains per day total through the canyon. CN and CP put on a show, and, in summer, you can shoot from about 6AM to 9PM on a good clear day.

All excellent places for sure. I would like to put in with Tolland and vote fot Gibbon Neb. At the other end of the Kansas sub north of Topeka is Menoken Jct. Also in Kansas is Elinor west of Emporia the place where the lines to La Hunta and Clovis split. Good for plenty of trains. . . Joe S.