Western Railroad Discussion > Morning Meet with Moffat Manifests

Hello-

This morning, I stopped by the tracks (UP Moffat Tunnel Sub) and waited for a westbound to come by. Turned out to be a UP manifest. This was a little surprising, as the only "regular" UP manifest on the Moffat is the MNYRO (and its counterpart). The MNYRO is called around 1400 or 1500 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so that didn't seem to fit. Turns out, it was the Phippsburg Local (the MNYPHX). It runs on an "as needed" basis, maybe once every 3-4 weeks.

Today's train was short, but heavy. 76 loads and 3 empties and came it close to 11,000 tons. The majority of the cars were loaded with sand (I assume for fracking) in the Craig, CO area. The train had seven units, set up as 3x3x1.

As the train headed west toward the siding at Rocky, an eastbound BNSF Provo-Lincoln manifest was out of Crescent. I headed up to Blue Mountain and got a few shots of the eastbound there, before dropping down to Rocky for a final few shots of the meet itself.

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1. On yet another beautiful November morning (just over 50°F), a westbound UP manifest crawls west just west of Leyden. The train is 10,754 tons and just under 4,200 feet in length. The train has 76 loads (and 3 empties), many of the loads being sand in covered hoppers. That is accounting for a lot of the weight. Great to see a morning westbound UP manifest on the Moffat!

2. This westbound Phippsburg Local has an interesting power configuration. It is setup as 3x3x1...three units on the point, three in the middle, and one on the rear. It is setup this way as it is actually quite heavy, particularly for a westbound. All the covered hoppers are loaded with sand, headed for the Craig area.

3. The lighting was just perfect for this eastbound BNSF manifest as it rolls through the S-Curves at Blue Mountain. The train me an (on time) Zephyr at Crescent and is now headed for a meet with the P-Burg Local, already in the hole at Rocky.

Kevin Morgan
Arvada, CO
ColoradoRailfan.com

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4. You just have to love the track configuration at Blue Mountain and Coal Creek. The trains weave back and forth at the base of the canyon, while also making significant changes in elevation. Here, the crew of this eastbound can quite easily look out the window and check out their rear DPU as it descends from Tunnel One

5. East meets west at the west switch of Rocky. An eastbound BNSF Provo-Denver (which is currently moving compass north) meets a westbound UP PBurg Local (which is currently moving compass south). After the meet, the UP train will pull up and around Big Ten and run on the rail near the top of the frame, up at Eisele.

6. It is an absolutely beautiful Colorado morning, particularly considering it is the start of December! With temperatures around 55°F, this Provo-Denver manifest leaves Rocky on a clear signal. C44-9Ws used to rule BNSF manifest on the Moffat. However, they are already starting to become outdated as more and more "Evolution Series" units are showing up! Nice to catch a Dash-9 on the point on this morning.

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A nice pair for 45 minutes or so along the Moffat main! Have a good Friday / weekend.

Kevin Morgan
Arvada, CO
ColoradoRailfan.com

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Nice shots!

Great views!

Fantastic photos, that UP freight looks like a brute with all those engines.

Nathan

Posted from iPhone

Nice work, Kevin!

James Nelson
Thornton, CO
www.flickr.com/mojaveflyer

Great series Kevin. That fourth shot knocks it out of the park though. Thanks for sharing.

Kent in CArmel Valley

Nice set of shots.

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots