Western Railroad Discussion > Action on the SJVR Sunset Sub south of Bakersfield

I woke up this morning with plans of chasing trains.  Just wasn't sure which direction I should go.  I was thinking of going north of Wasco and chasing BNSF trains on the Bakersfield Sub or heading down south of Bakersfield to the SJVR Sunset Sub.  I knew I would have plenty of trains to chase along the BNSF but I had a feeling I should go down south and see if something was running on the Sunset.  Until today I had never been able to photograph a moving oil train.  When I turned off of Old River Road onto Millux Road I saw some lights off in the west, I knew my luck had finally turned.  

#1 - What the Sunset looked like in 2001.  SJVR 1754 leading a short train, typical for the time, under the I-5.

#2 - What the Sunset looks like today.  CEFX 1056 leads an empty oil train under the I-5 as it heads back to Bakersfield.

#3 - Shot of the tank cars as they pass under I-5.

3 more photos to come.

Jared

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#4 - Oil train just north of Highway 223.  The engineer was extremely friendly.  At this location he said something to me but, unfortunately, my old ears couldn't make out what he said.  

#5 - Crossing McCutchen Road just south of Bakersfield, CA.  Another friendly wave from the engineer and with that I said good-bye to the oil train.

#6 - Photo I took earlier in the week of SJVR power and covered hoppers in the siding at Millux.

Thanks for looking.

Jared

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Ironic that Bakersfield, California's oil capital, is importing oil.  Still, nice to see the business.

With all that new rail, what is the track speed here?

coach Wrote:
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> Ironic that Bakersfield, California's oil capital,
> is importing oil.  Still, nice to see the
> business.
>
> With all that new rail, what is the track speed
> here?

The heavy crude comes here to California because the refineries here are set up to handle heavy crude. Most of the oil from California tends to be the heavy stuff.

I, too, have been wondering about what the speed limit would be with all the welded rail and new ties. Well, today the train was traveling around 25 mph.

Jared

Posted from iPhone

Enjoyed looking at the pics.Thanks for posting.Bill Webb