Western Railroad Discussion > The SMVRR Saga Continues

After following Santa Maria Valley Railroad's newest engine up the coastline on Thursday, my dad and I took a trip up to Guadalupe, CA, to catch its "inaugural" run on its new home tracks. With cloudy weather all morning, we were holding out hope for some blue sky and sun. Thankfully, at around 1:30 pm, right as they left Guadalupe, the sun broke through and made for some cool shots of this brand-new engine!
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/08/25 12:01 by spsniper.

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As we sat in the yard, I got a few "roster shots" while it was coupled to the cut from the day before. The last photo is of the inbound train. Enjoy!
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/08/25 12:01 by spsniper.

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Nice. Far cry from the days of GE 70 tonners.

They left off one thing from the left and right windows, the sun shades over. 

czuleget Wrote:
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> They left off one thing from the left and right
> windows, the sun shades over. 

There's not even the track the sunshades mount on.

Nice looking locomotive, does anybody know its background?

Wow, great set of shots. New engine has tough competition in the paint scheme department though! What happened to 1322?

Excellent coverage Christopher, nice work!

Great photos and interesting set of power they have there now.  One of the radiator fans on the 2025 looks like it may have come from a GP20.

Rich

PasadenaSub Wrote:
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> Great photos and interesting set of power they
> have there now.  One of the radiator fans on the
> 2025 looks like it may have come from a GP20.
>
> Rich

Yeah, that flared fan seems to be unique to the GP20, but it appears to be interchangeable with other 48 inch radiator fans too.

Since I haven't been up there in eons,  where are the shops and where would the locos be based?  Also what time does one need to be in Guadaloupe to catch the train?  Planning on being in the area  mid July so any help is most welcome



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/10/25 11:38 by masterphots.

Two sharp paint schemes for sure.  Has the 3501 been missing a number board for very long?

No, it just happened at the end of May:

https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,6030907

Seventyfive Wrote:
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> Two sharp paint schemes for sure.  Has the 3501
> been missing a number board for very long?

I missed that story, so thanks for the link.  That was quite a wild thread !

1019X Wrote:
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> Nice looking locomotive, does anybody know its
> background?

originally built for Kennecott Copper, one of 2 built with small fuel tanks  and no dynamic brakes. Had been operating as a lease unit for LLPX prior to being picked up by Omnitrax.

Bryan Jones
Brooks, KY
Bryan's Train Photos

Great coverage. I can smell the new paint.

Posted from Android

Nice pics!!