Western Railroad Discussion > The MRVNP Meets the ICBOA on Donner

On the afternoon of Sunday, October 19, I hiked up to MP 180.5 east of Cisco. I was there to catch the previously shared move of four snow-fighting Geeps and a flanger from Roseville to Truckee. First up, however, was Amtrak 6, which I shared a couple days ago. Next up was the MRVNP, seen below, running 3x3x0. The photos show the headend power and DPU consist.

Continued…

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The photos below are of the headend and rear DPU of the ICBOA, which continued its descent of the pass after the MRVNP cleared the single track between Shed 10 and Switch 9.
 
When I first arrived, I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to find. The westbound ICBOA had crested the summit of Donner Pass in the late morning, but looking up from Interstate 80 I noticed the train stopped between Troy and Cisco. This struck me as a bit unusual, as most westbound trains holding for eastbound traffic typically stop at the control point at Shed 10, where the single track section begins. I'm wondering if the ICBOA stopping at an intermediate signal east of Cisco relates to the cargo of the train. This train is mostly refrigerated Midwestern meat products heading to Japan. The refrigerated marine containers receive power from generators in containers that are placed in the middle of every 9 wells, which thus provides power to 17 refrigerated containers. If the ICBOA was stopped on Main 2 at the control point signals at Shed 10, I suspect that the rear of the train, including the DPU, might have been left inside the 921 ft long Tunnel 38. Just a thought.
 
I shot a video of the lengthy MRVNP. I missed getting video of the ICBOA when I attempted to move the camera to a different position, and I was only able to grab shots with my stills camera as the train arrived. As with the other videos I’ve recently shared from the same day, I had forgotten to fix the white balance after shooting still photos with what is normally my video setup. You’ll therefore be treated to a rather colorful range of occasionally psychedelic hues as the train passes.
 
Cheers,
Sean

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Neat series!

Really enjoyed your video!

texchief1

Sean,
That RVNP manifest was quite lengthy.  Did you do a car count?  Anyway, thanks for sharing.

Kent in CArmel Valley

Thanks Kent, all.

I didn't do a car count, but yes, that train seemed quite long. The MRVGR that I shot earlier the same morning at Norden was also running 3x3x0 and quite long. I didn't get a video of that train in its entirety, but it was probably as long as the MRVNP seen here. I believe that they are still also running the eastbound MRVSP as well. I think that train typically departs Roseville in the afternoon. I don't know if it was a Sunday thing or if Donner carload traffic is picking up, at least at the moment. There were a number of reefers and lots of boxes, so some of it might be seasonal produce and canned goods moves.

DynamicBrake Wrote:
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> Sean,
> That RVNP manifest was quite lengthy.  Did you do
> a car count?  Anyway, thanks for sharing.
>
> Kent in CArmel Valley

all but 28 cars had confetti

broken_link Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 
> When I first arrived, I wasn't sure exactly what I
> was going to find. The westbound ICBOA had
> crested the summit of Donner Pass in the late
> morning, but looking up from Interstate 80 I
> noticed the train stopped between Troy and Cisco.
> This struck me as a bit unusual, as most westbound
> trains holding for eastbound traffic typically
> stop at the control point at Shed 10, where the
> single track section begins. I'm wondering if the
> ICBOA stopping at an intermediate signal east of
> Cisco relates to the cargo of the train. 
> range of occasionally psychedelic hues as the
> train passes.
>  
> Cheers,
> Sean

In years past, I noticed some trains would pause at the approach signals (in downtown Cisco) and wait for better color before preceding west. Not sure of the reason. The signals at East Shed 10 are difficult to see until you round the final curve to the CP.   I know during winter months that area near East Shed 10 signals have snow slide potential. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/30/25 15:16 by donner_dude1.

donner_dude1 Wrote:

> In years past, I noticed some trains would pause
> at the approach signals (in downtown Cisco) and
> wait for better color before preceding west. Not
> sure of the reason. The signals at East Shed 10
> are difficult to see until you round the final
> curve to the CP.   I know during winter months
> that area near East Shed 10 signals have snow
> slide potential. 

Yeah, the signals for westbounds approaching CP RV178 don't come into view until you're on top of them. (Though the switch itself is a few hundred yards further at the west end of Shed 10.) I am aware that they've had snow slides in that area in the past, though not an issue in October. I believe the intermediate that the ICBOA was stopped at is the one where the trail up to Loch Leven Lakes crosses the tracks. (The train was a good ways east of and out of view of my location.) Since they removed the signal bridge at MP 179.6, west of the tunnels at Cisco, I think that intermediate at 181.6 where the Loch Leven Trail crosses is now the first signal east of CP RV178.

Nice shots and video!

broken_link Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
 I
> believe the intermediate that the ICBOA was
> stopped at is the one where the trail up to Loch
> Leven Lakes crosses the tracks. (The train was a
> good ways east of and out of view of my location.)
> Since they removed the signal bridge at MP 179.6,
> west of the tunnels at Cisco, I think that
> intermediate at 181.6 where the Loch Leven Trail
> crosses is now the first signal east of CP RV178.

All very true - I forgot about the signal consolidation from Shed 10 to Norden. I haven't been up to Cisco in a couple of years. 

Very interesting mix of old and new freight cars, including covered hoppers with SP, MP, SSW, CNW reporting marks, along with some beat-to-hell bulkhead flats.  That 6 1/2 minutes went by quick!

Wyatt

DynamicBrake Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sean,
> That RVNP manifest was quite lengthy.  Did you do
> a car count?  Anyway, thanks for sharing.
>
> Kent in CArmel Valley

I counted 86 before the DPU, then 65.