Steam & Excursion > UP 844 on BNSF (Ex-FW&D)

1. UP 844 begins to tackle the hill west of Childress, TX as the wind blows smoke across the open fields.

2. UP 844 leaves Childress behind as she begins today's trip toward Texline.

3. Despite being half an hour late because of a manifest running ahead, the morning sun still creates a nice golden glow on the side of the consist.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/06/12 14:14 by AndrewBlaszczyk.

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4. After a brief stop, the train continues west seen crossing the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River bridge just outside of Estelline.

5. The wind was blowing the wrong direction messing up a lot of shots but I liked the way it framed the "Union Pacific" on the tender as they crossed a bridge east of Memphis.

6. UP 844 pulls away from the crowd in downtown Clarendon after a brief service stop.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/06/12 14:18 by AndrewBlaszczyk.

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7. My main goals of the chase were to get photos that shows UP 844 on foreign rails and to show the crowds that come out to witness the historic event. A few miles out of Clarendon, where I got a decent crowd photo, UP 844 would go into the hole at Ashtola to meet an eastbound BNSF Q train presenting the perfect opportunity to record the visitor meeting the guest.

8. Back on the move, UP 844 rolls through Claude where a decent crowd had gathered complete with a man in his cowboy hat recording the runby with his iPad.

9. An eastbound coal train waits on UP 844 at Kasota.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/06/12 14:29 by AndrewBlaszczyk.

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10. Just miles from the next service stop, the special passes the elevator in Washburn.

11. THE shot of the chase was the Madame Queen, ATSF 5000, meeting the Living Legend herself, UP 844. Despite a truck hauling a trailer advertising the meet following the train, only two of us were in position to record this moment.

12. While there were far better angles for the departure from Amarillo, I went with a less conventional one with superior relevance. The Santa Fe Building, ATSF's old regional office building, completed in 1930 can be see above the cab of 1944-built UP 844.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/06/12 14:35 by AndrewBlaszczyk.

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Looks like highway 287 was crowded.

Great chase! Looks like 5000 has been gussied up for Christmas with strings of lights outlining the drivers, cylinders, etc.

Image #4 stellar, it all came together for that show. Great job.

Nice shots - you put some miles on the vehicle for these shots.

In case you didn't know it, you got 844 with the old Panhandle & Santa Fe headquarters in the background.
You can probably just make out the words Santa Fe on the rooftop signage.

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Those are some truly awesome photos, Andrew!
Wow....#3 is IOTD material, as far as I am
concerned -- and the rest are also great!
Thank you very much for posting them here for
those of us who weren't able to chase The
Living legend (one of my favorite locomotives).
(You also got her rods down many times -- great!)

Andrew- I second your third shot as IODT.

Paul Brennecke
Golden, CO

Argyle, that was the plan. I decided to take the shot directly into the sun for that reason alone. As for putting a lot of miles on my car, currently living in Lubbock rather than NJ definitely cut that number down. =)

Thanks for all the kind words, guys!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/06/12 19:49 by AndrewBlaszczyk.

The back lit shots are great, you can't see the dinner plate hung beneath the headlight.

Thanks for making the effort to make the photos and to take the time to share them with us here.

Fantastic, some of my favorite shots!

Great job Andrew! The best series of pics of 844 in the Texas panhandle so far.

Very nice portfolio!

Steve Mitchell
http://www.yardgoatimages.com

Is this the longest trip that UPRR steam has made off UPRR owned trackage since the Challenger visited the CSX in West Virginia for their Clinchfield Santa special about 20 years ago?