Nostalgia & History > Montana Monday: an F45 on the NP

It's now been almost 34 years since this eastbound BN 174 train passed by me near Bonner, Montana.

So I guess the statute of limitations has expired, and I can confess that on this slow Sunday morning, with very little traffic around, I stopped on Interstate 90 and shot this off the overpass.  Honest, officer, I was only there for a few seconds.  No cars (or railfans) were harmed.

---

They've been looking for you.

Great shot though.

Mmm hmm, very nice shot! Is that a hand-throw crossover under the lead unit? No signals to be seen.

I wouldn't say anything and an easy shot still yielded a nice photo! Those BN cowl units are one of my favorites.

Cheers, Jim Fitch

Thanks for having "car trouble" that day, that's a nice shot.

Hey, check out my post of 5-12-17 on Nostalgia for the same consist in Sterling, CO! === === = === JLH

highgreengraphics Wrote:
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> Hey, check out my post of 5-12-17 on Nostalgia for
> the same consist in Sterling, CO! === === = ===
> JLH

Wow, there's a chance that might be the same train!  The dates match pretty closely, but I forget where 174 terminated in those days.

First car is a grey hopper in both photos:

https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4292989

> -----
> > Hey, check out my post of 5-12-17 on Nostalgia
> for
> > the same consist in Sterling, CO! === === = ===
> > JLH
>
> Wow, there's a chance that might be the same
> train!  The dates match pretty closely, but I
> forget where 174 terminated in those days.

CPR_4000 Wrote:
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> Mmm hmm, very nice shot! Is that a hand-throw
> crossover under the lead unit? No signals to be
> seen.


That's not a crossover. They are guard rails to protect against derailments under the freeway overpass.

czephyr17 Wrote:
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> CPR_4000 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Mmm hmm, very nice shot! Is that a hand-throw
> > crossover under the lead unit? No signals to be
> > seen.
>
>
> That's not a crossover. They are guard rails to
> protect against derailments under the freeway
> overpass.

Oh, now I see . . . the pilot is just barely covering the point. Thanks!

cool you guys caught the same train!!!!

march_hare Wrote:
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> Wow, there's a chance that might be the same
> train!  The dates match pretty closely, but I
> forget where 174 terminated in those days.

I can't find my notes right now but I believe #174 was Auburn, WA to Laurel, MT



Allen



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/17 20:10 by bradleymckay.

bradleymckay Wrote:
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> I can't find my notes right now but I believe #174
> was Auburn, WA to Laurel, MT
>
> Allen

I think you are right, I couldn't remember if it originated in Auburn or Pasco, but Auburn is probably correct. Train 174 generally was generally regarded as a kind of a long distance local along its route, at least in the late 1970s.

Notes I have from Missoula in the late 1970s show that train 174 arriving from the west included Missoula and Schilling (Hoerner Waldorf paper plant) cars, short east cars (destined to stations between Missoula and Laurel), and long east cars (for Laurel and beyond). The train was reclassified on the hump in Missoula. Missoula cars were of course removed from the train. Long east cars were blocked to go out on train 86, a higher priority train that originated in Missoula, if it could handle the tonnage, otherwise excess tonnage would be sent to Laurel on train 174. Short east cars originating in Missoula were added to Train 174, which was blocked to depart eastbound as follows: Helena traffic, then Trident, then Bozeman, then Livingston, then cars for Laurel and beyond.

The photo seems to show a solid grain train, and the amazing coincidence of apparently getting the same train in Sterling, CO a few days later, doesn't seem to fit the above description of train 174, however it is possible that they are simply using that symbol to move the cars under.

czephyr17 Wrote:
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> Notes I have from Missoula in the late 1970s show
> that train 174 arriving from the west included
> Missoula and Schilling (Hoerner Waldorf paper
> plant) cars, short east cars (destined to stations
> between Missoula and Laurel), and long east cars
> (for Laurel and beyond). The train was
> reclassified on the hump in Missoula. Missoula
> cars were of course removed from the train. Long
> east cars were blocked to go out on train 86, a
> higher priority train that originated in Missoula,
> if it could handle the tonnage, otherwise excess
> tonnage would be sent to Laurel on train 174.
> Short east cars originating in Missoula were added
> to Train 174, which was blocked to depart
> eastbound as follows: Helena traffic, then
> Trident, then Bozeman, then Livingston, then cars
> for Laurel and beyond.

Now that I read your post maybe it was Auburn to Missoula. Seems to me the symbol did change at Missoula to something else.

I'll try and find my notes.



Allen

This train did indeed go out of Missoula eastbound identified as 174. I chased him all the way to Austin, and he identified himself as 174 on the radio several times. 

As of 1983, 174 was a maid of all work, often filled out with empty grain hoppers. 

Great shot, worth the stop!

- Chris

Christopher Slemp
South Hadley, MA
Milepost 15