Nostalgia & History > When running wrong was so right on the Joint Line - 1985

Most of you know that the Joint Line between Denver and Palmer Lake CO  is essentially a one way operation.  Northbounds are on the east track and southbounds run on the west track.  This has been so since 1918 and although both lines were long signaled in both directions, the one way operations became entrenched and gradually, sidings and unneeded signals were removed.  By 1985, the southward main was feeling the impact of the flood of coal trains along with the usual freight operations.  In the spring of 1985, the Santa Fe and Rio Grande got together to allow for extensive maintenance windows to be placed on the southward track.   The plan was to close the southward track in the early morning and shift all soutbounds to the northward track until late in the afternoon.  Northbounds would be held from the Springs south.  Doing this allowed for photographs not normally possible  and I spent as much time as I could documenting these detours, which lasted about two weeks. The project was successful enough that a repeat occurred for a few days around Labor Day of '85 and some of those are also included. Since many trains passed during high sun, I didn't come close to getting everything but I thought it my be interesting to see what did pass by for a limited time only. 

1) The detours began at S Denver but I avoided the traffic conjestion north of Wolhurst and began shooting around Acequia before moving south.   On 6-6-85, BN 7121 rolls south along US 85 at Acequia with train #562 in tow.  SD40B 7600 is along for the festivities this day.

2) D&RGW SD50 5510 slogs through Louviers with #718 on 9-7-85 .  Locals at Louviers had nicknamed it Hellsville in deference to the nearby DuPont powder works, which they were sure would explode and blow them all to hell.  In never happened but the signboard remained.

3) BN 5075 winds upgrade on Santa Fe rails as a LaGrange coal load approaches Sedelia on 5-31-85.

4)  Dust clouds haze the distance as BN 8163 has a short #562 in tow at Castle Rock on 6-6-85

5) Waycar 12367 brings up the rear of #562 as heads towards snow capped Pikes Peak in the distance.

6)  At Larkspur, a pair of Santa Fe SD40-2's are shoving hard on the read of coal load also powered by ATSF power.  The head end shot was submitted to TRAINS, which promptly lost it.  Thanks for nothing, bozos.

7)  A trio of Rio Grande SD50's skirt Hunt Mountain as #726 approaches Larkspur on 5-31-85.

8)  A view I'd thought about  for years was finally captured as ATSF 5958 stormed past the familiar red barn at Greenland with #424 on 6-11-85.    If the interest is there, I have enough of these "wrong way" views for another show at some point in the future.



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Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/20/22 07:21 by Conch.

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4-6

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7 and 8

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You are brinnging back all the memories of a great era in railroading. I love all the colors on the trains thanks for these.

If only you could go back------------

An incredible look at some rare images, thank you.
—Mac

Great JL series, love the Katy consist and of course the red barn shot. The many times I visited I just never paid much attention to NB empties (on the northward track) or bothered to do much between Palmer Lake and Denver. Now I see I should have, thanks for posting...

JG

Thank you for posting these photos!  Regarding photo #6 with the ATSF SD40-2 pushers, the FPPX reporting mark on the last car makes me think this was a La Grange/Halsted/Fayette Power Plant coal train, too.  It is too bad Trains lost the photo of the leaders; I have not seen or heard of photos of Santa Fe power on the lead of a FPPX coal train.

Matthew Dittert
Sealy, TX

Excellent group of images !
Gary

Roadmaster Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thank you for posting these photos!  Regarding
> photo #6 with the ATSF SD40-2 pushers, the FPPX
> reporting mark on the last car makes me think this
> was a La Grange/Halsted/Fayette Power Plant coal
> train, too.  It is too bad Trains lost the photo
> of the leaders; I have not seen or heard of photos
> of Santa Fe power on the lead of a FPPX coal
> train.
>
> Matthew Dittert
> Sealy, TX

Matt, I honestly can't answer most of your questions. This was indeed a LaGrange train as the Fayette Power cars indicate.  But that view of a Santa Fe leader at Larkspur was the only view I had from the I-25 overpass and after 35 years, I can't recall the exact power consist other than it was a Santa Fe SD40 (or-2) first out. What came after it will remain a foggy  mystery, but you'r right, it would have been very unusual for a Santa Fe to be on a Katy train.  I'll compare the Kodak numbers on the slides and see what else I can find out.  Thanks for looking!

Great bunch. The most changes have taken place in four and five, wow.
JB

Awesome series! What is that old saying, "post 'em if you got 'em". Or something like that:}

I have had the opportunity to run a couple of trains the wrong way down Main 2 and it is amazing the speed that you pick up when heading down into Larkspur where you took shot #7!.But boy, you sure do lose it quick when pulling the stiff grade out of Larkspur!

I even got to run a Northbound train on Main 1 once from Palmer Lake to Littleton which seems to happen a lot less frequently than the Southbound wrong way running on Main #2!

Very NICE series!!

Larry

First-class set - Photo eight's scene is truly well-crafted, and the lashup is wonderful.
Bob

Love the Columbia & Cowlitz box in #5; don't think I've ever seen a photo of one. 

They all bring back good memories; thanks for posting.

Timothy
 

Awesome stuff.  Man, I miss those days.

~Dave

Very nice set of shots!

RC Lundgren
Elgin, TX