Railfanning Barstow - 2/10/18
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- Опубліковано 6 жов 2024
- After a rather pleasant night stay in Barstow, I made my way out to the Barstow Amtrak Station to railfan the activity throughout the morning as a continuation of my railfanning trip to the high desert. This location in particular is very intriguing such that four rail lines converge and are funneled with all movements going by the Barstow station, resulting in almost nonstop train action. The BNSF Cajon, Mojave, and Needles Subdivision in addition to Union Pacific's Cima Subdivision via trackage rights all contribute to the back to back activity through this one location. Some trains can also be seen lined up in the distance to enter the Barstow Yard for distribution and/or crew changes and onwards to their final destination. Likewise, it is also very interesting to see the abundance of BNSF SD70ACe's as a result of reassigned power. Furthermore, the Barstow station still retains its original architecture from its function as a Harvey House in addition to housing the Western America Railroad Museum; with locomotives and rolling stock on outdoor display and exhibits and historical artifacts indoors. All in all, the amount of action through Barstow during my stay was rather surprising and extraordinary given the duration I was here. Whether it is the essentially nonstop back to back activity or the adjacent railroad museum and historic station, Barstow is undeniably an action filled and great place to railfan !
Note : Frequent switching activity can be seen from the Barstow station, although most switching activities occur in the western end of the Barstow Yard. Included in the video are all switching activities seen throughout the duration of my stay. These are predominantly longer switching movements where the train extends into the eastern portion of the yard and past the station. Please note that due to the scheduling of the Amtrak Southwest Chief that serves these stations, I was not able to see any due to the scheduled times of the station stops either late at night or in the early morning.
Switching Locomotive Information (BNSF) :
SD40-2 #1855 & #1707
SD40-2 #1860 & 1757
SD40-2 #1908 & Yard Slug #65
Train 1 : BNSF M-BARKCK1-10A with ET44C4 #3800 & C44-9W #984. The train activity begins shortly after arriving with only minutes after arriving !
Train 2 : BNSF Q-LACSTL6-10L with ES44C4 #6696, #6949, ES44DC #7486, C44-9W #5224, & ES44C4 #7140. Certainly a decently good moving train !
Train 3 : Union Pacific KG3LB-08 with C45AH #2571, SD70M #4985, & C44ACCTE #5685(Mid-DPU). Friendly crew on #2571 !
Train 4 : BNSF Z-LACCHI9-10L with ES44AC #5886, ES44DC #7424, ES44C4 #6834, & #7192. Definitely a hot shot intermodal moving at a good amount of speed !
Train 5 : BNSF S-LPCLBJ1-08A with ES44DC #7559, ET44C4 #3872, ES44C4 #8372(DPU), & ES44AC #6348(DPU).
Train 6 : Union Pacific ZLADV-10 with C45ACCTE #8102, SD70M #4589, SD70AH #9025, & SD70M ##5160. Just after S-LPCLBJ-08A passes, ZLADV-10 appears around the corner, further exemplifying the amount of train activity that passes through Barstow.
Train 7 : BNSF Q-RICALT1-10A with ES44C4 #6768, #7032, #6589, & ES44DC #7344.
Train 8 : Union Pacific MSCWC-09 with SD70ACe #8368, SD70M #5149, #4726, & C44ACCTE #5749(DPU). Very friendly crew with some extra horn action from the engineer as well ! Note the military freight being hauled as part of the manifest. First time seeing a military train in person !
Train 9 : BNSF S-LPCLBL1-08A with ES44C4 #6999, #8166, & SD70MAC #9732. Very interesting and first time seeing the Burlington Northern (BN) Executive paint scheme !
Train 10 : BNSF M-BARBEL1-10A with ES44DC #7455, SD70ACe #8771, ES44C4 #6611, & ES44AC #4850(KCS). Just as S-LPCLBL1-08A clears, M-BARBEL1-10A appears with perfect timing and part of the nonstop action at Barstow !
Train 11 : BNSF S-LPCLHT1-08A with C44-9W #4614, ES44C4 #6979, SD70ACe #8505(DPU), & #8510(DPU). Very apparent issue with #4614; likely as a result of a blown turbocharger, although the crew keeps on going !
Train 12 : BNSF U-PITBIR1-09T with ET44C4 #3807 & C44-9W #4421.
Train 13 : Union Pacific KG1LA-08 with C45AH #2625, SD70M #4933, & C45ACCTE #7674. Another friendly crew with some extra horn action !
Train 14 : BNSF Q-ALTSBD1-09A with C44-9W #4550, #4437, SD70ACe #8531, & C44-9W #1116.
Train 15 : BNSF S-LBTMEM1-10A with C44-9W #4425, #5156, ES44DC #7438, & ES44C4 #6643. The trains just keep on coming ! Even after packing up and checking out the display locomotives before heading for Needles, more trains kept passing by ! It is definitive to say the action here is virtually nonstop to say the least !
Thanks for Watching !
About 24 years ago, Me and a friend of mine was able to tour Barstow yard one night. We were able to drive around the locomotive facilities, and along the one spot road that runs in front of the hump yard/tower/ bowl tracks. Of course that's back before 9/11 and all the craziness in the world, but that was some nice adventure. Got to see the switch lamps lit up all over the ground, like a big Christmas tree. Gave me inspiration to build a nice scale model yard for my train layout. It was impressive.
Amazing Video:) The action at Barstow is really nonstop!!!
Copper Cruz Thanks ! It sure is !
;)
Really great videos
Thank you ! Glad to hear you enjoy the videos ! :)
This is a really excellent productions, Brent!
Yard Limit Thank you !
Dang busy place for sure, looked like that one engine needed some work but then again some diesels make a lot of smoke. Very kewl once again!
Tweety Swauger Thank you !
Nice catches
Thanks !
It must have been a slow period for me when I was there, the only thing moving was the yard switcher. I did catch something heading into the yard area after leaving that spot but it was too far away for a good shot.
keonisan I think it just depends on the day, but Barstow certainly does see a lot of traffic, especially due to the merging of four lines into only one line going by the station.
Great job, must be nice being there when it is not 200 degrees out lol.
spacecalander Thank you ! Haha, yeah, I specifically chose to go before the hot summer heat rolls in. It was either at this time or the next opportunity which would be in June. Glad I went during February ! Haha !
Amazing vídeo
Rafael Santos Thank you !
Awesome video man!!
TrainSF Thanks !
Next time you ought to do this behind the Barstow Greyhound Station. You'll be closer to the tracks.
Aaron Long Coincidentally I did actually stop there for food on my way to Needles. It definitely has an up close view of the mainline, although there is a lot of vehicular and pedestrian traffic within that area.
Man what happened to bnsf 4614 that was a lot of smoke
Parker McCormack It is likely the result of a blown turbocharger.
I am going up to San Jose soon and was wondering if you have any recommendations of where to go railfanning! Thanks for the help!
Model trains and railfanning To be honest, I have yet to railfan the San Jose area myself; however a good number of other local railfans could give you information beyond what I know. Consequently, I mainly only railfan stations, so I would suggest either the San Jose Diridon or Santa Clara stations for optimal station railfanning. Happy railfanning !
thanks!
I like your videos of the palm springs train station. Iv'e been there a few times. good spot!
Model trains and railfanning Thanks ! Yeah man, Palm Springs is my home station and is where my railfanning all started !
What’s that green car sitting by the signal bridge? Is that a caboose in the yard?
GMTX 2613 It appears to be a regular covered hopper. I’m pretty certain it is not a caboose.
Where is the Amtrak southwest chef?
sheldon chan chef?
sheldon chan Due to the scheduled time arrivals of the Amtrak Southwest Chief, I was not able to catch any. It usually arrives late at night or early in the morning before sunlight. Plus, the odds of it running late into daylight are rather surprisingly low.