Anyway, on the return trip, I decided to take the route that would pass through Ulen, and sure enough, I caught a train in town being loaded. Not much to shoot except the power as it waited for the train to be made up, but I took advantage of that.
That was shot from the crossing south of town, and the derail was locked. I grabbed another shot from the same area, trying to work the distant elevator in, but it's tough with the trees along the line.
Take a good look at the color of this generic Dash 9, it comes into play later.
After reaching Highway 10 I heard the dispatcher talking to a coal load that was going to have to wait for a westbound to clear on Main 2 then scoot east himself so the work train could get some more time. They continue to drop ties along the Staples Sub, having made it all the way to Frazee at least now. I thought I might get a shot at a DPU on the coal train, and sure enough i did, just west of DL.
The orange paint on this ACe stood out against the blue sky.
I hoped to catch the westbound as well, and sure enough, I spied the headlight as I approached Wal-mart and pulled over for a shot. Although by road number this engine is only 3 digits older than the one I shot in Ulen, the paint certainly doesn't reflect that difference. This is one of the horribly faded "Trash 9's" that you catch occasionally. Mrs. L4T hates these engines! Going by the finish you would think this one is three decades older than the one in Ulen.
I knew there was a work train out and about, but I needed to get to Perham for a meeting that evening and had no time to search him out. I got shots of the power a few days ago, and will post them soon, either here or on my photostream.
I took a chance passing through Ulen on this late winter day, and it paid off. I would love to catch one of these unit trains as they traverse this branch line one day after being loaded.
Thanks for reading, and remember to keep looking for trains.
The bridge over the Red River in Grand Forks has been open all week, but the BNSF's Noyes Sub is still closed due to flooding at the border, preventing the Noyes Local from getting up there to interchange with CN and CP, whose tracks, incidentally, are also closed north of the border.
ReplyDeleteBNSF's Noyes Sub south of the border crossing has reopened. In fact, it's too bad you weren't around on Wednesday morning, because BNSF sent an X-CHCAGM to the shuttle elevator in Argyle.
That really bums me out-Argyle is the only shuttle elevator in the area I frequent where I haven't yet caught a train. I have shot trains at Warren, Erskine, and now Ulen. And Argyle is the furthest away from me too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment and the info.