I’m travelling from England in May for a 2 week watching trip.
My planned itinerary is as follows:
I will leave LA very early (due to jetlag!) with a first night at Seligman, stopping off along the way – Daggett springs to mind - any others?.
I continue via Monument Valley and Moab (OK, not many trains on this stage but incredible scenery will more than compensate!) towards Denver where I am visiting friends.
I travelled the Zephyr a few years ago from Denver to Glenwood Springs and intend to visit the Moffat Tunnel (East) and the Big 10 Curves area.
I then head north to Cheyenne and follow I80 west (or some of the older parallel routes) all the way to Truckee.
I finish up with a couple of nights at both Tehachapi and Cajon Pass before flying home.
I have found good info for Donner Pass and Cajon Pass and have visited Tehachapi before.
I would appreciate advice on any good locations especially from Cheyenne to Truckee.
Also some good viewing for the Big 10 Curves.
And any other advice or sites that might improve the experience!
Your trip along I-40 to see the BNSF Transcon should provide several locations. I suggest getting off I-40 at Ludlow, CA and taking the old Hwy 66 route through Amboy, Cadiz and Essex. This route paraells the BNSF. Then there is a great location at the west end of Kingman where the two main lines are separated.
I don’t know your reason for choosing Seligman to overnight but I suggest Williams (42 miles further) where the accomodation choices are much better.
From Moab, UT I suggest the paved road along the Colorado River, Hwy 128, to connect wityh I-80 for more spectacular viewing. The I-80 through Glenwood Canyon is also spectacular.
Enjoy, and ask if you have questions about my suggestions.
Don’t expect to see much down at Moab, railroadwise on the UPRR Cane Creek Branch. You’d be lucky to see the once every two week local.
At Glenwood, get off at West Glenwood (Midland Ave) and then go along the south side on Midland, then to 8th Street/7th Street and back to Hwy 82 north to I-80), you will get to see the small yard along the river where extra power is cut-in for the Moffat tunnel climb plus the Glenwood depot.
East of Dotsero/Eagle, you will not see trains until you get to Denver. (Dosero to almost Vail (Edwards) is the mothballed UP Tennessee Pass line) Edit: I almost forgot the Georgetown Loop at Silver Plume which is dormant this time of year. Oops![:$]
Windsor-Ft Collins is busy now on shortline GWR north of Denver. Consider US-85 instead of I-25 for most of the Denver-Cheyenne leg.
Consider stopping off at Green River and Laramie on the turn west. (Pedestrian bridge over the middle of the yard at Green River)
If you get near Page, AZ on that “dull” run, keep an eye out for the Black Mesa & Lake Powell/ Navajo RR along NM98 on the Page end or US-160 near Black Mesa/Shonto/Kayenta [Monument Valley end] when they “feed the dragons”. Heavy haul electric railroading isolated in the high desert.
I’m currently playing around with Garmin BaseCamp mapping software and rather spookily had just changed the route to the old Hwy 66 as you suggested. Then I changed it from Moab onto Hwy 128!
I’ll check out the area west of Kingman. I chose Seligman because I fancied a typical Route 66 motel! Also it is cheap and the following night I’m staying at the relatively new View Hotel at Monument Valley - which isn’t
Yes, that section of the route will be mostly driving before stopping at Idaho Springs.
I have travelled on that bit of I70 before; we caught the Zephyr from Denver and stayed in Glenwood about 8 years ago. I should be ready for a break in Glenwood so will search out the yard you mention.
Straight across from the Marriott Residence Inn/Courtyard hotels on the east side of the “new” Glenwood Meadows shopping center on the south side of Midland Ave. (The railroad is between Midland Ave and the River on the original 1886-1923 Colorado Midland RR grade. I-70 is built on top of the original DRGW grade. The east interchange, CO-82, sits on top of what was the original DRGW Funston Yard prior to 1967, you can see the bridge piers for the river crossing still at the east Glenwood (CO-82) interchange)
Hello Chris, You mentioned Donner Pass and Truckee. Are you planning on heading any further west (toward Sacramento) then Donner Pass? If not there are a couple places in the area I enjoy. Between Reno and Truckee (and off highway I-80) is Boca. There is a nice view of the Truckee River next to the tracks. Just beyond Truckee (and behind the Donner Party memorial) is Cold Stream Canyon. About 2 miles from the memorial is Andover, near tunnels 13/42. This is a good place to watch the trains twice, as trains head to the back of the canyon and turn back 180 degrees at Stanford Curve. Want to see the trains as the surveyors saw it-from high up? Hike up to Mt. Judah or Donner Peak, accessible from the historic Lincoln Highway at the top of Donner Pass. I don’t know how you are planning to go from Truckee (in Northern Calif.) down to Tehachapi and Cajon Pass (in Southern California). If you want to see trains between these locations then you’d need to head west on I-80 to Sacramento. Check out the California State Railroad Museum if you get to Sacramento. From there you can follow the Union Pacific/BNSF railroad lines down California’s Central Valley until you get to Bakersfield. From there you head Southeast 40 miles to Tehachapi. If you don’t go to the Central Valley from Truckee, and want to head south to Southern California, you can go south on I-395 from Reno. You will be on the east side of the Sierras (and no trains for most of the way), however it is interesting drive. Myself, I’m just out of Sacramento and am partial to photographing Donner Pass. You can check out some of my photos by checking out this link: http://www.blurb.com/b/4715599-steel-rails-over-donner-pass I hope you have a great time exploring America’s railroads, Jeff B.
Sacramento is just a bit too far. I was constrained by the availability of BA upgrade flights using air miles and more importantly, the good will of my wife. This will be the first time we haven’t been away together (she’s not keen on lots of driving). I suspect there will be some payback
I’ll be heading south on 395 from Truckee; I’ll be a bit mournful being so close to Yosemite and Death Valley (visited some years ago) but will have a look at Mono Lake en route.
But I’ll certainly make time to visit those places just west of Truckee and at Boca.
Hello Chris, Truckee/Reno down to Southern California on I-395 is a great drive, as it hugs the eastern edge of the Sierra Nevada mountain range nearly all the way down to Mojave. There are a couple things you can see along the way. On the way down from Reno stop in Bridgeport, CA. Nearby is the Bodie ghost town. Check it out online for more info. It’s a great window into what the real old west looked like. Near Mono Lake is Lee Vining. About one mile before you enter town is a great turnout where you can get some great shots of the Tufa formations. From Lee Vining you can drive up highway 120 up to Tioga Pass, Yosemite’s eastern entrance. A half hour south of Mono Lake (on I-395) is Mammoth Lakes. Great town and some great mountain biking. South of Mammoth is Bishop and the town of Laws. Some great narrow gauge RR equipment is on display there. From there down to Mojave (then west to Tehachapi) is another 5 or so hours driving. Not sure if you’re going to do Reno to Tehachapi in one day, but if you’ve got some time in between there are some great places to stop. Hope you enjoy your trip in the western USA, and thanks for the kind words regarding my photos. Cheers, Jeff B
I’m actually travelling from Tahoe City to California City that day - a bit shorter distance wise but not I suspect time wise. Whilst I will be over the jet lag by then I always find it easier to get up and out earlier than over here - I’m sure it will be worth it.
I’ll certainly break the journey at Bodie and Mono Lake. Also I see there is a short scenic loop to Mammoth so that would be good. Tioga Pass, Bishop and Laws were visited during our first ever US trip in 2001, before heading east to Death Valley, Vegas and the Grand Canyon. Bishop was where we had our first memorable American steak!
I’ve managed to locate some of your Donner Pass suggestions. The mapping software struggled with a route to Andover but Google Ear
Chris, you would do well to order yourself a DeLorme road atlas for each of the states in which you plan serious exploring. ($20 apiece, see www.delorme.com.) They show current and most abandoned railroad lines, topographic features, etc ., and have been a big help to me, including in following the U.P. across Wyoming.
They’ll throw you a curve once in a while with back-road info that isn’t up to date. In Wyo., between Bitter Creek and Point of Rocks, for instance, on the Black Buttes Road, you’ll find yourself T-ed out at a coal-haul road and coal conveyor. Be of good cheer and – watching out for the behemoth haul trucks! – proceed on the haul road a few hundred yards (north, if you are following UP west to east; south, if you are following it east to west) until you see your BBR resuming.
In general, DeLorme’s road information is quite reliable.
Thanks Fred. That looks a promising small detour!
I bought some of those a few of those ago; they’re incredibly detailed. I’m just missing Wyoming from my intended route.
However, they are rather big and heavy and I’m not sure I’ll have room in the case but I might look into getting some pages photocopied.
If it were me from Moab I would head for Durango Colorado and/or Chama New Mexico and take in a narrow gauge ride. Then up to Canon City via Pueblo (used to be a big interchange point) and take in Royal Gorge with the ex D&RG track at the bottom. Then Pikes Peak rack rr outside Colorado Springs south of Denver.
Safely back and had a fabulous time.
A great bonus was Big Boy’s schedule coinciding with mine and I spent a very cold but enjoyable hour at Medicine Bow in its company.
Absolutely nothing at Caliente or Tehachapi so fortunate to have visited both before.
But Cajon Pass more than made up for it and Hill 582 was just magical.
Thoroughly enjoyed the yard at Green River too.
Many thanks everyone for your suggestions.
