T.G.'s Photography Blog

Interstate 70 at the Eisenhower Tunnel This view is looking toward I-70 and the east entrance to the Eisenhower Tunnel. The road curving up in the lower left is Loveland Pass (US 6), which trucks carrying hazardous materials have to use, instead of the tunnel on I-70. The tunnel goes under the Continental Divide, while Loveland Pass goes up and over it. Photo taken: September 6, 2013, from Loveland Pass.

A trail near the summit of Loveland Pass A view of a trail leading up to the mountain tops at the summit of Loveland Pass on the Continental Divide in Colorado. Photo taken: September 6, 2013, at Loveland Pass, Summit County, Colorado.

September 5, 2013. Colorado Springs, CO.

Loveland Pass 9 (US 6) A truck carrying automobiles makes its way down the steep grade of Loveland Pass (U.S. Highway 6) on the eastern side of the Continental Divide. According the the Colorado Department of Transportation, the grades on this highway are as high as six percent. With an elevation of 11,992 feet, the road reaches the second highest elevation of a Colorado mountain pass, one spot behind Independence Pass (State Highway 29) which reaches 12,095 feet. While I'm not sure if this truck was had to use Loveland Pass instead of Interstate 70's Eisenhower Tunnel , trucks that are carrying hazardous materials are required to use the pass instead of the tunnel. Photo taken: September 6, 2013, at Loveland Pass in Colorado.

On the point of this tank car train is First Union Rail (FURX) 3042, with an ex-Conrail unit. The train is heading north on Union Pacific's Chester Subdivision at Chalfin Bridge, IL . This curve at Chalfin Bridge is a popular spot, at least to me, along the Chester Subdivision, due to the rest of the subdivision being very straight between here and Dupo, IL. (Dupo is approximately twenty-three miles to the north of here). Counting this curve, there are three curves in the rail line between Chalfin Bridge and Dupo. If you take a look at this map at Open Railway Map , you can see that long portions of the Chester Subdivision stretch for miles without a curve. The rail line is also very flat, since it runs through the Mississippi River Valley, through southern Illinois. Update (2019-10-31): First Union Rail was a locomotive and rail car leasing company. In 2015, FURX was purchased by Wells Fargo, and was renamed Wells Fargo Rail. Photo taken: November 12, 2005, at Chalf...

With the light of another fall day coming to a close, an empty BNSF iron ore train sits on Union Pacific's Chester Subdivision, near Chalfin Bridge, IL . The Chester Subdivision is double-tracked, but this northbound train had to wait for three or four other northbound trains to clear the line ahead of it, while a parade of southbound trains passed it on the other track. Once the rail line was cleared ahead this train then proceeded north into the St. Louis railroad gateway. Photo taken: November 6, 2005, near Chalfin Bridge, Illinois.

November 6, 2005. Norfolk Southern 8867 rolls north on Union Pacific's Chester Subdivision, along the tree covered bluffs at Valmeyer, Illinois. Photo © Tom Gatermann.

November 12, 2005. Chalfin Bridge, Illinois. A tanker train hauling chemicals rolls north on the Union Pacific's Chester Subdivision, while the headlight of a southbound double-stack train can be seen in the distance. Photo © Tom Gatermann.