THE COLORADO JOINT LINE

THIS PAGE WILL COVER THE LINE FROM DENVER SOUTH TO PUEBLO.  ORIGINALLY BOTH THE SANTA FE AND THE RIO GRANDE BUILT PARALLEL LINES.  THE LINES WERE LATER TO BECOME A JOINTLY OPERATED DOUBLE TRACK RAILROAD.  OWING TO ALREADY EXISTING SIGNAL AND CTC SYSTEMS, BOTH THE RIO GRANDE AND SANTA FE  CONTINUED TO DISPATCH THEIR PORTIONS OF THE LINES.  THE COLORADO & SOUTHERN ( LATER C,B&Q ) OBTAINED OVERHEAD RIGHTS ON THE LINE. THE C,B&Q MERGED INTO THE BURLINGTON NORTHERN IN 1970.  SANTA FE AND BN MERGED TO BECOME TODAY'S BNSF.  THE RIO GRANDE REMAINED INDEPENDENT UNTIL ITS MERGER INTO THE UNION PACIFIC.  TODAY THE LINES ARE STILL A JOINT LINE BETWEEN UNION PACIFIC AND BNSF.  THE PRIMARY TRAFFIC OVER THIS LINE IS COAL.  COAL TRAINS LOADED FROM THE  WYOMING POWDER RIVER BASIN HEAD SOUTH TOWARD POWER PLANTS IN TEXAS AND OTHER POINTS.

AT THE NORTH END OF THE JOINT LINE IS THE CITY OF DENVER.  IT IS HERE THAT THE RIO GRANDE AND BN JOINED TO HEAD SOUTH.  I WILL USE THE BN IN AS MUCH AS VIRTUALLY ALL OF THE PHOTOS HERE WERE TAKEN IN SEPTEMBER 1989.  THE RIO GRANDE, EVEN THOUGH OWNING HALF OF THE LINE, TYPICALLY RAN THE FEWEST NUMBER OF TRAINS.  AS YOU WILL SEE IN THE IMAGES BELOW, SEVERAL FREIGHTS DID HAVE A COMBINATION OF BN AND SANTA FE DIESELS, PERHAPS A SIGN OF FUTURE EVENTS.

  BN and Santa Fe units mingle at the joint yard in downtown Denver. 

    On the BN, the SD-40 was king for many years.  Here are two northbound trains.

    EMD owned and leased out to BN a number of new SD-60's(?).  Two of them are in this mixed bag consist.
The second unit is painted in the ill-fated Santa Fe/Southern Pacific merger paint scheme.  The merger never happened, but quite a few diesels
got this 'Kodachrome' image.  The 'Kodachrome' moniker comes from its red and yellow color combination similar to that of Kodak's Kodachrome
yellow and red boxes.  Remember, Kodachrome 64 slide film was the premier film for rail photography for a very long time.

    GP38 2335 leads GP20 3069 and two six-axle units south out of Denver.

  In another unusual lash-up, GP 50 3153 leads three cabless GE B-30-7b units south.

  Here's more odd stuff, SD-40 7233 and three sister SD-40's have a fuel tank car in the middle.  This experiment was to allow the units
to make the full trip from the Wyoming mines to their destination without having to stop to be re-fueled.  I don't believe it lasted long.

Rio Grande SD-45 5317 in its original paint ( small Rio Grande lettering ) departs Denver.

  The Rio Grande train had these MP and SP cabeese on the end.  The Mopac was a good interchange partner with the Rio Grande
down in Pueblo.  For you younguns' out there, this is where the conductor used to ride before the EOT devices came along.

  Two Santa Fe units assigned to pusher service return to the yard.  I did not document this exact spot in Denver.  Does anyone know the street
crossing name of this location.  The last six images were all taken on September 23, 1989.

  SD-40 8107 leads a loaded coal train south through the south side of Denver.  I-25 is just off to the left. 9-10-1989.     Pusher set.

  8107 leads three Santa Fe units and another BN unit southbound.  9-22-1989.

  This former Santa Fe depot at Englewood doesn't look like is was long for this world.  As I recall it was adjacent to a large shopping mall.
Does anyone know if the station survived?  The track is missing since the two paralleling lines were consolidated.  9-10-1989.

  A few miles south of Denver was the location of Santa Fe's piggy-back yard.  It was known as Big Lift.  A GP20 sits in the yard.

  A F45, a SD40 and a GP30 sit in the yard.  9-9-1989. 

  Kodachrome painted C-30-7 9550 leads a northbound empty coal train past the north end of Big Lift.  Note the Santa Fe sign.

    SD40 7000 and friends sit near Big Lift.  The magnificent Front Range of the Rockies in the background.

  I was chasing this train north and here it is down north of Sedalia, CO.

  Cresting a hill in "downtown" Sedalia.

  BN SD40 7073 leads a loaded coal train south through Sedalia.  9-10-1989.

  A pair of BN SD40 helper units head back toward Denver.  They are north of the famous Castle Rock seen in the distance.

  Here's 9550 again, this time near Castle Rock.  Note the southbound train in the distance.

  Another Kodachrome Santa Fe GE chugs south near Castle Rock.  9-10-1989.

  Rio Grande GP40 3104 leads six other units on a southbound at Larkspur.

    Two BN coal trains pass through the rural area of Greenland, CO.

  Later on the same day, this SD40 passes through Greenland.    A BN standard wide-bay caboose brings up the markers.

  A Santa Fe GP50 3408 leads an eastbound (southward) piggy-back train through Greenland.

  The Santa Fe sign at Palmer Lake.  This the highest point on the joint line.  Most helpers out of Denver cut off here.

  6723 and a friend push a train toward the Palmer Lake summit on the morning of September 10, 1989.

  5027 is on a southbound coal train near Palmer Lake.

    SD40 7227 on a southbound loaded coal train sits awaiting a signal just north of Palmer Lake.
  This Santa Fe SD-40 was added onto this train as a helper.  It will cut-off here at Palmer Lake.

       This fresh out of the shop re-built GP30, now known as a GP39m, is now back in the lead.

  BN SD40 7281 leads a northbound around the edge of Palmer Lake.

  7281's caboose passes the waiting train # 92.  Still one more to go north before they can go.

  GP50 3124 with tiger stripes on the nose leads a cabless GE northbound.

  C-30-7 5027 moves a southbound coal train around Palmer Lake.  9-9-1989.

  About one week later, Rio Grande GP40 3092 waits for a northbound.  9-17-1989.

  Rio Grande SD-45T-2 works train 709 upgrade out of Colorado Springs approaching Palmer Lake.  

  With 709 out of the way, 3092 and train 167 head south.

  Here is 5027 again heading north passing through Monument, CO.  Also 9-17-89.

  5027 from 9-9-89 passing under the north entrance road to the U.S. Air Force Academy.

  BN 7281 heading north passing the same location. 9-10-89.

BN 7085 enters the siding at "Academy".  This is the south entrance road overpass.

  5087 is on the main heading an empty hopper drag northward.

  Santa Fe GP39 3689 leads a southbound into the siding for the meet with the above BN train.  9-17-89.

  5027 again at the north end of Academy siding.  9-17-89.

  Here is 7281 northbound passing by Rockrimmon Blvd in Colorado Springs.

  SD40 7804 southbound passing the junction of the former Rock Island.

  Rio Grande 3092 on train 167 passes the Colorado Springs depot.

       The Colorado Springs depot.  The station is still existant.

    This Rio Grande GP30 remained parked near the depot during the week I was there.

  A trio of LMX Super Series GE re-builds heads a BN southbound.  These units eventually wound up in western Pennsylvania.

  Rio Grande 5385 leads an SP units and three BN's with a few auto-racks on the front of an empty coal train.

  BN SD40-2 7000 leads a northbound empty coal train through Fountain, CO. 9-16-1989.

  Santa Fe SD45 5369 on a "Q" train passing the tail end of that coal train at Fountain.

  A former Santa Fe flyover remains here at Fountain.

  Southeastern Colorado is high desert country.  The mountains are more distant now.  8110 at Bragdon.

  EMD SD60 leased unit on a northbound BN train at Bragdon.

  BN 8092 passing under a classic Santa Fe signal south of Bragdon. 9-16-1989.

    There is a holding yard on the north side of Pueblo for crew changes.  LMX 8577 on a northbound BN piggy-back.

  SD40-2 8105 on a coal train awaiting a new crew down in the 'holler'.

  Another LMX unit on a BN merchandise freight.

  Rio Grande 5388 on the point of a BN coal train at Pueblo Jct.  9-15-1989.

  7204 on a northbound empty coal drag going through Pueblo Jct.  9-16-1989.

  Santa Fe C-30-7 8126 heads a train through Pueblo Jct. on the morning of September 16, 1989.

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