Our Best Trip Ever - Part 8 - Flagstaff Area

(Continued from: Our Best Trip Ever - Part 7 - Chasing From Winslow to Flagstaff)

Day 4

Spacing Out and Getting Squirrelly

When I set out planning this trip I looked for activities that Deb would enjoy. Next to hanging out with me track side, shooting photographs of passing trains ad nauseam, one of her true passions is astronomy. Fortunately, Flagstaff is home to an historic and working observatory. That observatory, the Lowell Observatory, became one of the surprise side trips that I planned especially for Deb.

My plan called for surprising her by driving right up to the observatory proper and then cluing her in on we were about to do. Everything worked out okay until we got there. She was excited and looked forward to seeing all that the observatory had to offer. The problem was that I mixed my days up and the observatory was not offering night viewing through their telescopes the evening we arrived. Bummer.

Abert’s Squirrel (sciurus aberti)
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

All was not lost though because we already had a camp site at the Flagstaff KOA and we could just come back tomorrow evening to take the tours and look through some of the telescopes.

As detailed in the previous post, Our Best Trip Ever - Part 7 - Chasing From Winslow to Flagstaff, we instead headed down to the Flagstaff Depot in old town for a bit and then went to our camp site.

The next day, as we made preparations to leave our camp site, we were entertained by a hungry squirrel unlike any we have seen before. Typical in all other respects, what made this squirrel unique were the rather long and hairy ears on the squirrel. He was apparently a nervous eater and would take a nibble, then do a dance or roll, then jump back on the tree stump and eat some more only to repeat it all again. After consulting our trusty nature guide of the southwest, we learned the species of this type of squirrel — Abert’s Squirrel (sciurus aberti).

Out in Space

After a leisurely departure from the Flagstaff KOA, and our squirrel show, we headed to the observatory to take in some tours and exhibits. The road to the top of the hill where the observatory is situated affords visitors a spectacular view of Flagstaff from an overlook at a wide spot in the road. This spot was the guise under which I sold Deb that we needed to climb this hill.

I parked the rig and we got out to take it all in and fire off a panorama of what we saw: 

Mars Hill Overlook, Flagstaff, Arizona
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Flagstaff Depot From Mars Hill - A view of the old downtown area of Flagstaff, Arizona with the depot and a BNSF westbound intermodal train in the scene.
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Immediately opposite the overlook, on the road leading uphill, are two pillars on the side of the road which denote the entrance to the Lowell Observatory.

Once we had our fill of the view from the killer vantage point, we entered the Lowell Observatory grounds, once again.

This visit was the real deal and much more productive than yesterday’s failed attempt. 

We paid our fees and began to see some of the exhibits, at least until a school bus full of 5th or 6th graders arrived — or perhaps it was ten buses, weren’t not sure. The noise and clatter of semi-disinterested kids made further viewing of the exhibits impractical.

Fortunately, a docent was setting up a telescope outside the exhibit hall equipped with a filter to safely view the sun in all of its glowing glory. With extreme haste and determination, we made our way through the morass of misbehaving minors and got in line to see the sun like we have never seen it before. It was quite a cool sight, especially being able to make out a visible sun spot on the surface of the sun as well.

Next, we joined a guided tour describing the history, the present scientific work being performed, and the future of the observatory. I won’t go into the details of all what we learned, nor what the observatory has to offer each visitor, however, I will tell you that this is where Pluto was first discovered! Suffice it to say that I highly recommend a visit for anyone interested in historical places or history and/or space and science.

Weather permitting, the entrance fees also cover the opportunity to actually look through one of the observatory’s historic telescopes after dark. We took in all the exhibits and tours we could during our afternoon visit but we really wanted to look through the big scopes so we left to chase for bit around Flagstaff with plans to return at sunset. Upon our return, we were treated to a fantastic view of Saturn and some of her moons through the historic 24-inch Clark Telescope which was built in 1896! Way cool.

Lowell Observatory Polaroids
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Time-Out for Some Chasing

Since we had a few hours before sunset and no idea of where we were going to park the camper for the night I was able to convince Deb to leave the observatory for a bit and try to find a spot to spend the night once we finished our night viewing. We headed west on I-40 in the hopes of finding something suitable. I really wasn’t up for another night at Walmart!

I wanted to find something that was close to the tracks in hopes of catching a sunrise near the Arizona continental divide just west of Flagstaff, near Riordan. Driving through the target area I did not find something that seemed like it would work for us. We continued west.

Passing through the area at Bellemont, Arizona, we were taken by the scenic opportunities that the area provided. I bounced off at the Bellemont Army Depot exit and worked my way towards the tracks. The area was cool with stands of Ponderosa Pines and we spent about 30 minutes track side and didn’t see a single train. However, the area showed some signs of misuse (beer bottles and trash) which led me to rule it out as a possible camping location.

The track of our fourth day on the Seligman Sub. The black camera icons indicate the locations that I shot.

I recalled a trip we made to Canyon Diablo back in August of 2010. During that trip we stopped at a nearby location called Maine and I wanted to try shooting some shots there again. I made my mind up that we would leverage a local truck stop at Bellemont for some overnight rest and head to Maine for the morning sun.

With my concerned of a camping location taken care of, and as we made our way back towards Flagstaff, I followed the tracks best I could and we were able catch a few trains tackling the grade. We also returned to a location that I had shot in the past to see what might have changed. Here are a few photos from those efforts:

BNSF 7201 West - BNSF 7201 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 4234 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 6672 (GE ES44C4) lead a westbound manifest upgrade out of Flagstaff, Arizona on BNSF’s transcon in April 2011.
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 8214 West 1 - A rare EMD SD75M, in the form of BNSF 8214, leads an interesting lashup of motive power to include BNSF 7696 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 5354 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 1087 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 2333 (EMD GP38-2) on the point of a westbound manifest moving through Flagstaff, Arizona on April 20, 2011.
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 8214 West 2
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 8214 West 3
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 8214 West 4
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 8214 West 5
[4/20/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

As described previously in this post, we returned to the Lowell Observatory and were able to view Saturn through an amazing telescope from the 1890s. After the long day, and after the sun had long ago set, we headed west for the predetermined rest spot of the truck stop at Bellemont. Time for a quick bite and then off to bed because I think the altitude was getting to us both and I was scheduled to be up to shoot the sunrise, which will be the subject of our next post.

Our Best Trip Ever - Part 7 - Chasing From Winslow to Flagstaff

(Continued from: Our Best Trip Ever - Part 6 - More Chasing at the La Posada Hotel)

Day 3

On The Road Again

It had been a glorious two days hanging out at the La Posada Hotel in Winslow, Arizona but it was time to leave. In part because our reservations expired and, equally important, because we came to see BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision. The last two days were the perfect starter course for this vacation and we now felt calm and relaxed — ready to enjoy what laid ahead.

After sleeping in for a bit, Deb and I reluctantly packed our belongings and checked out of the hotel. She still wanted to take one last walk around and throughout the hotel so I left her there, to say her “goodbyes,” while I went and prepared the truck for departure. I loaded our gear and headed off to get gas and propane along with some munchies.

SONIC® Drive-In’s Footlong Quarter Pound Coney - MMMMmmm great!As I headed towards the Winslow “Flying J Travel Center” I saw a SONIC® Drive-In and I thought that sounded good so I stopped in. I ordered Deb her usual and I grabbed two of their Footlong Quarter Pound Coney chili dogs, one for now and one for later in the “woods.” Definitely not the healthiest of foods — but hey, we’re on vacation!

After an uneventful refueling of the truck and refilling of the propane tanks, which is always a good thing, I headed back to the La Posada Hotel to grab Deb and head out.

Upon my arrival she was taking some photos of the hotel so I woofed down the dog and then proceeded to set-up my radios and computer to track our quarry. Shortly thereafter, we were on the road again!

I knew this leg of our journey was going to end at Flagstaff by day’s end because I had secretly planned to make a side-trip for Deb’s sake in Flagstaff. Consequently, we set out on a leisurely pace heading west on Interstate 40. I kept an watchful eye on the computer display for any indication of nearby traffic. 

The track of our third day on the Seligman Sub. The black camera icons indicate the locations that I shot.

In Search of Sunshine

There was no train traffic to speak of as we headed west until we approached the area near Red Gap Ranch Road. Judging from what we could see from the freeway and on the computer, there were a few trains transiting the area. Ideally we would have raced to Canyon Diablo, the area’s preeminent photo location on the BNSF, and took shots there, but not this time. If you recall from a previous trip I took there, recounted in this post, the road to Canyon Diablo is much like the canyon itself — a devil. No way we were going to chance it on this trip and we certainly weren’t going to get there in time to catch these trains. So I looked for a potentially easier way in which to reach the rails. I found what looked like an ideal location off of the Meteor Crater Road exit.

Taking the exit, making a right turn, and not seeing any signs that indicated the area was private property, we found that the paved road gave way to a decent dirt road. So far, so good. The GPS indicated that the road we were on should take us up to the railroad’s right-of-way sans issue. What the GPS did not show, however, was the vast number of cattle that sauntered, lounged, and swarmed all over the range land. Deb and I, far from being classified as cattle-savvy people, quickly began to evaluate each near-miss or approaching cow/steer for trouble. I feared, perhaps unnecessarily, that a perturbed bovine might charge us or our truck. Over time I realized that the cattle appeared to be harmless and it became humorous and it certainly didn’t deter us from getting track side.

It turns out that our destination, unbeknown to us at the time, was a railroad location called, aptly, Sunshine, Arizona. Taking artistic license, I created the following piece, which portrays an imagined, old western flash card of a “moo cow” nailed to the side of a barn, from a photo Deb took of a steer watching a passing train, to commerate our experience getting in and out of Sunshine, Arizona:

Moo Cow
(moous cowus yumus)
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Debra Parra, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

It turned out that our timing was impeccable because we set-up in time to catch about six trains back-to-back in a span of about 30 minutes or so. In two cases, two trains met right near us as seen in the following works:

BNSF 5256 East - BNSF 5256 (GE DASH 9-44CW) and BNSF 1069 (GE DASH 9-44CW) are on the point of this eastbound manifest as she passes the siding at Sunshine, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.Manifest Meet at Sunshine - BNSF 5256 (GE DASH 9-44CW) and BNSF 1069 (GE DASH 9-44CW) hold the point of this eastbound manifest as she meets a westbound counterpart with Warbonnet-schemed BNSF 752 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leading BNSF 5731 (GE ES44AC), BNSF 4884 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and NS 9588 (GE DASH 9-40CW) at Sunshine, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 752 West at Sunshine 2 - A westbound manifest train, with Warbonnet-schemed BNSF 752 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leading BNSF 5731 (GE ES44AC), BNSF 4884 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and NS 9588 (GE DASH 9-40CW), strains against the grade at Sunshine, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

We were fortunate, at least in my eyes, to catch the preceeding mainifest train, struggling hard against the grade, with an ex-ATSF (Santa Fe) painted unit on the point. Another nice rarity feature about this train was the fact that on the rear of the freight consist was six former American Orient Express passenger cars heading to the Grand Canyon Railway (GCRX) in Williams, Arizona. I don’t know if the cars were sold to the GCRX or if they were going there to have some work done in the GCRX shops. Maybe one of you know and can let us all know:

[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

More good fortune for us came as we were leaving Sunshine and approaching the freeway. I turned to look back and saw a third train meet in the making. I jumped out and shot this scene. As it unfolded before me I found myself thinking about what this scene would have looked like back in the late 1800s as the trains streaked across the desert. As such, I crafted this piece:

Fast Freight for Shippers.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

We Didn’t Forget Winona

After bidding our farewells to the cattle and trains, we headed west once again on I-40 towards Flagstaff. In this area the tracks of BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision parallel the freeway, as the photo below shows. I could see that we would be passing a train shortly, and despite the high midday sun, I decided to take the Townsend Winona Road exit ahead of the train, once again, and shoot this train as well since the exit afforded an easy-off and easy-on access to the freeway.

Our luck continued as a previously unseen eastbound was also approaching West Darling at the same time our westbound train passed us. Another meet. Here’s part of the sequence I shot:

Meet at West Darling - Sequence
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7355 East at Winona - After meeting a westbound stack train at the switch at West Darling, BNSF 7355 (GE ES44DC) leads an all GEVO set with BNSF 7418 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7913 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7882 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 7367 (GE ES44DC), on the point of an eastbound stack train approaching the underpass at Townsend Winona Road.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Shapely Curves

When initially scouting possible locations for this trip using the planning maps I made and Google Maps, one of the locations I was intrigued by is an area known as Cosnino, Arizona. After studying the maps I got the sense that this spot might afford me an opportunity to shoot a nice shot on a curve with a mountain as the backdrop. This location was one my list of places to stop and it was next up.

While driving there, and as I thought about the shot, I remembered the Warbonnet train we shot at Sunshine. If I hurried we might be able to catch that train at Cosnino Road. I mashed the accelerator pedal and got my rig doing a pretty good clip.

Using the GPS as the guide, we reached Cosnino Road in short order and I turned right onto a dirt road that headed east along the south side of the tracks. Immediately thereafter we came upon a BNSF worker in a company pick-up truck. I pulled to the side of the road to give him clearance to get by. My hope was that he wasn’t going to give us grief — and fortunately we just exchanged waves and nods and continued on our separate ways.

I reached the curve and fortunately the area was wide enough for me to park the truck on the side of the road, which I did. I assembled my tripod and camera gear and waited. We had waited some twenty minutes or so before I heard the distinctive rhythmic sound of an approaching train. As the train came into view I was thrilled to see the Warbonnet on the point:

BNSF 752 West at North Cosnino Road 1 - A westbound manifest train, with Warbonnet-schemed BNSF 752 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leading BNSF 5731 (GE ES44AC), BNSF 4884 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and NS 9588 (GE DASH 9-40CW), strains against the grade and curvature near Cosnino, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.BNSF 752 West at North Cosnino Road 2 - A westbound manifest train, with Warbonnet-schemed BNSF 752 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leading BNSF 5731 (GE ES44AC), BNSF 4884 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and NS 9588 (GE DASH 9-40CW), strains against the grade and curvature near Cosnino, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 752 West at North Cosnino Road 3 - A westbound manifest train, with Warbonnet-schemed BNSF 752 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leading BNSF 5731 (GE ES44AC), BNSF 4884 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and NS 9588 (GE DASH 9-40CW), strains against the grade and curvature near Cosnino, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.BNSF 752 West at North Cosnino Road 4 - A westbound manifest train, with Warbonnet-schemed BNSF 752 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leading BNSF 5731 (GE ES44AC), BNSF 4884 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and NS 9588 (GE DASH 9-40CW), strains against the grade and curvature near Cosnino, Arizona.
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.co

Missed It By That Much

After the we caught the manifest train at Cosnino, Arizona, I began to worry about the time. I had planned something special for Deb and needed to get to Flagstaff soon. We packed up our gear and got back on our trusty road, I-40.

As we approached, and throughout the drive through, Flagstaff, Arizona, it was hard not to stop to take photos as I saw plenty of trains and cool spots but I was on a mission for Deb. The first order of business was to secure a campground so we didn’t have to worry about it later and we did just that at the Flagstaff KOA.

Once that task was complete we headed to our secret destination stopping to replenish goods from a local supermarket along the way. Every now and again we would pass a roadside sign pointing the way to our destination and I would glance over at Deb to see if she noticed the sign and figured out what was up. Fortunately she was taking in the whole view and didn’t notice the signs specifically. Whew, my cover was not blown.

I will reveal the details and the location of of my secret side trip that I had planned for Deb in my next post. Suffice it to say that it was well received and appreciated — though I was off by one day. Since we weren’t going to do what I had planned today, we headed down to the depot to soak up the local happenings and become one with the Flagstaff — so to speak.

Here are the results of our time at the depot: 

Flagstaff Depot - Desktop
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Flagstaff Depot in HDR
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Flagstaff Depot Framed
[4/19/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Despite the fact that not a single train came by while we were at the depot, it was fun to chat with the Amtrak personnel that staffed the depot and take shots of the cool building itself. We would be doing our special event tomorrow evening so we headed back to the KOA campground to set-up the truck for the night, have some dinner, and check out the photos we took today on the Mac.

It had been a good chase.

Our Best Trip Ever - Part 6 - More Chasing at the La Posada Hotel

(Continued from: Our Best Trip Ever - Part 5 - Chasing at the La Posada Hotel)

Day 2

Track Side at the La Posada Hotel Again

After a nice and luxurious night’s rest at the La Posada Hotel, Deb and I awoke mid-morning to the unmistakeable sound of General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division prime movers of yesteryear. After getting cleaned up, we decided to grab breakfast in the camper before we started the day.

On the way to the camper we discovered the source of the diesel cacophony that was to provide an old-school ambience to our breakfast feast. Working the Winslow Yard, perhaps assembling its train, which I assume it to be the Winslow Local, was a pair of glorious old engines. On the point was the BNSF 120 (formerly ATSF 120), which is an EMD GP60M that was built in June, 1990, as part of the first production run of GP60Ms. The second, and final unit, was the BNSF 2333 (formerly BN 2333 and SLSF 478) which is an EMD GP38-2 that was built a mere 13 ½ years prior (in 12/76) to BNSF 120 and some 34 years ago!

After enjoying a fantastic breakfast burrito, I grabbed my gear and headed track side to catch these old units in action. In some weird way I felt obligated to capture the scene. It felt a little like chasing a steam locomotive except these units were commonplace for me because they ruled the rails back when I started out. It is not that rare of a sight to see on the BNSF today, but what I thought about, as I snapped photo after photo, was the fact that this scene, in particular, was all about predecessors. I suddenly began to feel old.

On September 21, 1995, the Burlington Northern Railroad merged with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway to form the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway. The individual roads operated autonomously until December 31, 1996 when the railroads officially joined operations. Then in January, 2005, the railroad’s name was officially changed to “BNSF Railway Company.”

So, here before me, some 15 years after the merger, was a representative unit from each parent railroad — but not just that. Each unit was an “old generation” unit in as complete pre-merger livery as you can get. It was the predecessors of the BNSF Railway and the predecessors of the today’s ubiquitous GE locomotives all rolled up into one. I began to wonder if the BNSF Railway had known I was at the La Posada Hotel and put these two units together for me…ever so briefly!

The EMD GP60M, represented by BNSF 120, was once the pride of the Santa Fe Railroad and held the point on most of the “hot” intermodal and/or piggyback trains of the day. After many years of use and technological advancements in locomotive engineering these units tend to be relagated to switching duties and local jobs these days.

I shot a whole bunch of images as these units continued their work on the east end of Winslow Yard and here is a sampling of that effort:

Predecessors
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry BNSF 120 East - Predecessors for both, the BNSF (Santa Fe & Burlington Northern) and modern locomotives, can be seen in this photo showing BNSF 120 (EMD GP60M) and BNSF 2333 (EMD GP38-2) seen here working at the Winslow Yard in April 2011.
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry

Predecessors Postcard
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry

During this period there seemed to a lull in mainline trains coming through Winslow. That didn’t last long though. As the local continued to perform switching moves, a massive unit train, which I presume to be carrying some quarry-based product, came in from the east on track 3 and began stopping for a crew change. Even before the brakes where set on the unit train, which had four units up front, 3 mid-train units and two more on the rear — with a ton of cars, I could see headlights on the horizon in both directions. We were back in business.

I continued to shoot from in front of the Winslow Amtrak station for bit as the traffic picked up. Here is a sequence of a hot intermodal (Z-train) coming in from the east. This train crossed over and came in on Track 2 and stopped ever so briefly and then it was gone again with a new crew.

BNSF 7677 West 1, 2, 3 - BNSF 7677 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 4494 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 6639 (GE ES44C4), and BNSF 7334 (GE ES44DC) hustle this westbound Z-train through a crossover at East Winslow, AZ as they pull along side a massive unit train and into the crew change point at Winslow, AZ
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry

My PSA - The Lay of the Land at the La Posada Hotel

The grounds and area surrounding the La Posada Hotel in Winslow, Arizona are an ideal location from which to watch and/or photograph trains along one of the busiest trackage in the southwest. Guests of the hotel are treated to various spots on the hotel’s property where you can find shade, some seating, and a great vantage point. There are some guidelines that you must follow in order to have a hassle-free experience and not become a nuisance for the hotel, the railroad, or other fans.

Remember that the BNSF Railroad’s right-of-way and associated outbuildings, bridges, and signal houses are private property. The railroads take trespassing on their property very seriously and I would caution everyone against trespassing at any level. The BNSF’s crews are required to report all trespassers and, I suspect, the La Posada Hotel wants to keep a good relationship with the railroad, and, as such, has placed signs along the south end of their property to help remind guests that this is a very active mainline and that it is private property. The hotel’s proximity to the mainline is unparalleled and there is no need to trespass onto BNSF property to get a shot or watch the action. Heeding this advice makes it a more enjoyable experience for everyone involved — especially to keep railfans welcome at the hotel and track side.

For those interested, I created the following mash-up showing the locations of key points and photos showing the views of the east and west from the hotel’s grounds. As you can see, there is no reason to enter BNSF’s property:

The Lay of the Land at the La Posada Hotel - Click image for a larger view (4MB). Use the arrow keys to scroll the image in your browser.
© Copyright 2011, Joe Perry.

One potentially challenging aspect of the rail photography experience at the La Posada Hotel is the fact that the hotel is situated on the north side of the tracks. This can put the sun directly in front of you and backlight the scene. You can compensate for this with your camera’s settings or shoot multiple exposures. The best thing to do is to shoot when the sun is lower in the sky, like early morning and evening, and shoot activity in the opposing direction.

Lighting Challenges - While the hotel and depot complex offer an excellent railroad experience it does present a challenge for photographers because the sun is typically on the opposite side of the tracks and this will backlight the scene.
© Copyright 2011, Joe Perry.

Despite the sunlight challenges, there is some great railroad photographic opportunities to be had at the hotel — not to mention the landscape and architecture opportunities as well. Here are a few shots of traffic directly in front of the hotel’s viewing area:

BNSF 6858 - BNSF 6858 (EMD SD40-2 Snoot) is the rear unit in a consist on the point of an eastbound manifest train awaiting a crew change in front of the La Posada Hotel in Winslow, Arizona.
[7/6/2006 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com

Passing Intermodal
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Tank Cars on the Move
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

After a few more trains and a whole bunch of photos, I wanted a change of venue. I was looking for a less-cluttered scene and opted to walk east of the depot and hotel more towards the control point at East Winslow. After crossing a dry creek or wash I found my quarry that afforded a vantage point with less non-track elements in the scene just east of control point CP 2853 and west of East Winslow.

I could see several trains waiting east of this new location but they held their places for a bit as the sun began to beat down on me. I was getting hot and thirsty but I wanted to wait for at least one train to show up so I wouldn’t waste the effort. I held on long enough for one westbound to reach me before I opted to retreat to the hotel for some eats and treats — and shade!

BNSF 5133 West 1 - An apparently fire-damaged BNSF 5133 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 7588 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 7671 (GE ES44DC) provide the tractive effort for this westbound intermodal train at CP 2853 just east of Winslow, Arizona.
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe PerryBNSF 5133 West 2 - An apparently fire-damaged BNSF 5133 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 7588 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 7671 (GE ES44DC) provide the tractive effort for this westbound intermodal train at CP 2853 just east of Winslow, Arizona.
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry

After a sufficient respite in the camper for some soda, shade, and a good long sit, I headed back to the tracks and continued to ply my trade. It was a great day and it kept getting better.

BNSF 5377 West - BNSF 5337 (GE DASH 9-44CW), NS 2771 (EMD SD70M-2) , and CSXT 4811 (EMD SD70MAC) bring their manifest consist into Winslow, AZ after just completing a run across BNSF’s Gallup subdivision.
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.comBNSF 7234 West into Winslow - BNSF 7234 (GE ES44DC) leads two other GE ES44DCs and one GE DASH 9-44CW into the crew change point at Winslow, Arizona, having just finished their run over the Gallup Subdivision on April 18, 2011.
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com

Parting Shot - BNSF 157 East - BNSF 157 (EMD GP60M), BNSF 1757 (EMD SD40-2), BNSF 6741 (EMD SD40-2), and an unidentified GE DASH 9-44CW are performing switching duties at the Winslow Yard late in the day in April 2011.
[4/18/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com

Radar Love and the Turquoise Room

I had a full day of chasing steel and photography and I felt I had some great shots so I decided it was time to wrap it up and meet up with Deb.

I put away my gear in the camper, cleaned the grit off of me and proceeded to walk towards the lobby. Just then I see Deb exited the hotel and I smiled. It seems we have always had that “radar love” that Golden Earring sings about, because she was coming out to see how I was doing at the exact same time.

After we greeted each other and shared our day’s events with one another we decided that it would be remiss of us not to partake of one of the La Posada Hotel’s gems, the Turquoise Room.

The Turquoise Room is one of, if not the best, restaurants in this region of the southwest. It is operated by renowned Chef John Sharpe. It is a fantastic dining experience.

Reservations are recommended but Deb and I neglected to make them earlier. Fortunately, it was still early enough in the evening that we were able to get a window seat that afforded us a view of the tracks - of course!

We went all out on the meal and, at our server’s recommendation, we started with the “Signature Soup” which is best described straight off of their menu (The soup is incredible! I am getting hungry and salivating at the thought it right now!):

Creamy sweet corn in the same bowl with smooth and spicy black bean topped with a signature of spicy chile cream.

In keeping with our railroading theme, Deb and I both had dishes from the “Fred Harvey Dishes” section on the menu. She had the prime rib and I had the filet mignon. Simply amazing. You definitely need to eat here if you are anywhere within 250 miles or so.

End of Day 2

After a terrific meal and dining experience, Deb and I took a brief walk around the hotel’s grounds and interior to soak up all that we could. We love this place and it was to be our last night here. While we were sad that it was coming to an end, we had a great time and we were looking forward to adventures unknown that were still to come as we began to chase the BNSF along the Seligman Subdivision for the next week.

We retired to our room and enjoyed our final night’s stay in the fabulous La Posada Hotel. We will be back soon — no doubt.

Tomorrow we would leave for our chase fully rested and relaxed with some fond memories.