Our Best Trip Ever - Part 10 - Heading into the Unknown

(Continued from: Our Best Trip Ever - Part 9 - A Few Favorite Locations)

Day 5 - Part 2

Sailing into Uncharted Waters

After the shoot at CP Chalendar, I grew concerned, not so much about the distance we needed to travel today, but rather the uncertain condition of the roads and the general accessibility of the area that laid ahead in our travels along BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision. According to my original plans we were due to spend the day shooting the area around Eagle Nest and Double A. Since we were not even near Double A yet, I felt tense because that meant something must give in our schedule. I preferred it to be those areas we had visited before so we headed west on I-40 towards Williams, Arizona to try to get back on schedule.

It turns out that in my haste to depart Bellemont without refilling my propane tanks added value to the trip. Since we were going into the Kaibab National Forest, as we entered Williams, I topped off my diesel and fresh water tanks while also dumping our waste and grey water. All I needed now was propane.

Superior Propane, Inc. of Williams, Arizona.I saw from the freeway a propane distributor and I was up for giving the place a shot since I was tired of paying too much for propane from the truck stops along the way. Using dead reckoning and our GPS as the map we found the dealer that I saw from the freeway. The propane dealer was Superior Propane, Inc.

As a nice salesman refilled our tanks, he and I struck up a conversation. I preceded to explain our trip and our adventures thus far and asked for his knowledge of the area near Double A. Pulling a map from the cab of the truck he clued me in on what the road conditions were like and what to expect where. He even went so far as to offer additional railroad related shooting opportunities to be found near Seligman and Pica, further on in our trip.

Armed with this new, and locally confirmed, information, I felt easier about our plans and how successful we should be. I left a few business cards with the folks at Superior Propane and encouraged them to check my web site in a few months to see the result of our chase.  As we waved goodbye, we departed and headed north out of Williams.

For the next two days or so we would be visiting portions of the Seligman Subdivision that I have never chased before. This was the heart of our trip - the new, the uncharted, the unknown.

Using the map shown below, you can see that my original plans called for accessing Eagle Nest from a road heading north out of Ash Fork, Arizona - seen in yellow dashes. This route was gleaned from analysis of Google Maps and railfan reports. However, now that I knew the local road conditions I was able to maximize my travels in the Kaibab National Forest along the BNSF tracks. The route we actually traversed over two days in the forest are shown in red. This afforded a couple of other locations that I had resigned myself not being able to visit - all thanks to the folks at the Superior Propane.

CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE - Actual route taken along the Crookton Cut-Off shown in RED thanks to information from the folks at Superior Propane. My original intended route is shown in yellow dashes. 

Shots from the Crookton Cut-Off

The road which lead us into the Crookton Cut-Off region was extremely smooth and wide for a gravel road. It was obvious this road was well maintained and it allowed us to make quick work of the distance that we needed to cover. In short order we found ourselves along side the BNSF transcon once again. The site was east of CP East DoubleA. (Pronounced as and spelled like “Double A” for most but “DoubleA” for the railroad.)

BNSF 4382 West 1 - BNSF 4382 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 4367 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 7673 (GE ES44DC) head up a westbound manifest consist seen here rounding a curve near East DoubleA on BNSF’s Crookton Cut-Off.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com

After a few quick shots, I took some time to look around. The land was amazing and not at all what I thought a “forest” would be like. The colors of the geology and foliage are surreal and vivid - a photographers dream.

BNSF 4382 West 2 - BNSF 4382 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 4367 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 7673 (GE ES44DC) head up a westbound manifest consist seen here rounding a curve near East DoubleA on BNSF’s Crookton Cut-Off.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com

BNSF 976 East 1 - BNSF 976 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 4788 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 5228 (GE DASH 9-44CW) give all they’ve got to muscle this eastbound manifest train upgrade and through the curves of the BNSF’s transcon line in Arizona. Seen here leaving CP West DoubleA.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Debra Parra, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 976 East 2 - BNSF 976 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 4788 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 5228 (GE DASH 9-44CW) give all they’ve got to muscle this eastbound manifest train upgrade and through the curves of the BNSF’s transcon line in Arizona. Seen here leaving CP West DoubleA.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 976 East 3 - BNSF 976 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 4788 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 5228 (GE DASH 9-44CW) give all they’ve got to muscle this eastbound manifest train upgrade and through the curves of the BNSF’s transcon line in Arizona. Seen here leaving CP West DoubleA.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

CP West DoubleA, View From the East
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

The one aspect of the line that I noted was how the line was graded and built. Being built rather recently, (the line was built in 1960 which is recent in historical railroad terms), the construction involved making ample use of fills and cuts with the help from heavy machinery that wasn’t available during the construction of most rail lines built a century prior. This fact tends to make chasing the line a tad bit challenging because you can find yourself 100 feet above the line one minute and two hundred feet below it the next minute. It does afford some amazing vistas though. Looking through the photos I took on the cut-off, you’d be hard press to find one without a cut or a fill in the shot.

One control point that I wanted to visit, if possible, was CP West DoubleA. I had seen photos of the location before and I was always drawn to the look and feel of it. The control point consists of a single crossover paired with a small siding and it is situated at the end of a deep cut.

Heeding the numerous “No Trespassing” signs posted along the BNSF right-of-way we searched for and found a vantage point on the east end of the control point. We decided to break for lunch and set-up to wait for some traffic. While we were waiting we saw the signals, both eastbound and westbound become favorable for us.

When I could hear the trains approach I went closer to the tracks and waited. Deb snapped this shot of me listening to discern which train would arrive first:

Waiting for the Shot
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Debra Parra & Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

The eastbound came through first. It was a doublestack intermodal (Deb took the second shot shown below):

BNSF 7321 East 1 - BNSF 7321 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7535 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7247 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 4991 (GE DASH 9-44CW) enter the OS at West DoubleA with their eastbound intermodal consist prior to a westbound also cleared through West DoubleA on BNSF’s Crookton Cut-Off.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7321 East 2 - BNSF 7321 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7535 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7247 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 4991 (GE DASH 9-44CW) enter the OS at West DoubleA with their eastbound intermodal consist prior to a westbound also cleared through West DoubleA on BNSF’s Crookton Cut-Off.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Debra Parra, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7321 East 3 - BNSF 7321 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7535 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7247 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 4991 (GE DASH 9-44CW) hustle an eastbound intermodal consist through CP West DoubleA on BNSF’s Crookton Cut-Off.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

While I repositioned myself for another angle, the westbound blew by and caught me by surprise. Eventually another eastbound, this one a vehicle train, came through the OS:

BNSF 7300 East 1 - BNSF 7300 (GE ES44DC) and BNSF 7476 (GE ES44DC) make short work of making track speed with this eastbound vehicle train seen here moving through the OS at CP West DoubleA on BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7300 East 2 - BNSF 7300 (GE ES44DC) and BNSF 7476 (GE ES44DC) make short work of making track speed with this eastbound vehicle train seen here east of CP West DoubleA on BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

As the sun began to hang lower in the sky it was time to find a suitable camping location. We moved a bit further west along the line and settled for a secluded spot west of CP West DoubleA.

Mossberg 500 Tactical Shotgun

This proved to be a suitable location for a little target practice and gun familiarization time having recently added a Mossberg 500 to our arsenal. So Deb and I took turns shooting a tree stump. I must say that I like my new Mossberg very much and it should serve us well here in BFE.

After setting up the rig for the night, Deb and I returned track side to caught the final few shots before the sun set entirely. Again, the deep cuts of the line presented few sight lines but so we worked with what we had: 

Into West DoubleA 1 - A solid set of GEVOs (GE ES44DCs), running elephant-style, scoot this eastbound doublestack train around a curve inside of a cut just west of CP West DoubleA as the sun sinks low in the evening sky.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Into West DoubleA 2 - A solid set of GEVOs (GE ES44DCs), running elephant-style, scoot this eastbound doublestack train around a curve inside of a cut just west of CP West DoubleA as the sun sinks low in the evening sky.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Into West DoubleA 3 - An eastbound doublestack train seen negotiating a curve inside of a cut just west of CP West DoubleA as the sun sinks low in the evening sky.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7601 East 1 - BNSF 7601 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7875 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7516 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 7289 (GE ES44DC) are the lead units providing the horsepower to this hot intermodal “Z train” just west of CP West DoubleA on the Seligman Subdivision of BNSF’s vaunted transcon route.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7601 East 2 - BNSF 7601 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7875 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 7516 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 7289 (GE ES44DC) are the lead units providing the horsepower to this hot intermodal “Z train” just west of CP West DoubleA on the Seligman Subdivision of BNSF’s vaunted transcon route.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

As I shot the trains, Deb took on the role of animal tracker and took photos of the numerous animal tracks that were all around us. Apparently there had been some recent rains to the area previously and many of the tracks were well preserved in the mud. When we returned to the camper for dinner, some star gazing, and sleep, one thing we tried to do was to identify the tracks she found. Obviously there were a lot of elk tracks but also, it appeared, that some sort of big cat was around as well. I drifted off to sleep wondering what animal preys on elk and listening to the trains echoing in the cuts below us — just after I gently tapped my Mossberg to make sure it was nearby.

In the next post I’ll cover our run to Eagle Nest, the crown jewel.

Our Best Trip Ever - Part 9 - A Few Favorite Locations

(Continued from: Our Best Trip Ever - Part 8 - Flagstaff Area)

Day 5 - Part 1

Up Early and Heading to Maine

After the wonderful visit to the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, and the opportunity to do some night viewing through one of their historic telescopes, the day’s events and excitement had left us with little energy to do much else. So after leaving the observatory we headed west on I-40 in search of a place to park for the night. We opted to just spend the night at the Pilot Travel Center at Bellemont, Arizona. This seemed as good of a place as any as it afforded us a chance to top off the tanks and do some shopping to augment our stores. No time for a traditional dinner tonight so we just grabbed some McDonalds and called it a night.

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

When I set about planning the trip along BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision I made sure to include some time at a few of my favorite locations that I had shot during prior visits to the subdivision. One location in particular, CP Maine, was, by design, a stone’s throw away from where we stopped for the night.

I had shot a couple of trains at Maine back in 2006 under some overcast skys. The location is home to a crossover with trains arriving from the west “out of the blue,” so to speak, as they appear to crest a grade out of nowhere. From the east the trains enter the scene by rounding a nice curve giving some interesting perspectives most times. All of this is backdropped by mountains and pine forests.

Here are two shots from back in 2006:

Shots from Maine, Arizona - July 3, 2006
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

My plan was to rise early enough to catch the sunrise at that location. Well, at least that was the plan.

I slept a little longer than I had hoped and grabbed my keys and headed for the cab of the truck. I left Deb sleeping in the bed so she could get some much needed rest and, as I skipped the opportunity to fill my propane tanks, we bolted west on I-40 once again.

As we motored westward I could see the sun was already above the horizon as I looked in my side mirrors. As seen in the image below, the sun had in fact already risen above the ridge behind the tracks when I got there. In my head I envisioned catching a train backlit against a golden sky with the sun still below that ridge. We arrived later than I had hoped for at Maine, but we were there nonetheless. 

As I set-up my gear, I checked in on Deb. Thankfully she continued to sleep soundly despite my less-than-smooth driving while trying to race the sun. Some locals where crossing the tracks at the grade crossing where I parked apparently heading to work for the day. I thought how thankful I was to be on vacation and that I had this view to start my day.

It was chilly outside but resfreshing as I waited for trains to arrive. It didn’t take too long and the first one was a westbound intermodal. I went into action and fired off shot after shot.

BNSF 7545 West - BNSF 7545 (GE ES44DC) and BNSF 4087 (GE DASH 9-44CW) are in charge of a westbound intermodal as they round the curve into CP Maine, west of Flagstaff, Arizona.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Moving Through Maine - BNSF 7545 (GE ES44DC) and BNSF 4087 (GE DASH 9-44CW) are charged with holding back the tonnage of a westbound intermodal as they move downgrade through CP Maine, west of Flagstaff, Arizona.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Up next was an eastbound fighting the grade and the sun:

BNSF 5049 East 1 - BNSF 5049 (GE DASH 9-44CW) is teamed up with three more unidentified GEVO units on the point of an eastbound intermodal temporarily cresting the grade at CP Maine, as they fight to climb towards Flagstaff, Arizona.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Conquering the Mountains - At CP Maine, in northern Arizona, an eastbound BNSF double-stacked intermodal train accenuates the grade, and thereby the challenge, of conquering the mountains as BNSF moves freight along their transcon route.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Another westbound came up next. This one was a high-priority “Z train” that made short work of the descent from the summit as she ate up the trackage and blew by me.

Hotshot Hitting the OS - BNSF 7796 (GE ES44DC) and three more ES44DCs are up front leading a hot westbound intermodal “Z train” into the interlocking plant at CP Maine in Arizona.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

A couple more eastbounds came by and I began to feel as though I had enough decent shots at Maine and thought it time to move further west to another location that I favor, so after the 7219 East blew by I packed up and headed west on I-40 once more.

BNSF 7219 East - BNSF 7219 (GE ES44DC), along with three other units, charge upgrade with an eastbound intermodal consist at Maine, Arizona.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

In Search of Robin Hood, of Sorts

My next destination was Sherwood Forest. The railroad calls this location Chalendar. (I keep calling it mistakeningly Calendar in my head.) After reaching the location and parking my rig on a turnout across the tracks, I noticed the rather surreal view of the last-quarter moon low in the sky over the road. I set-up across the tracks and took this shot: 

Moonrise at Chalendar
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

Chalendar is comprised of a grade crossing, which makes reaching this location a breeze, a control point with crossovers, all situated in the middle of a large s-curve. The tracks run along the south side of a large pasture to the north and along a forested area (perhaps Sherwood Forest itself?) to the south.

BNSF 5168 West - BNSF 5168 (GE DASH 9-44CW), BNSF 7473 (GE ES44DC), and BNSF 7544 (GE ES44DC) are the lead units on this westbound intermodal approaching CP Chalendar in the early morning light.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

During a lull in traffic levels I went back to the camper and woke up Deb. I thought she would enjoy the area and the abundance of wildlife that was everywhere. After fixing us a couple of breakfast burritos she joined me outside and took photos of the frockling birds in the area while I continued to shoot the train traffic.

BNSF 7676 West - BNSF 7676 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 4065 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 7680 (GE ES44DC) provide the power for a westbound doublestack consist seen here approaching CP Chalendar on BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision in the early morning light in April 2011.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

BNSF 7556 East - BNSF 7676 (GE ES44DC), BNSF 4065 (GE DASH 9-44CW), and BNSF 7680 (GE ES44DC) provide the power for a westbound doublestack consist seen here approaching CP Chalendar on BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision in the early morning light.
[4/21/2011 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

I must have lost track of time, because once I did realize what time it was, I became a bit concerned. My hope was to reach the unknown, at least to me, region of the Seligman Subdivision, known as the Crookton Cut-Off by this point in the day. We were behind schedule already because of me messing up the event schedule of the Lowell Observatory and needing to take an extra day in the Flagstaff area to make sure Deb got to see the observatory.

As I packed up all of my gear I made the decision, in the interest of time, to forgoe another of my favorite locations in this area of the subdivision called Bootleggers Crossing. It is another very picturesque location, that is not too far away from Chalendar, featuring cool curves and plenty of long glass opportunites. I’ll make sure to visit it again next time though. 

Here is a shot of a train at Bootlegger Crossing from back in July of 2006: 

BNSF 4104 East - BNSF 4104 (GE DASH 9-44CW) leads three more units and an intermodal consist eastbound into a curve while meeting a westbound counterpart at Bootlegger Crossing, just east of Willaims Juntion on BNSF’s Seligman Subdivision.
[7/3/2006 - Seligman Subdivision] © Copyright 2011, Joe Perry, ChasingSteel.com.

In the next post I will cover our effort to reach the unknown and disclose the wonders we found there.