Riding the Westbound Empire Builder through Minnesota & North Dakota

On July 31, 1999, I was riding Amtrak's westbound Empire Builder from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Vancouver, Washington. This train was running very late, (we were actually taken from Milwaukee to Midway Station in St. Paul by bus) but it did allow me to see some scenes that the train normally passed in darkness, such as Burlington Northern Santa Fe's yard in Dilworth, Minnesota, just east of Fargo, North Dakota. Parked here with some passenger cars was Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #119, a 3,800-horsepower GP60M that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in June 1990.

Burlington Northern #1532 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in April 1956 as Great Northern 684, a 1,750-horsepower GP9. After the Great Northern was merged into the Burlington Northern, it became Burlington Northern #1836 It was retired on June 15, 1992, and was sent to Morrison-Knudsen in Boise, Idaho, on September 25, 1992, to be rebuilt as an 1,800-horsepower GP28M, with its 567C prime mover fitted with a 645C upgrade kit, a new control stand, dynamic brakes, a Dash 2 electrical system, an AR10E1 alternator, a centralized air filtration system, and a GP38-2-style carbody with a GP50 cab. It was completed on January 10, 1993, as Burlington Northern #1532.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2278 is a 2,000-horsepower GP38-2 that was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in July 1973 as St. Louis-San Francisco (also known as the Frisco) #423. The Frisco was merged into the Burlington Northern in 1980, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #2278. It retained its number through the September 22, 1995 merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe, being repainted into Burlington Northern Santa Fe's "Heritage I" paint scheme on June 22, 1998. In addition to being repainted, it has also had its headlight moved into the nose following Santa Fe practice.

The westbound Empire Builder was scheduled to make its station stop in Fargo, North Dakota, at 3:44 AM, but it was well after sunrise when I photographed Burlington Northern Santa Fe #4877, a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in September 1998, from the train as it passed through Fargo.

Pictured in Minot, North Dakota, Burlington Northern Santa Fe #1067 is a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in November 1996. The westbound Empire Builder was normally scheduled to pass through Minot in daylight, making a service stop there in the morning from 8:36 to 8:56, but the sun was high in the sky by the time this train got there.

Burlington Northern #6227 is a 1,750-horsepower SD9 that was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in April 1959 as Colorado & Southern #832, The Colorado & Southern was a subsidiary of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and after the CB&Q was merged into the Burlington Northern in March 1970, Colorado & Southern locomotives retained their numbers and reporting marks. These locomotives began to be renumbered into Burlington Northern's main numbering system in December 1978, and this locomotive became Colorado & Southern #6227 and finally Burlington Northern #6227. It was still in service in Minot after the Burlington Northern Santa Fe merger.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe #4993 is a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in December 1998. It is pictured here at the engine terminal in Minot, North Dakota.

Just west of Minot, the Empire Builder crosses one of the largest trestles on its route. The Gassman Coulee Trestle is a steel girder trestle that was built in 1899, replacing a wooden trestle that was blown down by a tornado. It is 1,792 feet long and 117 feet high. This is a view from the trestle.

The Gassman Coulee Trestle crosses over County Road 12W near the intersection with 62nd Street SW, as seen here in another view from the trestle.

Here is another view from the Gassman Coulee Trestle. This low area is aptly named Trestle Valley.

Here is another view of the scenery west of Minot.

The westbound Empire Builder was scheduled to stop at Williston, North Dakota, at 11:03 AM, but the evening light was already starting to fade when I photographed Great Northern O-1 Class 2-8-2 #3059 from the train during the Williston station stop. The Great Northern had a total of 145 O-1 Class 2-8-2 Mikados built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in four groups between August 1911 and February 1919, and the last of them were retired in April 1958. Built in February 1913, #3059 was one of the last 15 in operation when it was retired in December 1957, and is the only survivor. It was donated to the City of Williston and placed on display in Railroad Park on August 2, 1958.

Railfanning in Vancouver & Skamania on April 26, 1998

On April 26, 1998, my dad and I went railfanning with his friend Fred Anderson. We started out at the Amtrak depot in Vancouver, Washington. We soon saw some interesting light motive power pass through.

LRCX SF30C #9529 was originally a 3,600-horsepower U36C that was built by General Electric in June 1972 as Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #8702. In February 1986 it was rebuilt by the Santa Fe's shops in Cleburne, Texas as a 3,000-horsepower SF30C and renumbered to #9529. It was sold to Livingston Rebuild Center Inc. on August 6, 1997, becoming LRCX #9529.

On the other leg of the wye came a northbound Union Pacific freight train. Union Pacific #9730 is a 4,380-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in August 1994.

Another light power move soon followed. Burlington Northern GP39E #2902 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in April 1965 as Great Northern GP35 #3039. It was originally powered by a 2,500-horsepower turbocharged 567 engine. After the Great Northern was merged into Burlington Northern on March 2, 1970, it became Burlington Northern #2522. In June 1990 it was rebuilt by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors as 2,300-horsepower GP39E Burlington Northern #2902.

Burlington Northern #2279 is a 2,000-horsepower GP38-2 that was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in July 1973 as St. Louis-San Francisco (SLSF, also known as the Frisco) #424. The Frisco was merged into the Burlington Northern in 1980, and this locomotive was renumbered as Burlington Northern #2279. It still has a notch in its nose where the Frisco's oscillating warning light was mounted.

We left Vancouver and went down the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge to Skamania, Washington. Leading a westbound freight train, Montana Rail Link #325 was originally a 3,600-horsepower SD45 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in December 1968 as St. Louis Southwestern (SSW, also known as the Cotton Belt) #9064. The Cotton Belt was a Subsidiary of the Southern Pacific, and on September 23, 1985, this locomotive was upgraded at Southern Pacific's Sacramento Shops to an SD45R and became Southern Pacific #7554. Following the merger of the Southern Pacific into the Union Pacific, in January 1997 this locomotive was sold via Coast Engine & Equipment Company of Tacoma, Washington, to Montana Rail Link, where it was classified as an SD45-2 and became #325.

The second locomotive in this consist was Burlington Northern Santa Fe #1004, a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in October 1996.

The last unit was EMDX #6043, a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in December 1973 as Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific #4793 under a lease agreement. The Rock Island shut down on March 31, 1980, and in June 1980, the locomotive's lease was by the Illinois Central Gulf, and it become ICG #6043. Following the end of the lease period, it was returned to EMD, equipped with dynamic brakes (which it never had before) and added to the Electro-Motive Leasing fleet, becoming EMDX #6043 in January 1989.

Next came an eastbound freight train led by LMX #8547, a 3,900-horsepower B39-8E that was built by General Electric in October 1987. This is one of a group of 100 identical locomotives that were built for lease to Burlington Northern under a "power by the hour" arrangement, in which Burlington Northern payed only for the kilowatt-hours the locomotives produce, plus a base monthly charge. Under the agreement, General Electric handled the maintenance of the locomotives in Lincoln, Nebraska, using Burlington Northern union personnel under GE supervision. This train consisted of empty intermodal well cars, some of which had just come from Gunderson in Portland, Oregon, and were so fresh from the factory that we could smell the paint as they passed by.

We returned to Vancouver, where we saw Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #136, a 3,800-horsepower GP60M that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in July 1990. Santa Fe's "Super Fleet" locomotives were still rare in the Pacific Northwest, and the GP60Ms were especially rare.

A southbound intermodal train arrived, led by Union Pacific #9222, a 4,000-horsepower Dash 8-40C that was built by General Electric in September 1988.

The second unit of this train was Denver & Rio Grande Western #5358, a 3,000-horsepower SD40T-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in July 1975.

This train came to a stop in front of the Vancouver depot, allowing for more opportunities for photographs. Rio Grande tunnel motors still weren't very common in the Pacific Northwest.

Union Pacific #9222 still looked pretty sharp considering it was just a few months from its 10th birthday.

A northbound freight train arrived, led by Union Pacific #8104, a 4,300-horsepower SD9043AC that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in March 1997.

The second unit was Union Pacific #8103, another 4,300-horsepower SD9043AC that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in March 1997.

This train also came to a stop in front of the Vancouver depot. These were the first SD90s I had seen, so I took the opportunity to take several photographs of these sequentially numbered twins, despite the fading daylight.

The SD90MAC was intended to be powered by a 6,000-horsepower 16-cylinder 265H four-stroke diesel engine, but there were problems in this new engine's development. Union Pacific purchased SD90MACs with the proven 4,300-horsepower 16-cylinder 710G3C two-stroke diesel engine, intending to replace the 710G3C engines with the 265H when the new engines were ready.

Union Pacific designated these locomotives SD9043AC, while the EMD designation was simply SD90MAC. The SD90s that were built with the 265H engine were called SD90MAC-H by EMD, but Union Pacific designated them SD90AC. Ultimately, the 265H engine would be deemed a failure, and the SD9043ACs would keep their 710G3C engines and remain in service longer then their more powerful 265H-powered sisters.