Railfanning in Vancouver & Portland in January 2000

I took these pictures in January 2000 while railfanning with Fred Anderson. Our first stop was the Amtrak station in Vancouver, Washington, where we saw out first train come around the Vancouver wye from the Columbia River Gorge to head north toward Seattle.

The lead locomotive was Burlington Northern Santa Fe #4449, a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in May 1999.

Also in the consist was Burlington Northern Santa Fe #709, a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in June 1997.

Here is another view of Burlington Northern Santa Fe #4449. This number is significant because nearby Portland is home to Southern Pacific Daylight GS-4 4-8-4 #4449. Since my dad wasn't able to come with us on this day, we made a point of telling him we "saw 4449."

On the other side of the depot, a Union Pacific motive power consist included Southern Pacific #8696, a 3,000-horsepower SD40M-2. It was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in August 1970 as 3,600-horsepower SDP45 #3659 for the Erie Lackawanna. The Erie Lackawanna became part of Conrail on April 1, 1976, and this locomotive became Conrail #6690. It was retired in January 1984 and was sold to VMV Enterprises of Paducah, Kentucky, for lease service, becoming VMV #6690. In 1993, Southern Pacific contracted with MK Rail Corporation to supply a fleet of 133 secondhand locomotives rebuilt to a common standard as SD40M-2s. Most of the 133 locomotives were rebuilt from SD40s and SD45s, but this one was the last of six rebuilt in Mountain Top, Pennsylvania, from former Erie Lackawanna SDP45s. It was completed and released on January 27, 1995 as Southern Pacific #8696.

Southern Pacific #8696 still has its original SDP45 carbody. The SDP45 was intended to be a passenger locomotive, with a steam generator in the space at the rear behind the radiators, and Southern Pacific and Great Northern each purchased SDP45s for passenger service with a steam generator in the space and the end squared off. Erie-Lackawanna, however, wanted to use the long frame of the SDP45 to carry a 5,000-gallon fuel tank, and ordered SDP45s without steam generators, with the extra space empty. The tapered end identifies this SDP45's Erie-Lackawanna heritage.

Leading another consist, Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2346 is a 2,000-horsepower GP38-2 that was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in March 1972 as St. Louis-San Francisco (SLSF, also known as the Frisco) #676. The Frisco was merged into the Burlington Northern on November 21, 1980, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #2346. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2346 and was painted in Burlington Northern Santa Fe's "Heritage I" paint scheme on February 5, 1999.

Back on the other side of the Vancouver wye, a manifest freight train from the north was heading toward the Columbia River Gorge, led Burlington Northern Santa Fe #4525, a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in August 1999.

The second unit in this consist was Burlington Northern Santa Fe #8256, a 4,300-horsepower SD75M that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in January 1996. This was one of the first locomotives to be delivered with BNSF lettering; the "Cigar Band" on the nose still reads "Santa Fe."

This freight train also included rare mid-train helpers, in the form of Burlington Northern Santa Fe #1010 & #4510, 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CWs that were built by General Electric in October 1996 and August 1999, respectively, that were oddly coupled nose-to-nose.

Leading a freight train in the opposite direction, Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7867 is a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in October 1978 as Colorado & Southern #7867. Colorado & Southern was a subsidiary of Burlington Northern and its locomotives were painted in Burlington Northern colors. The Colorado & Southern was formally merged into the Burlington Northern on December 31, 1981, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #7867. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7867 on July 3, 1998.

We then went to Union Pacific's Albina Yard in Portland, Oregon, where we found recently-painted Union Pacific #8615, a 3,000-horsepower SD40T-2 that was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in July 1975 as Denver & Rio Grande Western #5357. After the Denver & Rio Grande Western was merged into the Union Pacific along with the Southern Pacific on September 25, 1995, this locomotive became Union Pacific #8615 on December 28, 1999.

Union Pacific #2533 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in March 1970 as Chicago Rock Island & Pacific #4706, one of 60 3,000-horsepower GP40s purchased by Union Pacific and leased to the Rock Island when the two roads planned to merge. The merger never happened and after the Rock Island shut down on March 31, 1980, the locomotive was returned to Union Pacific and was repainted in Union Pacific colors, becoming Union Pacific #637 on April 14, 1980. It was later transferred to the former Missouri Pacific lines in Texas and was relettered as Missouri Pacific #637 on May 10, 1985. It was retired on October 26, 1988 and was sold to VMV Enterprises of Paducah, Kentucky, then resold to Helm Financial, which leased it back to Union Pacific on July 14, 1989, and it became Union Pacific #856. In May 1998 it was returned to Helm Financial, was rebuilt by Boise Locomotive Company of Boise, Idaho, into a 2,000-horsepower GP38-2, and again leased to Union Pacific on July 30, 1998, becoming Union Pacific #2533.

When the locomotive was rebuilt from a GP40 to a GP38-2, its turbocharger was removed and an air filter box was installed in front of the dynamic brake housing, but it otherwise still resembles a pre-Dash 2 GP40, with three radiator fans, no water level sight glass below the radiators, and no shock absorbers on the trucks.

Finally, Southern Pacific SD70M #9816 is a 4,000-horsepower SD70M that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in July 1994.

Berne, Washington

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 1998.

Berne is the site of the east end of the current Cascade Tunnel.  It is fairly easy to find, as Highway 2 passes almost directly over the tunnel entrance, and the current portal is visible from the highway.

The new Cascade Tunnel opened for service on January 12, 1929. When the tunnel first opened, the east portal looked identical to the west portal at Scenic, and electric locomotives were used in the tunnel. 

Historical Photos:
East Portal during construction, 1927 (UW)
Workers in Mill Creek Bunkhouse at Berne, 1928 (WSHS)
Electric Locomotive #5011, 1928 (UW)
Officials prepare to open tunnel, January 12, 1929 (UW)
Officials opening the new tunnel, January 12, 1929 (UW)
Officials throw a switch for the first Oriental Limited through the tunnel, January 12, 1929 (UW)
First Oriental Limited through tunnel, Jan. 12, 1929 (UW)
Officials in front of new tunnel, January 12, 1929 (UW)
Empire Builder, circa 1929 (UW)

By late 1947, the Great Northern was using diesel locomotives on its passenger trains through the Cascade Tunnel, including the Empire Builder, Oriental Limited, and Fast Mail, eliminating the change of motive power at Wenatchee and Skykomish. Test trips had shown that diesel locomotives could pull fast-moving passenger trains through the tunnel, but with heavy freight trains, the heat generated by the exhaust gases raised the air temperature inside the tunnel enough to cause engine shutdowns. This is because the train acts as a piston in the tunnel, pushing the cooler air in front of it and leaving the locomotives surrounded by the hot air from their own exhaust. By 1952, the Cascade Division was effectively completely dieselized, with the last steam run taking place from March 23-30, 1953 when a stored 4-8-2 pulled a weed burner train from Seattle.

In the early 1950s, the Great Northern tested a pair of new General Electric experimental E2b electric locomotives. Built in 1951, these 2,500-horsepower units were copies of four units sold to the Pennsylvania Railroad. They had B-B trucks, painted black, and assigned numbers 5020 and 5021. The Great Northern decided they lacked adequate pulling power at the low speeds that were typical on the 2.2% grades. They were returned to GE and sold to the Pennsylvania in March 1953.

The Great Northern had studied extending the electrification east to Spokane in 1930, and west to Seattle in the early 1950s. Both times they found no economic justification for an extension. In 1955, further studies concluded that the electrics cost half as much to operate as steam power, but twice as much as diesels. The Great Northern determined that diesel locomotives could pull freight trains through the Cascade Tunnel if the tunnel was equipped with a ventilation system, and in 1956 the Morrison-Knudsen Company of Boise, Idaho, was hired to install such a system at a cost of $650,000.

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 1994. Photo by Cliff West.

At the east end of the tunnel, a new portal with a vertical lift steel door and a pair of 6-foot fans driven by 800-horsepower electric motors turning at 1,150 rpm were installed. With the door closed, this system supplied a fresh air flow of 220,000 cfm. When a train was in the tunnel, only one fan was used; the second fan came on once the train exited the tunnel. With eastbound trains, the door closed when the train entered the west portal with one fan running and opened when the train came within 3,200 feet of the east portal, then closed again when the train cleared and both fans ran for 28 minutes to clear the exhaust from the tunnel.

The ventilation system was placed in service on July 31, 1956, and diesel locomotives took over all operations over Stevens Pass. The Z-1 class electrics were sold for scrap and the Y-1 and Y-1a electrics were sold to the Pennsylvania Railroad; the Y-1s became PRR Nos. 1-7 and the Y-1A was used for parts. W-1 No. 5018 was sold to the Union Pacific Railroad for conversion to a coal turbine locomotive, and No. 5019 was scrapped.

Historical Photos:
Diesel at East Portal, Apr 1958 (gngoat.org)
Diesel at East Portal, July 27, 1973 (rrpicturearchives.net)

The Great Northern was merged into the Burlington Northern Railroad on March 2, 1970. Between July 1989 and May 1990 the Burlington Northern undertook a $4.8 million project to cut parallel notches in the tunnel lining to provide clearance for new double-stack container trains.

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2000.

In 1997, the tunnel's ventilation system was rebuilt, with this result. Where the original door opened vertically, like a garage door, the new door opens to the side. In any event, operations have remained essentially the same over the years. If a train enters the tunnel from the west, the door closes and the fans turn on, forcing the exhaust out behind the train. The door remains closed until the train is a quarter-mile from the east end, when the door opens automatically to let the train out. If a train enters from the east, the fans come on immediately and the door closes once the train is fully inside. The exhaust is forced out ahead of the train, and the door at the east end reopens when the train has cleared the tunnel. In either case, the fans continue to run for 30 minutes after a train has left the tunnel to fully clear the tunnel of diesel exhaust fumes.

Here are some pictures of the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel and trains at Berne.

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 1994.

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 1994.

Door opening on the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 1994.

Burlington Northern GP40M #3518 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound freight train in 1994. Photo by Cliff West.

Burlington Northern GP40M #3518 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound freight train in 1994.

Burlington Northern GP40M #3518 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound freight train in 1994. Photo by Cliff West.

BN GP40M #3518 with an eastbound freight train at Berne in 1994.

BNSF C44-9W #4699 at Berne with a westbound freight train in 2000.

BNSF C44-9W #4699 heading into the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with a westbound freight train in 2000.

BNSF C44-9W #4629 as a helper in a westbound freight train at Berne in 2000.

Door closing on the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2000.

Burlington Northern SD40-2 #7130 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound freight train in 2000.

Burlington Northern SD40-2 #7130 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound freight train in 2000.

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

Door opening on the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2002.
Photo by Cliff West.

Door opening on the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2002.
Photo by Cliff West.

Door opening on the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel in 2002.
Photo by Cliff West.

Eastbound Train inside the Cascade Tunnel in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF SD75M #8229 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound intermodal train in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNFS SD75M #8229 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound intermodal train in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #756 in an eastbound intermodal train at Berne in 2002.
Photo by Cliff West.

Norfolk Southern C40-9W #9585 in an eastbound intermodal train at Berne in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #4917 emerging from the East Portal of the Cascade Tunnel with an eastbound intermodal train in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

Continue to Tumwater Dam…

Scenic, Washington

At Scenic (originally called Madison), the current railroad main line diverges from the Great Northern's original right of way. The original route through Wellington and Cascade Station was completed on January 6, 1893 when the last spike was driven by Great Northern officials at Scenic. The Wm. Crooks becoming the first Great Northern locomotive to arrive in Seattle on January 8, 1893. The first freight train arrived in Seattle from the east on February 28, 1893.  This route was plagued by heavy snowfall and avalanches. In 1929, a new tunnel was opened between Scenic and Berne, and the original route was abandoned. For many years, this route was all but forgotten. Today, however, it has been transformed into a hiking trail called the Iron Goat Trail leading from Scenic to Wellington.

Historical Photos:
Driving the last spike at Scenic to complete the original line on January 6, 1893 (UW)
Wm. Crooks, the first Great Northern locomotive to reach Seattle, circa 1905-1915 (WSHS)
Scenic depot, circa 1910 (UW)
Scenic depot, circa 1913 (UW)
Scenic, circa 1929 (UW)
Passenger Train at the Scenic depot, circa 1930 (UW)

Scenic in the lower left; Windy Point in the upper right.
Photo by Cliff West, 1994.

Scenic in 1994. Photo by Cliff West.

Scenic in 1994. Photo by Cliff West.

These pictures show a view of Scenic from a point on Highway 2 east of Scenic. The highway begins to climb steeply just east of Scenic, and sort-of doubles back on itself as it climbs, thus the highway overpass in the pictures is also Highway 2. The train in the pictures is about to enter the west end of the Cascade Tunnel, which is in the trees at the bottom of the pictures. 

Cascade Tunnel from Windy Point in 1998.

Cascade Tunnel from Windy Point, 1998.

Scenic from Windy Point, 1998.

These pictures show Scenic from Windy Point on the Iron Goat Trail, and illustrate a westbound freight train emerging from the west portal of the Cascade Tunnel. 

The concept for this tunnel originated as early as 1917. World War I caused a delay in any work being done toward building such a tunnel, but after the war the idea resurfaced. In 1925, John F. Stevens was consulted, and recommended a tunnel be built between Scenic and Berne, on the east side of the pass, bypassing Wellington and Cascade Station entirely. The new tunnel would eliminate 500 feet of elevation, 1940 degrees of curvature, 8 miles of mainline and about 40,000 feet of snowsheds. On November 26, 1925, Great Northern President Ralph Budd accepted the proposal and by the end of year had awarded construction contracts for the new tunnel to A. Guthrie & Company of St. Paul, Minnesota. The project was to be completed in the winter of 1928-1929, three years after the start of drilling, with a three day grace period. The construction program was worked out by company Vice President J. C. Baxter and was under the direct supervision of Great Northern’s Assistant Chief Engineer Colonel Frederick Mears.

The Cascade Tunnel Commission of Washington considered a number of other tunnel locations, as shown on this 1927 map from the Washington State Historical Society.

Construction began at both ends of the new tunnel on December 28, 1925. The tunnel would be 18 feet wide, 26 feet high and 7.79 miles long. It would be the longest railroad tunnel in the Western Hemisphere. In order to speed the construction of the tunnel, the vertical Mill Creek Shaft was dug 622 feet down to tunnel depth, 2.41 miles from the east end of the tunnel; construction of the shaft began on January 30,1926 and it was completed in August 1926. Measuring 8 feet by 24 feet, the shaft allowed work to progress east from the shaft as well as from each end. The bore between the Mill Creek Shaft and the east portal was holed through in September 1927.

The Mill Creek Shaft was located at the lowest surface elevation between the portals, but the distance between the west portal and the Mill Creek Shaft was 5.38 miles, more than twice the distance from the shaft to the east portal. Between the Mill Creek Shaft and the west end of the tunnel, an 8 foot wide by 9 foot high Pioneer Tunnel was dug 7 feet above and 66 feet to the south of the main tunnel, with 45-degree cross shafts approximately every 1,500 feet to the main tunnel. This allowed additional crews to work on the tunnel, and provided a way for equipment and debris to be moved in and out of the tunnel. Drilling of the Pioneer Tunnel began on December 28, 1925, the same as the main tunnel, but its smaller size made its progress much faster. On May 1, 1928, the final blast that connected the Pioneer Tunnel and the Mill Creek Shaft was set off by President Coolidge from Washington D.C. Later, the floor of the Pioneer Tunnel was lowered so it could drain water from the main tunnel, and it remains in place today.

West portal of the Pioneer Tunnel in 1994. Photo by Cliff West.

Abandoned tracks leading from Pioneer Tunnel, 1994.

Historical Photos:
Man & Horse pulling tram car out of the Pioneer Tunnel, circa 1926 (UW)
Interior of the Pioneer Tunnel, circa 1926 (UW)
Workers on tram car in Pioneer Tunnel, c.1928 (WSHS)

The 41,152-foot Cascade Tunnel was holed through on October 20, 1928. The center line was off by only 9 inches horizontally and 3 inches vertically. The tunnel had been drilled at a record page of 4.8 months per mile, in comparison with 7.2 months per mile for 12.4-mile Simplon Tunnel, 8.2-months per mile for 5-mile Connaught Tunnel, and 8.7 months per mile for 6.1-mile Moffat Tunnel. 6 feet per day was the average digging time. The crew drilling from the East Portal at Berne set a world’s record, drilling a 984-foot long tunnel 10 feet by 10 feet in 31 days. At one time, there were 1,793 men working underground. In order to speed up the work, bonuses were paid to members of crews exceeding 650 feet per month.

The Cascade Tunnel, with its concrete lining, was completed December 24, 1928. Five million pounds of dynamite and 750,000 blasting caps were used in the tunnel's construction. Track was placed and the tunnel opened for service January 12, 1929.

The opening ceremonies were broadcast by N.B.C. over a network of 36 radio stations reaching an estimated 15 million people. Two new electric locomotives pulled a train of dignitaries and reporters through the tunnel from east to west, stopping first at the east portal for the opening ceremonies, which included a speech by President Herbert Hoover, a song by Madame Ernestine Schumann-Heink, and a dedication of the tunnel by Great Northern president Ralph Budd to James J. Hill, who had died on May 29, 1916. The special train was to then proceed through the tunnel and burst through a sheet of paper stretched over the west portal 20 minutes later, but the sudden change from the cold air outside the tunnel to the relatively warm air inside created condensation which caused an arc-over on the transformer of the second electric locomotive. The first unit could not move the train alone, and another electric was brought in to push from behind. Meanwhile, at the west portal, the reporter who was waiting for the train to emerge began running out of things to say as the 20 minute trip stretched into 35, and N.B.C. had to fill time with band music.

Historical Photos:
Officials outside the West Portal, 1927 (UW)
Bridge over Tye River under construction in 1928 (WSHS)
Workers inside the tunnel, 1928 (WSHS)
Workers drilling dynamite holes in tunnel, 1928 (WSHS)
Scenic & West Portal, circa 1929 (UW)
West Portal, circa 1929 (UW)
Gravel Train entering tunnel, December 31, 1928 (UW)
First Train at the West Portal, 1929 (UW)
First Train at the West Portal, 1929 (UW)
First Work Train through tunnel, January 6, 1929 (UW)
First Work Train through tunnel, January 6, 1929 (UW)
Official First Train, January 12, 1929 (UW)

With the opening of the new Cascade Tunnel and its electrification, steam locomotives disappeared from Stevens Pass, replaced by two classes of electric locomotives. Baldwin-Westinghouse delivered five Z-1 class units between 1926 and 1928, each of which was a semi-permanently-coupled pair of 1,830-horsepower 1-D-1 boxcabs. General Electric delivered eight Y-1 class units (Nos. 5010-5017) between 1927 and 1930, each of which was a single 3,000-horsepower 1-C+C-1 boxcab. In addition to the locomotives built specifically for this service, a small interurban freight motor (No. 603) was borrowed from the GN-controlled Spokane, Coulee City & Palouse and converted for use on the 11,000-volt system for use as a work train engine during tunnel construction. The locomotives from the original electrification were scrapped.

Originally, the new electric locomotives operated with all their pantographs raised. This posed a risk that if one of the pantographs snagged on the wire, it could damage all of the pantographs and leave the train stranded. Around 1940, high voltage power bus shoes were installed on each end of the Y-1 class locomotives, and groups of electrics operated with only two pantographs raised and power fed to other units through the power bus shoes.

By World War II, the Great Northern had purchased FT road diesel locomotives from the Electro-Motive Corporation. With the increased traffic of the war, Great Northern began operation freight trains of 120 to 125 cars weighing 6,000 tons over Stevens Pass. These trains ran with three Y-1 electrics on the head end, a 5,400-horsepower A-B-B-A set of FT diesels in the middle, and an R class 2-8-8-2 Mallet steam locomotive pushing on the rear. The Mallet cut off before entering the Cascade Tunnel, but the diesels stayed with the train. These trains could climb the 2.2% grades at 17 miles per hour. The Great Northern claimed this was the only instance of its kind where steam, diesel and electric locomotives were used on the same train at the same time.

During the war, Y-1 No. 5011 derailed on the curve at the east end of the Foss River Bridge near Tonga. The locomotive’s carbody was heavily damaged, and was rebuilt at Great Northern’s St. Paul shops as a Y-1a using two streamlined FT cabs from Electro-Motive. A power bus shoe was mounted on the rear end.

In 1947, General Electric delivered two W-1 class streamlined 5,000-horsepower B-D+D-B electrics, Nos. 5018 and 5019. These would be the last electric locomotives delivered to the Great Northern. At the time they were the most powerful single-unit electric locomotives in the world, and could pull a 1,900-ton train up the 2.2% grade unassisted. They were painted in the Omaha Orange and Pullman Green colors of Great Northern’s flagship passenger train, the Empire Builder. After the arrival of the W-1 units, the Y-1s were slowly repainted in orange and green, while the Z-1s remained in their original solid dark green.

Historical Photos:
Electric #5011 exiting tunnel at Scenic, circa 1929 (UW)
Electric #5012 exiting tunnel at Scenic, circa 1929 (UW)
Electric #5011 exiting tunnel at Scenic, circa 1930 (UW)
Electric #5012 exiting tunnel at Scenic, circa 1930 (UW)
Train entering tunnel at Scenic, February 12, 1931 (UW)
Train leaving tunnel at Scenic, February 12, 1931 (UW)
Electric #5017 at Scenic, 1955 (Dave's Electric Railroads)
Diesel freight train exiting tunnel at Scenic, late ‘50s (UW)
Diesel train exiting the west portal, c.1970 (gngoat.org)

Here are some pictures of trains at Scenic.

Maintenance-of-way equipment at Scenic in 1994.

Maintenance-of-way equipment at Scenic in 1994.

Maintenance-of-way equipment at Scenic in 1994.

BNSF SD75M #8229 leading an eastbound container train at Scenic in 2002. This photo was taken from the top of the west portal of the Cascade Tunnel and the train is about to enter the tunnel. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #4917 leading an eastbound container train at Scenic in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #4917 leading an eastbound container train at Scenic in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #5487 leading a westbound train of airliner components at Scenic in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #4344 leading a westbound container train at Scenic in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #5418 leading a westbound intermodal train at Scenic in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

BNSF C44-9W #4649 leading a westbound container train at Scenic in 2002. Photo by Cliff West.

Continue to Iron Goat Trail…