The day started out early so I could get the 8-plus-hours late Amtrak northbound Texas Eagle, which arrived at 7:45 a.m. on June 14 instead of 11:31 p.m. the night before. The delay was caused by containers being blown off a stack train west of San Antonio, Texas, derailing the stack train. This derailment delayed the eastbound Sunset Limited over 5 hours and the Texas Eagle waited for it to arrive in San Antonio to receive transferring passengers before leaving. Then I heard that just as the Eagle was leaving San Antonio, a semi ran into the Eagle at a road crossing, further delaying the train. On the bright side, it allowed daylight pictures of the Eagle at Little Rock with a bright sun and clear skies. The Texas Eagle was lead by Amtrak locomotive 131. Of course, it also was Friday the 13th with a full Moon.
Locomotives today: UP 8706, 8821, 8530, 9143, 5066, 6805, 8322, 9520, 4527, 5385, 5160, 3805, 5588, 3909, 9618, 8618, 5221, 8606, 9619, 7471, 5636, 6415 (ex-SP), 6053, 7443, 7136, 4514, 5433, 4751, 7404, 7135, 3942, 9241, 5164, 8851, 5840, 9270, 2204, 9364, 5816, 2003 (ex-Cotton Belt), 8572, 7707, 8790, 4244, 4203, 1793, 1758, 5362, 5128, 6304 (ex-SP) *** GMTX 2112, 2681-Operation Lifesaver) *** AMT 131 *** CP 8867 *** RLCX 918 *** NS 8322, 8797, 8869, 8812, 9297, 9656, 6608, 9777, 8102 (Pennsylvania Heritage) *** BNSF 4157, 927 (ex-Santa Fe Warbonnet), 4381, 7448, 5862 *** TFM 1656 (in KCS grey and yellow) *** CSXT 387, 329, 235, 7798, 5459 *** CN 2183, 2133.
Page updated June 15 by adding train ID's and other interesting facts sent to me by someone who has more knowledge about such things.
Amtrak status board Saturday morning June 14.
UP 8706 on the Amtrak siding, 7:04 a.m. A freight had fouled the switch between UP Main 1 and Main 2, so this necessitated freights running on the Amtrak siding for a short time.
UP 8706. QBTNL-12 (Priority Manifest-Beaumont, TX-NLR)
CN 2183.
Jet overhead at 7:09 a.m.
Focused yellow flowers with out of focus Killdeer bird on a rail.
Killdeer balancing on the tracks.
Another northbound on the Amtrak siding, 7:25 a.m. The late Texas Eagle was behind this freight.
UP 8821, 7:27 a.m. I was sitting on my lawn chair. ZLDYC-13
Stack train on the siding.
Looking up at a Hub Group container.
Amtrak Texas Eagle passengers waiting to board in front of the station.
The northbound Eagle arrives starts into the siding at 7:45 a.m. Richard the Agent is on the baggage cart at the other end of the platform.
Coming to a stop about 7:50 a.m.
Passengers getting off the Texas Eagle, 7:51 a.m.
The passengers getting on the train wait until the ones getting off are out of the way.
Wider angle.
Taken from the balcony of Union Station at 7:57 a.m. Rarely do you see a passenger train here in daylight.
Leaving at 8:02 a.m.
UP 8530 southbound 8:11 a.m. ENLPBM-14
UP 9143, 5066 and 6805.
UP 6805 and 5066.
UP 8322 and 9520. This was a light engine move.
UP 9520 and 4527.
UP 5385 and CP 8867, 8:26 a.m. northbound. Note the colorful consist: yellow, red and bright yellow. QTXAS-14
CP 8867.
RLCX 918.
RLCX 918 bright yellow switcher. Originated at Texarkana-Destination Albia, IA Relco Locomotive is the shipper
NS 8322, 8:44 a.m. QLINL-12
NS 8322 and UP 5160, 8:45 a.m.
UP 3805 and CN 2133.
CN 2133 and UP 5588.
New grey tank cars built 4-13 including HOKX 286130.
EUSX 448005 long white tank car.
UP 3909, 8:57 a.m.
UP 3909, 8:57 a.m. MNLFW-14
UP 3909, 8:58 a.m.
UP 9618.
Pipes with blue and green ends.
MP 706543 Missouri Pacific hopper with the buzzsaw emblem, built 1-77.
UP 909944 green water tank car.
TBOX 663815 yellow-black boxcar with no graffiti. Most of these have graffiti.
As the train on Main 2 passed southbound, a northbound on Main 1 with UP 8618 passed at 9:04 a.m. QSPNL-12
NS 8797 and 8869.
NS 8869.
NS 8869.
MP 641134 red MoPac gondola with the red buzzsaw, built 12-76.
UP 5221, 9:17 a.m. ALDASB-10
Auto or truck frames, probably from Mexico.
ANGX 4138 hopper, built 1-73, rebuilt 2-95.
UP 8606, 10:35 a.m. MFWNL-13 This train had 15 loads, 121 empties-5,631 tons-8584' Weird to place a DPU shoving on empty flats and if you look at the handbrake chain on the 7471, it is pulled tight meaning that it is still applied! Whoops:}
UP 8606 and 9619.
SRN 6008 ex-MT and W boxcar, built 5-76.
End of train with DPU locomotive, 10:43 a.m.
UP 7471, 10:44 a.m. the DPU. MFWNL-13 This train had 15 loads, 121 empties-5,631 tons-8584' Weird to place a DPU shoving on empty flats and if you look at the handbrake chain on the 7471, it is pulled tight meaning that it is still applied! Whoops:}
BNSF 4157 and 927 (in Santa Fe Warbonnet colors), 10:52 a.m. OSJTC-11
UP 5636 on a southbound loaded coal train on Main 1, 10:54 a.m. CATTU9-11 (Coal-Antelope Mine-Fulton, AR)
UP 5636 the coal train passing BNSF 4157with an empty oil train, 10:54 a.m. The crew member on 4157 will do runby inspection of the coal train.
BNSF ex-Santa Fe 927 warbonnet.
Railfans and a visiting family just watching trains at 11:00 a.m.
UP 6415, ex-SP, the DPU of the coal train passing BNSF 4157 at 11:01 a.m.
BNSF 4157 getting ready to leave.
BNSF 4381, the dpu of the oil train, 11:08 a.m.
UP 6053, 11:21 a.m. CWBBM9-13 (Coal-White Bluff, AR-Belle Ayr Mine, WY)
UP 7443, DPU of an empty northbound coal train, 11:25 a.m.
Lots of cars today. We were waiting for NS 8102, the Pennsylvania heritage locomotive.
UP 7136, 12:07 p.m. ALDAS-11
UP 4514 heading a dump train, 12:11 p.m. WNLPSD-13 (Work train-N. Little Rock/Granite Mtn.-Parsons, KS-Dump)
This looked like a KCS one-locomotive stack train, but officially it's TFM 1656, 12:21 p.m. IDICSR-12 (Intermodal-Dallas Intermodal-Chicago/Canal St.-Reposition) Nice catch on the single TFM leader! Reposition trains usually are empty flats but this train had 35 loads, 34 empties. Strange!
TFM 1656.
UP 5433 and 4751, 12:36 p.m. AARAS-13
