Amtrak SDP40F 582 is the third of three at the head of an SFZ east of Denver, October 1974 (Bob Jordan) An SFZ speeds past the camera behind SDP40Fs 570 and 565, East of Denver, CO, June 1974 (Bob Jordan)
Two pairs of Amtrak power (SDP40Fs and ex-SP FP7s) are shoved into Denver Union Station in the 1970s. (Bob Jordan) An SFZ speeds along one darkening evening near Denver, November 1974 (Bob Jordan)
A Rio Grande freight headed by GP40-2 3111 rounds a bend in March 1978 (Bob Jordan) The RGZ departs Denver on a winter day in the '70s (Bob Jordan)
Simply 'Grande. The bend shot looks to be from Blue Mtn Rd, facing the horseshoe curve east of Tunnel 1 at Coal Creek.
A trio of UP power get a freight out of Cheyenne, September 1975 (Bob Jordan) Amtrak E8 329, Denver, CO, April 1974 (Bob Jordan)
Love that UP shot!! Pre-2 SD40's! Union Pacific of the 60's thru the 70's was awesome cause the motive power was so amazing from all the manufacturers!!
And a Big Jack, too! Slight correction: the UP shot is eastbound into Cheyenne, off Sherman Hill. This is MP 511 on the west side of Cheyenne. Sure hasn't changed much in 4 decades. 2006 photo at the very same location:
Gee, with a highway crossing there and nothing obscuring the view for photographs, it still looks like a fine spot!
Amtrak E8 329 again, Denver, CO, October 1973 (Bob Jordan) A trio of Amtrak E-Units in the BN Yard just north of Union Station, Denver, CO, October 1973 (Bob Jordan)
Erie Lackawanna SDP45 3652, Galesburg, IL, April 1972 (????) Missouri Pacific SW1200 1276, May 1974 (Bob Jordan)(One of those rare, atmospheric shots that include the personnel as well as the train)
I heard those E-L SDP45's were ordered cause of the huge fuel tank under them, so they didn't have to pay tax in certain states for fuel?
I think that's right Kurt and that with a 5,000 GA tank, the E-L could run them from Croxton, NJ to Chicago without refueling. The E-L's SDP45s never had steam generators; ballast was instead applied for additional traction and as you noted, the E-L was also enticed by their fuel capacity. These units had long and productive lives. I think I have a photo of one of these in CR blue.
EL 3652 shown above did not make it to SP. The SP only rostered former EL 3654, 3659, 3662, 3665, 3666 and 3668.
BN Dome "Silver Brand", Denver, CO, June 1973 (Bob Jordan) SP FP7 6450, Denver, CO, June 1973 (Bob Jordan)
After having been in possession of these photos for some time, I've begun to think that I missed out on a lot by being born in the 1990s, at least when it comes to railroading. Not to say that there isn't interesting stuff nowadays, but the variety of the 70s seems to have been spectacular. MP GP18 513, Colorado, March 1973 (Bob Jordan) (I want to say this is Colorado Springs or Pueblo, but I may be wrong.) Amtrak E9a 421, Denver, CO, June 1974 (Bob Jordan)
Buzzsaw! I absolutely love this thread. Keep 'em coming! On a side note, check out the D&RGW heavyweight MOW car in the background....
It was amazing. For me, the high point of railfanning in my life. Not that years before weren't great, but since those years, it just has not felt the same.
