Zero tolerance on tresspassing...

Speaking of trespassing -

I just took my first railroad photo trip this week, working westward from Cheyenne to Laramie, Wyoming. There are several helpful postings online from folks who have previously "railfanned" up there, and I was looking forward to visiting several of their recommended stops. However, when I arrived at places like Borie and Buford/Sherman, "No Trespassing" and "Private Property" signs were very clearly and abundantly posted. In addition to railroad frontage, the dirt auto roads in these areas were posted as private, with trespassing expressly prohibited. That's clear enough for me, so I moved on.

In other cases, the postings were inconsistent at best. At Harriman, for example, the areas to the northeast and northwest of the Harriman Road crossing were posted, but the southeast section was not, although it was evidently railroad property based on the structures and railroad supplies stored there. I took a few pictures from this area but didn't venture away from it. On the other hand, based on several trip reports on the web, it is clear that others have hiked westward along or very close to the tracks to take some shots.

Two other areas - the crossing at Granite and the bridge on Remount Road - offered access to unposted dirt roads running parallel to the tracks. One could stand about twenty feet from the rails and take some great, close shots. While these roads were not posted, I assume that they were railroad property.

After reading several postings of folks who have taken pictures along the Moffat East Portal route west of Denver, I'm interested in heading up there over the next few days. But after reading this thread, it sounds as if UP has posted "No Trespassing" signs at many of the spots favored by previous posters. At the same time, folks are somehow finding their way to the remote sidings and tunnels for photos.

So, my questions (sincere apologies if this has been covered elsewhere):
1) How exactly does one determine - aside from blatant signage -what is railroad property, and what is public - or at least publicly accessible - property?
2) Do the railroads post maps of their property lines in an effort to educate the public?
3) Do the railroads post their access/trespassing policies?

I've visited the websites of several railroads and have done some Googling but have not found any useful information. The only concrete information that I have found is that according to the document posted here:

http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Safety/cross_chp9.pdf#search=%22colorado%20railroad%20trespass%20law%22

"Colorado has no specific statute related to trespassing on railroad property"

Any suggestions or reference to posted maps/information would be most appreciated. In the meantime, thanks to all for your excellent postings.

Bill

 

Negatory...the November issue has "CSX pushes diesels TO THE MAX" as the cover headline and photo.

 

Apparently not. I searched the Trains site for "Don Phillips", and effectively it returned - Yes, his column is in the November issue.
Sorry....:sad: