The sound of howling brakes and screaming flanges reverberate off the hills that ring Clear Creek Ravine as UP 8159 carefully drops down grade into Bealville. In moments 8159 will enter the east portal of tunnel #3, pushing against the drawbar 'empty Eugenes' (lumber empties for the Pacific Northwest) bound for Roseville highlight the Mojave Subdivision's precarious perch on the climb to Cliff. Prior to 1952 four tunnels stood between Bealville and Cliff; tunnels 3, 4, 5, and 6. In the aftermath of the '52 quake tunnels 4 and 6 were daylighted and Cliff siding was eventually extended through the tunnel 6 cut (upper left) up to the east portal of tunnel #5 (just above image center). The ghostly retaining wall from daylighted tunnel #4 remains partially in the hill where it once stood (lower right). Another reminder from the terrible earthquake which crippled the Tehachapi line is the shoo-fly around tunnel 5 (just above and to the right of image center), now used as a maintenance/access road. Damage to the inside of tunnel 5 was far worse then originally projected, in order to get their railroad open again to revenue, SP contracted Morrison-Knudsen to build a shoo-fly around the damaged bore. Months later tunnel 5 was returned to service and the shoo-fly abandoned, leaving only the earth fill across Clear Creek Ravine.
