The Kengkongzhan Station was the nicest of the ones we visited along the Sandaoling Coal Mine Railway. It was tidy and put away. The control board operator greeted us in and was very friendly. He ... (more)

Only months remain for these iron beasts hauling load after load of coal along the steel rails.

The red ball sets on a picturesque scene of a barren landscape surrounded by cliffs and rocky formations.

Steel gates keep everything but the view of a returning steam train out in Nanquan. The train will head back to the blue loader at Xikeng for another load.

The fireman looks ahead as JS class locomotive 8358 is shunting in the Nanzhan coal sorting yard. The cement plant towers in the background.

Everything you will see a lot of in Sandaoling can be seen in this one photo, steam action, stray dogs, and mopeds. This loaded train is almost up the hill and will cut the steam shortly as it hea... (more)

Filling the tender for the start of the day at Dongbolizhan Station.

Billowing steam partially obstructs the Tian Shan mountain range. This line runs to the deep mines at Beiquan Erjing.

The air operated side tipping coal hoppers can dump their load to either side which will fall down through the grates for the shovels to drag out. The coal will then be sorted and loaded into truc... (more)

A worker sticks his head out of JS steam locomotive 8173 as it is almost ready to be moved out of the workshop at Jichangzhan.

A steam shop worker uses a torch to heat and repair a cylinder bore. With only a handful of locomotives still in operation and the scrap yard being used up, they keep what they can running working... (more)

This abandoned temple has since been torn down. A lot has changed in this area in the last year I have heard including more security checkpoints and police presence. When I was here, I felt very s... (more)

Every morning that was sub zero, ice would be an issue. The locomotives pipes and valve would come in frozen and needed to be thawed and drained before the next crew headed out on their shift. Eve... (more)

Almost to the top of the grade. This is at Kengkongzhan Station, the junction for Dongbolizhan Station. This train will keep going straight through to Xuanmeichang Washery to dump its load.

The mountains can be seen through an uncommonly clear horizon. This train will climb up the height of these walls over the next two miles loaded with coal. A coal truck can be seen racing down the... (more)