Day 2 of the Final Spike Tour and we are at the TransCanada Highway between Hatton & Maple Creek.

2816 pulls out of it's fourth maintenance stop of the day, on top of meeting six trains, on the marathon run of about 320 miles from Minot, ND to Glenwood, MN. Here the Hudson says goodbye to Nor... (more)

Two classics meet north of Minot.

Although it's been a while since sunrise, the cool air still made for a good plume as 2816 rolls down the grade out of Anamoose.

2816 climbs the grade from the Sheyenne River after passing under BNSF's massive viaduct.

2816 rolls southeastward across the prairie at Milestone, Saskatchewan on it's last day in Canada for a few montths.

2816 crosses the Mississippi River on the short run from Humboldt Yard to St. Paul Union Station for display.

2816 gets underway at Minot on the 320-mile run to Glenwood, MN that will involve by my count six meets with oncoming trains and four maintenance stops, making for more than a full day.

The Final Spike Tour has started and Day One is about to wrap up with the train between Medicine Hat and Dunmore. Interesting set up between yards here plus the landscape is an escape from the ot... (more)

2816 sweeps through Valley City on the long climb up the grade. In the background, the Hi-Line trestle is visible, taking BNSF trains over the city. The climb up this hill was challenging, for som... (more)

After a meet with 445, 2816 continues east through the North Dakota countryside near Velva. There's plenty of old codeline still to be found on this portion of the ex SOO main.

CP 2816 heads east out of Minot on the morning of May Day, continuing its long journey down to Mexico City. The long drive from near the twin cities to Minot had paid off, with a perfect morning h... (more)

The CPKC Golden Spike Special roars eastbound out of Sawyer, ND.

Golden Hour Empress The much-awaited return of steam to North Dakota was met with a phenomenal show from the whole CPKC crew. At golden hour, the CP Empress steam locomotive... (more)

Having just departed Minot on the third leg of the CPKC Final Spike Steam Tour about fifteen minutes earlier, CP 2816, 1401, and 4107 roll eastbound through the small hamlet of Logan, North Dakota... (more)