A heavy snowfall hit the mountains of southern California on January 28, 1979. Snow was falling in much of the San Gabriel Valley (I saw flakes falling in Pomona) and in the city of San Bernardino (at least near Verdemont and Devore) the snow was building up along the highway. As one gained elevation, it appeared to be a blizzard. Late in the afternoon, the snow stopped falling and the sun popped out, causing the snow to melt rather rapidly. Before long, even at Summit, there wasn’t much on the ground. Passing through Martinez, a location on Cajon Pass’ east side, a short Union Pacific freight was approaching Summit behind SD45 3646, an SD40-2 and a DD35. Moments later, the sun was gone and the temperatures dropped enough that the melted snow froze, causing problems getting over the last steep hill before one get back to Interstate 15. A few years later, the steep and curvy road over this last hill was removed and a new cut created to both straighten out the highway, and level it. Decades later, much of the rest of Highway 138 would be straightened and leveled as well. (Cajon Pass, California – January 28, 1979)
