Black Hills Central 2-6-6-2T Mallet No. 110 takes the eastbound trip from Hill City across the Old Hill City Highway west of Keystone, South Dakota, on July 11, 2018.

Tin Mill Hill in the afternoon. The crossing at the top of Tin Mill Hill is one of the best locations from which to photograph the Black Hills Central. The locomotive is working hard here... (more)

Topping Tin Mill Hill. The mid-day departure of the "1880 Train" is captured here just as it emerges from the woods at the top of Tin Mill Hill. Riding the train up Tin Mill Hill... (more)

Articulation. How do you get a 2-6-6-2 locomotive around a sharp curve? The answer is articulation. This engine has two sets of drivers. the boiler and tank sits firmly over the rear se... (more)

One of the nation's oldest tourist trains. South Dakota's Black Hills Central isn't the most well-known steam tourist train in the country, but it definitely qualifies as one of the oldest.... (more)

Lots of wooden trestles. One of the cool features of the Black Hills Central line from Hill City to Keystone is the presence of a number of photogenic wooden trestles. Perhaps the best exa... (more)

Climbing to Oblivion. The first morning departure of the Black Hills Central's "1880 Train" charges upgrade toward the summit just ahead which is known as "Oblivion." In its early years, ... (more)

Headed for Oblivion.... The Black Hills Central Railroad's Compound Mallet Tanker has a few minutes to loaf as she runs across a wide open grassy plain. But her Engineer and Fireman had b... (more)

BHCR #110, a Compound, Articulated Mallet Tanker. Yes, the 110 is one of just two such 2-6-6-2T locomotives that are in operation in the US today. The other is at Niles Canyon in Californ... (more)

At the summit of Tin Mill Hill. Departing out of Hill City, passengers on the Black Hills Central's "1880 Train" get an immediate taste of mountain railroading and the terrain for which the... (more)

Hill City: The climb begins. Less than a mile outside the Hill City Yard, the Black Hills Central's "1880 Train" begins its ascent up Tin Mill Hill. This is perhaps a 1/2 mile section of ... (more)

Departing Hill City. The first morning departure of the Black Hills Central's "1880 Train" rumbles across the little timber trestle at the entrance to the Hill City Yard as she heads east t... (more)

The oncoming crew watches as 110 is backed on to her next train at Hill City.

Chasing the Black Hills Central steam operation is pretty easy. The tracks are seldom far from Old Hill City Road between Keystone and Hill City; the road crosses the railroad about a dozen times ... (more)

The Black Hills Central tourist train is just minutes into its journey as it tackles the steep grade out of Hill City, S.D.