With the shadows growing shorter as the sun rises above the surrounding mountains, Amtrak's eastbound Empire Builder to Chicago rolls through Essex 13 minutes behind schedule. GE P40DC #816 and a ... (more)

Bracketed by two BNSF GEVOs, a work train heads west on Main 2 hauling old concrete ties from a work site further east.

A pair of Amtrak GEs lead the eastbound Empire Builder through Summit.

With the sun highlighting its freshly painted nose, BNSF AC44C4M #599 rolls into Whitefish leading an eastbound grain train. The rebuilt GE was originally built as ATSF 666 in 9/1994.

Great Northern NW3 #181, despite its paint showing signs of wear, still proudly stands guard next to the depot in Whitefish. The classic EMD was built in 3/1942, S/N 1720, and was restored and pla... (more)

BNSF 599, a rebuilt GE AC44C4M, leads an eastbound grain train into Whitefish Yard for a crew change through the gateless Birch Point Drive grade crossing. The unit was formerly ATSF 666.

A two-truck Shay steam locomotive sits in Columbia Falls not far away from BNSF's Hi-Line Sub. It's true history is uncertain, some sources identify it as GN 1 or GN 2769, but it's generally agree... (more)

Still sporting Milwaukee Road paint 42 years after being outshopped from EMD La Grange, WAMX 1598 basks in some sunlight in Columbia Falls as a storm clears the area. Built as MILW 475 in 9/1975, ... (more)

A faded and grimy former Northern Pacific SW1200 sits in Columbia Falls with covered stacks awaiting its fate. It was originally built as NP 128 in 7/1955, S/N 20321.

With storm clouds looming overhead, a peek of sunlight illuminates WAMX 3946, a former Union Pacific GP39-2 that, despite being weather-beaten and worn, still proudly wears UP Armour Yellow. Now w... (more)

An eastbound BNSF coal train speeds through Dixon, MT on its way along MRL's 10th Subdivision.

A pair of BNSF yard locomotives sit in the middle of Whitefish Yard while a grain train holds the main.

With a hint of evening sunlight breaking through the clouds, MRL's Night Gas train approaches the signal bridges in DeSmet as it starts its journey to Thompson Falls from Missoula. The gas train n... (more)

A pair of MRL EMDs sit at the ballast quarry in Pipestone waiting for a cut of ballast hoppers to be loaded.

Two shiny MRL SD70ACes, on the point of an eastbound Missoula-Laurel manifest freight, wait for a new crew in the siding at Elliston on a sunny October afternoon.