Amtrak #3 'The Southwest Chief' cruises past the ATSF semaphores at ESS Chapelle on BNSF's Raton Subdivision.

Threading The Defile

Amtrak Train #3, The Southwest Chief, exits Apache Canyon, just (railroad) east of Lamy New Mexico. The train is leaving the narrow defile in the southern... (more)

Amtrak 153 leads the westbound Southwest Chief through the switch at East Keota. The train has just gone through the tunnel at the top of Raton Pass and has begun its decent towards the open plain... (more)

Borrowed Time. On a crystal clear morning in Northeast New Mexico, Amtrak's Southwest Chief encounters the first pair of semaphore signals on its westbound journey to Los Angeles. Th... (more)

The Air Up There..

Hey, I've gone aloft as I catch The Southwest Chief racing below the Sandia Mountains and into Albuquerque

The westbound Southwest Chief has just met its counterpart and hits the west siding switch at Glorieta and begins the descent of the pass toward Apache Canyon.

The Southwest Chief descends the west slope of Raton Pass at East Keota. The fog lifted just moments before the train popped into view.

No. 3 encounters the first set of semaphores on its westward run just south of Springer, NM as a brief snow shower comes to an end.

The westbound Chief slowly rolls through the 10mph siding at Glorieta as it prepares to meet its eastbound counterpart. The old depot, built in 1927 by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, n... (more)

Under cold, stormy skies, Amtrak's Southwest Chief races past the semaphore signal located at mile post 849.1 near the town of Los Cerrillos, New Mexico. Five semaphore signals are located west of... (more)

Amtrak's Southwest Chief slowly crests the summit of Glorieta Pass as it approaches the western control point of Glorieta. The steep grades within this siding would make it a less than idea... (more)

Racing across the plains of Northeastern New Mexico, Amtrak's Southwest Chief prepares to knockdown a clear indication at the 706 semaphores. These will be the last semaphores the Chief enc... (more)

Leaving Lamy. One of the great ironies of railroad history involves the Santa Fe. Arguably the most recognizable railroad company name, the "Santa Fe" originally bypassed the city of Santa ... (more)

Crossing the southernmost tip of the Rocky Mountains, Amtrak's Southwest Chief gives passengers a front row seat to the incredible scenery of New Mexico. While these mountains are scenic, t... (more)

The Southwest Chief splits a pair of semaphore signals as it navigates the tight twists and turns along BNSF's Glorieta Subdivision. In 2020, the semaphores along this route were the last ... (more)