A Trip Over the Line

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     We begin our trip east, by the front door, where the line swings off the Southern Pacific line adjacent to the Medco mill. (This is the P&E connection with the SP Siskiyou Line and interchange with the SP at Medford).  The line passes between mill buildings, crosses Hwy. 99, Bear Creek, I-5 and Biddle Road as we proceed to Crater Yard.  Crater Yard is the western hub of operations.

     When our train, The East Hauler, is ready we climb aboard and depart Crater yard east to White City.  At White City we pass through an extensive industrial area with lumber and saw mills.  We continue east crossing over Little Butte Creek, across Nick Young Road and enter Eagle Point.  Dispatch has given us a clear line for the trip east.

     We slow as we pass through Eagle Point and begin to climb as we pass the east signal.  We will stay on a continual climb to Butte Falls passing over several bridges and pass the first of three passing sidings at Derby.

     As we roll into Butte Falls we pass the “Y”, a small yard and a large sawmill.  The Butte Falls area is fairly level with the grade increasing after we leave Butte Falls on our final climb to the summit and the second of three passing sidings.

     As we crest the summit we begin a long decent that will take our train to the Keno Loop, (on the far back wall) and the third of three passing tracks.  The bottom of the Keno Loop marks the end of our decent and the beginning of flat running to Pelican Yard in Klamath Falls.  As we do so we will pass between several mills.

     When we arrive at Klamath Falls we turn our train over to the yard switcher.  Pelican Yard is the Eastern terminal and engine service facility for the Pacific and Eastern.  The yard switcher will break down our train making up two smaller trains that will send the cars to interchange at either the SP or BN yards. 

     If we have time to wait we can watch as the trains depart the yard and slowly cross the trestle and lift bridge that carries the trains over Lake Ewauna to the yards for continued movement east.