{"id":39709,"date":"2024-08-06T06:07:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-06T10:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/?p=39709"},"modified":"2024-08-05T19:22:11","modified_gmt":"2024-08-05T23:22:11","slug":"unit-grain-train-at-the-loop-eight-years-ago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/unit-grain-train-at-the-loop-eight-years-ago\/","title":{"rendered":"Unit Grain Train at the Loop\u2014Eight Years Ago"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>It was a sun-drenched day in the California Tehachapis on this day eight years ago, when I focused on BNSF Railway&#8217;s X-FRSRUF9-05G ascending Union Pacific&#8217;s former Southern Pacific line at Walong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Better known as the &#8216;Tehachapi Loop,&#8217; this place is world-famous for its sinuous trackage, where the railroad&#8217;s compete helix is just part of a series of reverse curves necessary to maintain a steady uphill gradient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What isn&#8217;t always evident in photos is the raw verticality of the mountains. This is tough rugged territory interspersed with rolling hills covered by golden grass. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another element of the place that isn&#8217;t conveyed in photos is that the golden grass bears sharp pointy seeds that find their way into your socks and annoy your ankles. But, it&#8217;s a small price to pay for enjoying freight trains hard at work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"316\" data-attachment-id=\"39710\" data-permalink=\"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/unit-grain-train-at-the-loop-eight-years-ago\/bnsf-x-frsruf9-05g_tehachapi_loop_briansolomon_dscf2491\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?fit=1700%2C1133\" data-orig-size=\"1700,1133\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?fit=709%2C473\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?fit=474%2C316\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?resize=474%2C316\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-39710\" style=\"width:801px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?w=1700 1700w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?resize=709%2C473 709w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?resize=1022%2C681 1022w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?resize=205%2C137 205w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?resize=1536%2C1024 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?w=948 948w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?w=1422 1422w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">August 6, 2016.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"316\" data-attachment-id=\"39711\" data-permalink=\"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/unit-grain-train-at-the-loop-eight-years-ago\/bnsf-x-frsruf9-05g_tehachapi_loop_briansolomon_dscf2497\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?fit=1700%2C1133\" data-orig-size=\"1700,1133\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?fit=709%2C473\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?fit=474%2C316\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?resize=474%2C316\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-39711\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?w=1700 1700w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?resize=709%2C473 709w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?resize=1022%2C681 1022w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?resize=205%2C137 205w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?resize=1536%2C1024 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?w=948 948w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2497.jpg?w=1422 1422w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">August 6, 2016.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"316\" data-attachment-id=\"39712\" data-permalink=\"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/unit-grain-train-at-the-loop-eight-years-ago\/bnsf-x-frsruf9-05g_tehachapi_loop_briansolomon_bnsf-x-frsruf9-05g_grain_hoppers_tehachapi_loop_dscf2498\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?fit=1700%2C1133\" data-orig-size=\"1700,1133\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?fit=709%2C473\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?fit=474%2C316\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?resize=474%2C316\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-39712\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?w=1700 1700w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?resize=709%2C473 709w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?resize=1022%2C681 1022w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?resize=205%2C137 205w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?resize=1536%2C1024 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?w=948 948w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_grain_hoppers_Tehachapi_Loop_DSCF2498.jpg?w=1422 1422w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">August 6, 2016.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Exposed using my FujiFilm XT-1 with 18-135mm lens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8565148246f4f9a192a054619b708eb1\" style=\"color:#d96c18\"><strong>Tracking the Light Posts Daily!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Better known as the &#8216;Tehachapi Loop,&#8217; this place is world-famous for its sinuous trackage, where the railroad&#8217;s compete helix is just part of a series of reverse curves necessary to maintain a steady uphill gradient.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39710,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[6060,10,6108,48],"tags":[5375,5361,6413],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BNSF-X-FRSRUF9-05G_Tehachapi_Loop_\u00a9BrianSolomon_DSCF2491.jpg?fit=1700%2C1133","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2BVuC-akt","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39709"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39709"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39709\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39713,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39709\/revisions\/39713"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}