This particular trip had several goals to meet and during the course of the week they were very satisfactorily met.

We wanted to see as many locomotives in Chicago and North Western colors operating and over the 4 days spent on UP lines over 50 were seen at work representing almost every loco type operated by the CNW.

One of the locations which was a must was a first time visit to the Rochelle Railfan Park in Illinois. This park has excellent facilities with a covered seated area complete with dispatcher chatter coming out of the speakers. The gift shop and the entrance of the park offers a good choice of Railfan reading matter, 35mm film, food, drink etc as well as rest room facilities.

The final aim of the trip was to observe Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern operations. In the day spent along the eastern end of the line we observed several trains and over 20 motive power units.

This section will be completed over the next couple of months so it is well worth returning frequently to see updates.

Click on state buttons in top right corner to navigate around the various locations. Please note not all buttons will work initially.