RailRunners & Santa Fe relics

Ever since passing through the Albuquerque area during the last week of October about 8 years ago, I had wanted to get back and re-experience the fall color along the Rio Grande in that area. What better trains to photograph than the Albuquerque RailRunners, whose colors complement the cottonwoods, and which run on predictable schedules?

A southbound passes a colorful cottonwood near Isleta on November 4.

Mingling with BNSF traffic during a station stop at Belen

Departing Los Lunas, heading north in "push" mode...

A Southbound kicks up leaves as it approaches Isleta

Southbound in the late afternoon near Isleta.

Between RailRunner shots, we found time to discover a few Santa Fe relics around Albuquerque, including...

I thought I had found a nice GP30, until I came around to the engineer's side and discovered it had been hit by taggers. I'd love to see one of these repainted in BNSF "Heritage" colors (or even a fresh coat of blue and yellow) but its days on the BNSF roster are probably numbered.

SD40-2 # 6958 was in better condition...

Derelict Albuquerque shops building

Santa Fe logo at Albuquerque shops.

Coming next - more from Albuquerque, including ghost signs, fine dining, more fall color, and a flat tire. Check back in a few days... and Happy Thanksgiving.

WSC

np: Robert Nighthawk - "You call yourself a Cadillac" (from Mississippi Delta Blues Vol. 1)