| Jul 18 | MRL 4403 West – March 16, 2024 Back on March 16, 2024 MRL had already been a fallen flag for three months with BNSF having already taken over operations. I’d heard that the Gas Local between Missoula and Thompson Falls, MT had been running with MRL SD70ACe’s 4402/4... |
| Mar 25 | MRL 4402 East – March 16, 2024 On Saturday morning March 16, 2024 I was at Pipeline, MT waiting for the BNSF’s ex-MRL gas local to leave and head east to Missoula. I’d been hoping for a good chase of MRL SD70ACe’s 4402/4403 which I had heard two weeks prior w... |
| Dec 30 | December 31, 2023 – end of an era Well, I guess that this is it. The MRL ceases to exist at midnight tonight when BNSF takes over operations. From October 31, 1987 until today we had the MRL. I am glad to be able to say that I railfanned the MRL pretty much from start to finish... |
| Sep 12 | East switch at Hope, ID Back on July 23, 2023 I made a trip to the MRL’s west end to photograph the depot/MOW buildings at Clark Fork which as I understand go back to the Northern Pacific era. I also took the opportunity to get more photos at the east switch of Ho... |
| Jun 27 | Bridge 51 between Reed Point and Craver, MT While it is difficult to realize that a year from now the MRL will have been counted as a fallen flag for more than 6 months already the events of Saturday 6-24-23 did not help. Around 0700 that morning MRL westbound train LM was crossing the Yel... |
| Feb 10 | February 2005 MRL trip I actually made two trips to the MRL in February 2005 and both times with different friends. This is the first day of the second trip with Bret Gray and Jonathan Granville that started on the MRL Friday 2-18-05 after spending the previous night i... |
| Oct 10 | A few days on the MRL – Summer 2022 I finally made it to the MRL for a couple of days on August 31 and September 1, 2022. After spending the night at Plains I was headed west the morning of September 1 to Pipeline where I would meet up with Thompson Falls resident and friend Rich W... |
| Aug 16 | MRL – August 14, 2004 While I have not made any MRL trips so far in 2022 I do have some “from the past” trips that I have never written up and posted. One such outing was during August 2004, a good time to be railfanning the MRL with a variety of motive po... |
| Jan 22 | January 21, 2013 – changes On this date back on 2013 I was in Montana enjoying the second day of photographing the MRL between Paradise, MT and Sandpoint, ID though I would have to start for home in Western Washington sometime in the afternoon. Everything I saw that day wa... |
| Jun 24 | East Missoula signal bridge MP 118 Last month Dave Franz reported that the classic NP double track signal bridge located just east of Missoula, MT near Madison Street at MP 118.79 was removed on Tuesday May 11, 2021. Milepost 118 is the mileage west of Helena, MT with Helena being... |