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        Set-up for the day... I was originally supposed to be working in Southern California on Apr 19, 2003. I even passed up a railfan gathering in Kingman because of the  work I had the chance to do. Well at the last minute (literally) the weekend got canceled and I was left with nothing to do, IE time for a railfan trip! Feeling like I could go to Kingman anytime (sorry guys I had to skip it), and knowing how green Tehachapi was, I decided that I would head for Tehachapi. I was already in the mode of thinking of So Cal anyhow, so why not go and enjoy the sights there.
        Well, Saturday morning came and I hit the road. Tehachapi on the brain and a full tank of gas. As I pulled out of Las Vegas heading south I met up with the QNPWC (with DRGW 5507 in consist) just leaving Sloan and thought about how it was going to hit Cima about sunrise. I was already running late and started thinking that maybe I would like to only pull a half day and hang out on Cima, instead of the 4 hour drive to Tehachapi, the overnight stay, etc, etc.
        Knowing the LA&SL hasn't been a major hotbed of activity lately, meant I risked only seeing 3 or 4 trains was a concern, but when I got to the Nipton turn-off of I-15 I decided to take it. W.T.H. (what the heck)  :o), I figured, so what if I only see a few trains, at least I'm not driving 8 hours just to get there and back, (to Tehachapi), on Easter weekend. I really needed to be home in time for the kids anyway.
        Well 10 hours later and 13 trains, I realized that my decision to fan the Cima Sub was a pretty good one. It had been an awesome day on the hill...
        Early on I decided I was going to fan the eastern side of Cima. The portion between Nipton and Cima. This is the less visited side of the hill. That really nice paved road that runs right beside the tracks down the western face usually keep most railfans over there. I was looking for something new...The following e-slideshow will chronicle this effort.