Story and photographs
copyright 2006 by
Richard
Elgenson
After spending the night
camped out at Kelso Dunes, the plan included a run to Nipton, near the
California/Nevada border. On the way, we saw a number of
westbound trains along Kelso Cima Road. This one included Salt
Lake City Oylmpics paint scheme unit number 2002
SD-70. Maybe Union Pacific will run one of the special paint
scheme units on the Officer-on-a-train rainbow train? Tracks were
first built through here in the early 1900's. The bridge is
stamped 1929 in the concrete.
Below, this train was traversing
westbound through Cima with a CSX unit.
Nipton is a
small place with one
highway-rail grade crossing, a bed and
breakfast, store, restaurant, and monument. Rene's Woodshack had
interesting signs. Notice the woodpecker to the right of the
skeleton.
Below left appears to be an old wooden
boxcar. The monument was placed on October 10, 1999, provided by
E Clampus Vitus. Nipton has come a long way since then.
This train had just entered California
from Primm Nevada. The
state line roughly parallels the tracks right here and is likely in the
below left photograph. The snow above the utility pole is in
Nevada.
Above the train are the New York
Mountains which are the southeast
barrier of the Ivanpah Valley. From here to Cima, the railroad
hugs the division of rock outcrops and the deposited eroded
soils. Unless a train is there, it is barely visible across the
valley from Morning Star Mine Road.
