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| Texas Panhandle - BNSF Panhandle Subdivision |
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The BNSF Panhandle Subdivision stretches from Amarillo, Texas east to Wellington, Kansas. It's
approximately 123 miles from Amarillo to the Texas-Oklahoma state line near Higgins. East of
Amarillo, territory is straight and flat (and parallel to US Highway 60) for about the
first 50 miles to Pampa. East of Pampa, the tracks drop down from the eastern edge of
the Llano Estacado and enter the Canadian River drainage. East of Pampa, the railroad is
out of sight from Hwy 60, although there are a few stretches near Miami and Canadian where
the railroaad and the highway are close together. East of Pampa, you'll find the Texas
Panhandle vastly different from the table-flat plains of the Llano Estacado; the tracks
twist and bend around hillsides and alongside creeks which drain into the Canadian River,
and trains encounter grades of close to 1 percent as they climb out of the Canadian River Valley.
My personal favorite stretch is the area between Miami and Codman (about four miles west of Miami),
where Hwy 60 provides excellent access and the scenery is among the best you'll find in
the entire region. Come on out and enjoy the show!
Please click any of the following pictures to see a larger image:
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Sunrise at Eastern: Westbound Santa Fe Q NYLA approaches Amarillo on the Panhandle Subdivision on the morning of April 8, 1995. The headlight of a second westbound -- the S CHLA -- is visible in the distance. |
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A westbound Santa Fe freight passes through Panhandle, Texas on the Santa Fe Panhandle Subdivision on April 8, 1995. Grain elevators like this one help to break up the monotonous flatness of the Panhandle plains. |
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An ex-ATSF GP50 leads a GP60B on a westbound vehicle train running parallel to US Highway 60 on the BNSF Panhandle Subdivision east of Codman, Texas on October 29, 2000. |
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A westbound intermodal train climbs upgrade on the BNSF Panhandle Subdivision near Pampa, Texas on May 31, 2003. |
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Eastbound and westbound intermodal trains meet on the double track east of Pampa. May 31, 2005. |
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Westbound BNSF train S CHCLBP3-15 rolls across the BNSF Panhandle Subdivision during a winter storm on January 17, 2001. The train was photographed west of Panhandle, Texas. |
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This westbound stack train was photographed near Lee, Texas (east of Amarillo) in January, 2004. |
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All images on the Southwest Railfan © 2000 - 2006 by Wes Carr.
All
rights reserved.
