A little farther north of that crossing there is a small facility with two sidings, each about ½ a km long. On another day two southbound locos, 8909 and 9504, pause, break the train, and spot 6 tank cars on one of the sidings. The 4400’s are almost as prolific today as the SD40-2’s were in the 70’s and 80’s. The fleets are only smaller in number because of their higher horsepower and their improved reliability. As a huge SD40-2 fan I’m kind’a sad to see those great machines relegated to branch line and short line service.
Take a look at the gravel road. A light rain during the night had turned the gravel from a pale gray (See a few drying pebbles on the side) to a medium to light brown. Tire marks are warn into the road and drying grass is growing right up and over the shoulder. Rainwater has gathered in the ditch through the summer providing a fertile home for rushes and grasses that already reach over three feet high even at this time of year.
The small petrochemical facility can be seen at the far left. The buildings are of a modern, prefab construction (white with a red stripe) that could have been built anywhere from 30 years ago to the present. I’ve seen these workmen like buildings everywhere from isolated gravel pits in the country to crowded down town construction sites.