# End of the Railroad



## Randy Stone (Jan 2, 2008)

Here is a photo I hadn't seen before and thought everyone might enjoy.


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## Ted Doskaris (Oct 7, 2008)

The picture showing the lead unit identified as "Santa Fe" looks like the BNSF system before deep pockets Berkshire Hathaway acquire it. Could it be the mortgage company at that time had seen fit to reposes their holdings for lack of payment? 

-Ted


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## Brandon (Jul 6, 2011)

Movie shoot?


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## jake3404 (Dec 3, 2010)

Hmm, could it be we see one part of the bridge and the rest with the swing part is off to the left out of the photo. However, I wonder, isn't it a no-no to stop a train on a bridge? I thought it was standard operating procedure to not stop on a bridge as it creates a lot of un-needed stress on the bridge. 
If my asumption is correct, the train should have stopped before the bridge and waited until the swing moved back into place before proceeding onto the bridge.


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## Tom Parkins (Jan 2, 2008)

Not a no-no to stop on a bridge....generally. Depends on engineering, but a well designed bridge better hold a stopped train. On a recent Amtrak trip on the NEC my train stopped on the Susquehanna River bridge for a bridge opening. 

I'm thinking this is photo shopped.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

Im amazed anyone thinks this is a real photo.. 
photoshop photoshop photoshop.. 

Scot


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Tom Parkins on 08 Aug 2012 10:08 AM 
Not a no-no to stop on a bridge....generally. Depends on engineering, but a well designed bridge better hold a stopped train. On a recent Amtrak trip on the NEC my train stopped on the Susquehanna River bridge for a bridge opening. 

I'm thinking this is photo shopped. 


More RR's are making it a no-no to stop on a bridge. CRANDIC lost a bunch of cars once in a wind storm because they stopped on a bridge. 
I would be more worried about clotheslining the train in the curve on starting up. But, I still hope most of the weight of the train was on an up-hill leading to the bridge, so a brake failure would not roll me off the end.

If "I" had "photo shopped" that photo, the front of the engine would have been overhanging the end by a few feet... Maybe with the front wheels just past the lip of the rail-ends... Still touching the rail, but not on the bottom-most part of the wheels!


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Scottychaos on 08 Aug 2012 11:13 AM 
Im amazed anyone thinks this is a real photo.. 
photoshop photoshop photoshop.. 

Scot


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## Reg Stocking (Sep 29, 2010)

The pier to accomodate the end of a draw or swing bridge would be bulkier and have appropriate fittings. It is an amusing photo, though.


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## GN_Rocky (Jan 6, 2008)

Another give away to the photo being altered is the end of the bridge does NOT have that plate siding on it like you see on the sides. It'd be exposed girders ans support beams


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## Rods UP 9000 (Jan 7, 2008)

That looks like the BNSF crossing on the Columbia river going from Oregon to Washington. If I remember right, it's just below one of the big Dams. The swing bridge is open for the barge traffic. This view is looking southwest.


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## Randy Stone (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Rods UP 9000 on 08 Aug 2012 06:23 PM 
That looks like the BNSF crossing on the Columbia river going from Oregon to Washington. If I remember right, it's just below one of the big Dams. The swing bridge is open for the barge traffic. This view is looking southwest. By the photo from Google for that bridge, it is a dual track.

But I think the photo above is still pretty cool.


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## Rail Planet (Jan 22, 2012)

I say photoshop... look at the end of the bridge below the front of the lead engine. See the shadow and metal pattern? It matches the side of the girder bridge below the red boxcar (a few cars back from the engines). The creator of this photo "cloned" that part of the bridge and stuck it where he wanted the end of the track to be. Cool photo anyway, but as a person who uses photoshop, that trick was easy to spot.


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## Dr Rivet (Jan 5, 2008)

ALL- Editted 9:15PM EDT

Rod UP 9000 was pretty close in his location. And Rail Planet is right; the fake "end of the bridge" was copied from the side under the red box car... really good catch.

As to exact location, I am pretty sure I have found it. And for those who read the post earlier WA is NORTH of OR.

If you put Wishram WA into Google Maps you will see just to the west on the Columbia River, Lake Celilio. Zoom in on the line going across the river. It is a connection between the BNSF on the north side and UP on the south sided. The south side has a LIFT span, not a swing bridge. The north side has a wye that meets in the river. The wye is on deck girder spans and the main spans are steel trusses. If you compare the bridge construction you will see that Randy's picture looks like a photo shot from the north side of the river of the east leg of the wye[ toward Wishram]. The last deck span that hits land has been Photoshopped out. You can see the west leg of the wye in the right hand edge of the image to the right of the lumber cars immediately behind the locomotives. 

Randy, at least on this specific bridge, at the highest resolution you can see it is single track, just follow it onto the shore on the north side.


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

I'd go with photoshop too. 
Reminds me of MC Escher, the piers are skewed yet the end is square to the length. ...Da feet boss da feet! Skewed at the bottom and squared at the top! Set back from the left side how would the next box beam attach? 

John


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## denray (Jan 5, 2008)

NOPE that is the BRIDGE TO NOWHERE, no I have no idea, it is cool whatever or wherever or real or not 
Dennis


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## Paul Burch (Jan 2, 2008)

This should put it to rest. It would if I could get a link to post correctly. This link is just as good. Top middle photo and the one to its lower left. The is the Celilo bridge across the Columbia River at Wishram.

 http://www.somewherewest.com/gorge/Gorge.html


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## Dr Rivet (Jan 5, 2008)

Paul 

Thanks for the confirmation. The bridge piers "seal the deal". That is the bridge I identified with Google Maps. I did not realize it was called Celilo Bridge. Should have thought to troll the rail pictures sites. I just remembered seeing something like that on my trips back and forth on I-84 on a couple of vacations. You have probably passed it many times in your travels as it is in your "home territory". 

This covers the whole bridge... COOL! ==> BNSF 4948 EB Wishram


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## Dr Rivet (Jan 5, 2008)

Paul 

Sorry... I see you changed the link to go to the whole page while I was editing my post above. Neat stuff on that site.


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## Paul Burch (Jan 2, 2008)

I was actually up there in July 2011 chasing S.P. 4449 that was heading an excursion train to Wishram. They turned the train there using the wye on the bridge. There are probably videos of that on the Net.


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## krs (Feb 29, 2008)

I think the original picture would have been funnier if they had shown part of the right section of the bridge with a caption:
Ooops - switch in the wrong position


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

Because One shouldn't PO his Dispatcher, lest he be dispatched?


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