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From Gillette south, get on Hwy 59. Go South about 8 miles to Bishop Rd. Go left (east) on Bishop. This will take you in the area of 4 of the mines. DON'T try to go onto Mine property. They are very sensitive to this. I'd guess that its a great way to meet the Campbell County Sheriff. Bishop Rd passes under the tracks. Once you see what there is here, head back out to hwy 59 and go South about 6 miles to Rd 99 / T-7 Rd. If you miss this one Haight Rd also should work. Either will take you to Hilight Rd, which runs South, right along the tracks for about 40 miles. Its gravel, but its public. You can't miss on this road. Most of the way, you are right across the fence from the tracks. Work your way South to the jct with Hwy 450 which is called Reno Jct. There is also a RR junction here. The branch to the Black Thunder Mine and to Jacobs Ranch mine goes east here. They are only a mile or three away. You can see both from the Jct. I like to sit up on the bridge at the jct and have the view of the tracks north, south and east. I've seen 5-6 trains at a time here going various directions. Nice telephoto spot on the curve coming off the branch. Go east over to the mines and you might get some nice shots. Lots of captive trains moving slowly. You can see both well from the road. Last time I was there, Black Thunder still gave free tours. You can see the pit, the shovels (they're huge) and the plant. They have some haul trucks in the parking lot which are on display. There are lots of mule deer, antelope and elk around here. Black Thunder has its own herd of Elk. Go back out to Reno Jct and continue South on Hilight Rd. It runs out at Reno Rd so go back over to Hwy 59. Go South to Steckley Road and don't miss this one. Its right on top of Logan Hill which is the Southbound Ruling grade. Its triple track and the bridge is right at the crest of the hill. You can get heavy southbound loads grinding up the hill and northbound empties coming in. Head back to 59 and run down to Bill. There is only the UP crew change office and the yard here. Some possible photos of the power lined up at the yard. Then head South into Douglas and watch for Hwy 20 east. It will take you to Orin Jct, the South end of the BN coal line. If you go east on 20, you'll follow the UP for about 20 miles more. On the BN south of Orin, they go through Wendover canyon which looks great. Never been there, but the pics look fantastic. <br /> <br />Hope all this helps - <br /> - Stack
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