Rotary Snow Plow Returns to Donner Pass
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- Опубликовано: 27 фев 2017
- On February 25th, 2017, the rotary snow plows returned to Donner Pass to battle the heavy Sierra Snow along the UP Roseville Subdivision.
The rotaries are somewhat of a legend along the railroad. Only used every 10 years or so, the rotaries are rarely seen. Flangers and spreaders work tirelessly through the winter months to keep the tracks open. When they cannot keep up with Mother Nature, the railroad turns to the rotaries. "They were sometimes called War Wagons" said retired Southern Pacific superintendent Bill Lynch, "Going to war against Mother Nature."
It has been a difficult winter for the Union Pacific Roseville Division. Intense storms have dropped over 13 feet of snow in the mountains, making it difficult to move trains along the Donner Pass Route (Roseville to Sparks via Truckee). The Feather River Route, which can often alleviate rail traffic from Donner Pass, has been closed for weeks due to massive washouts near Portola.
Keeping the lifeblood of the American economy moving is the responsibility of the Truckee-based snow fighters. They are an elite group of railroad employees, often with decades of experience working on Donner Pass. A combination of their experience and the power of the rotary snow plow allow the railroad to contend with the worst of Mother Nature.
Here is an announcement from Union Pacific regarding the recent use of the rotaries:
"To Our Customers,
Union Pacific's most powerful snow-removal machine, the rotary snow plow, was in full operation this past weekend during the third snowiest winter in the Sierras in recorded history. The plow cut through snow that reached depths of 13 feet, across 14 miles near the Donner Pass. The railroad's first and second lines of defense against snowstorms - flangers and spreaders - were unable to keep the tracks clear due to the depth of snow walls, so the rotary was required to clear large amounts of snow in a timely manner.
We have three one-of-a-kind rotary snow plows to use as needed during winter months. Union Pacific's plows were originally built in the 1920s and operated by steam, then overhauled and converted to diesel electric in the 1950s. In 2012, we made the first major makeover in more than 60 years to one rotary plow enhancing its productivity, reliability and power. We plan to enhance another rotary plow in 2017.
Union Pacific is working diligently during the winter months to keep our lines cleared of snow and ready for your business."
In this video, you come along as the rotaries work through Troy and Norden, California.
SPMW 207 -- SPMW 8207 -- UP 8661 -- UP 8972 -- SPMW 8209 --- SPMW 209
WTKTKF 25
Jake Miille © 2018
jakemiillephotography.com 
Развлечения
thank you for not putting stupid music over the sounds of the loco's working hard
You mean like this "original thought"?
ruclips.net/video/hBP15lRprPs/видео.html
@@7GL6
C
Keep writing
And to top it off that so called "music" is better described as; "despicable electronic irritating noise".
This machine is a death trap for any human or animal...
Well said. It’s too bad we couldn’t feel the cold and smell the smells.
I could watch these all day.
“Thomas had never seen so much freaking snow”
I have lived in the area for over 30 years and have still never seen the plow train in person. Awesome video, thanks so much for sharing!
I lived on the summit for many years in soda springs. I'm still only an hour away. I've seen all of those trains many times including the rotary blower and am still in awe every time I see it. Great video and there's nothing like standing close........... enough to those unbelievably powerful machines..... Awsome
In Feb., 1993, while SP Western Region rules instructor in Roseville, I got to spend three days with the rotaries in the Sierras and, given my heritage was as a train order train dispatcher on the San Antonio Division, it was an exhilarating experience. One year earlier, I was able to spend two days on a flanger working between The Gap and Truckee.
I remember first seeing one of these in the old 1980s National Geographic tv special "The Love of Trains."
You never really forget this kind of machine.
Same ones. Built in 1937 and still used when needed.
"Love Those Trains" 1984.
It's so impressive how much snow they can move
I played in the snow sheds at Norden as a child in the early 50s.
Thanks for a great video.
The greatest railroad video of all-time.
The amount of snow being moved and distance it is thrown is amazing
I am a train and I approve this footage.
Timosha21 lol
No trains or rotary snow plows were harmed in the production of this video!
@@RaoulThomas007 However a large swath of the snow population was sent packing as they took the most direct flight out of the area.
I am a snowman ⛄ and I can't look!
hai train haha your funny
I LOVE the sounds of the trains....my uncle was a conductor on the CN railway....always love the sights and sounds of a passing train!!!!
Fantastic. Glad to see that at least one wasn't rebuilt. So cool that a piece of equipment working for a class 1 railroad still uses an A200 horn in 2017! Great catch!
Thank you for not calling it a snowblower!
Enjoyed this video start to finish. Thank you for letting the engines do the talking. Happy Trails
Not everyone can be an engineer, others are made to watch these kinds of videos and enjoy the nature and artwork of engineering...
I love how the thumbnail looks like the plow is coming out of a painting framed by the signal bridge. Beautiful.
Pretty amazing to see those old F series B units still being used. Let alone them and the rotaries still having the SPMW lettering some 20+ years after the merger.
tarmac2001 iii
Probably only used with the rotarys so no one cares
They electrically power the rotary's drive motors. No other way to operate them.
@@the_retag Espee fans care...
@@eastbaykidd8574 i know but in the company i meant due to there rare use bo one can be bothered to repaint them
Great video. I’ve always liked mountains, especially snowy mountains, and trains. So, thank you!
I am glad to know I’m not the only gear head who loves this stuff.
Besides enjoying the video--thanks Jake-- I like to read what many viewers have to say about what's going on. I'm new at railroading and like to learn. Some of you folks are very knowledgeable and add to my enjoyment. A big thanks to you as well!
I remember so many times skiing at Sugerbowl and the tram would take you right over these tracks. So cool! You knew you were in for some incredibly good skiing!
Every time I see videos of these monsters, I think I'd like to have one for my driveway & sidewalk. Beautiful country and excellent video !!!
That's pretty smart using a B unit as power for the snow blower. I'm glad they found a reason to keep those old workhorses around! 👍
January 2020,they had one of these on display at the California state railroad museum in Sacramento.
This is so wild and so cool at the same time. I had never seen anything like this before. Great footage. Thanx!
What really trips me out is--in that first shot? In the upper left-hand corner of the frame? There's a cellphone tower.
In Donner Pass.
In the old days people starved to death or ate each other when the pass got snowed in. Now you could just order a pizza!
Call up the loud man and have them drop off a bag 😂😂😂😂
Why order a pizza when fresh lunch could be sitting right by you. Lol
@@markmwilson22 hahaha brutal
Welcome to the 21st Century.
Very observant of you.
Along with so many others I want to say how much I enjoyed your rotary video.
I'm from that area.
Thanks also for the written explanation. Nicely done.
Now I think you have several polite, intelligent questions to go in and answer.
Norden. Some days the snow is up to the transformers on the poles. You don’t normally plow the snowfalls that happen there. Thanks for posting. Brings back memories.
That rotary snow plow would have come in handy for The Donner Party of 1846.
That's snow plowing fan was developed and invented by some engineer from Canada back in the 1880s still using the same principle today and it's driven by some big cart that is behind the locomotive it's such a massive machine
Truly love the Donner Pass area and this video was really great.. Brought back many memories. All the best.
Fantastic. Award winning. Amazing video.
Beautiful, Thanks for posting!
What an amazing job by Rotarians. Much appreciated for all their efforts, time and money in sharing this wonderful video. May God bless all the persons / engineers involved in this project with all happiness, prosperity, good health and longevity!! Best regards, Nassa
I agree nice you haven’t put dumb music on it’s so nice hearing the train with plow working. Awesome
I remember donner pass mentioned in the VHS documentary "Thunder on the Rails" by skyfire productions
January 4 2017 we were stuck on the east bound train at emigrant gap for 4 hours waiting for a snow plow from Reno to free us. The joke going around the passages was “is this Donner Party 2”
Superb shots ! 👍
You can buy these rotary snow plows at your local Lowe's or Home Depot. Hurry, They're on sale this week, Regular price $1400, on sale for JUST $1399.99 while supplies last.
A rotary snow plough/plow on a train always reminds me of Ian Fleming’s ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’. Bond races and beats the train, his pursuer meets a sticky end courtesy of the rotary snow plough/plow.
Thank you so much this is a great video! My dad 91 year old dad and I enjoyed it very much!
Nancy Offenhiser Waittt do you have two dads?
I lived in the US for 3 years, Foresthill, CA used to travel I-80 / Donner Pass frequently
Used to go for brunch to a place in Truckee on the Main St... Many great memories of the Sierra's & "Sierra Cement"
I saw lots and lots of snow, but never managed to see one of these.
These guys were once shoved by 2-8-0s and cab forwards, now they're pushed by GEVOs and ACes.
Despite being used by an ever-changing modern railroad, they are still powered by old F7B units, and bear the paint and markings of a long dead railroad.
I'm glad at least some of the SP legacy lives on in the sierras, hopefully they never paint over the black and the SPMW markings.
Agree - It's wonderful that UP has allowed the old rotaries to still bear their original Southern Pacific livery! I hiked through three of the tunnels and snow sheds on the old alignment at Mount Judah last weekend (July 16, 2017), and this video lets me compare how the area looks in winter when the snow sheds really are needed.
I have no clue what you just said. ...lmao
What language is this?
Train nerd!
Yep the old 2-8-0 had the dingle arm sintered to the rotary girder, that kept the blinker fluid from leaking out of the muffler bearing.
I’m glad that Union Pacific is with Southern Pacific Rotary Snow Plow. Amtrak Superliner can’t clear the snowdrifts by himself.
A train is the best place to be when traversing the Donner Pass in the winter. The 80 is just a mess with trucks slipping and sliding all over the place even with chains on. Of course it's been a decade since I last went over it in any vehicle.
Holy crap, I honestly did not know this was a thing until this video! Awesome!
Pray for more snow and great video like this!!!!
That is one of the beautiful places to take a train ride
There's a rotary plow on display at the Museum of Transport in St. Louis County.
What a brilliant piece of kit!
That was most impressive thank you for sharing that!!!
Over 100 years old........Bad Ass !!
It’s kind of awesome to know that Modern railroads still use old B units ^w^
DarkArts Productions They’re only used to power the snowplow, but yes, it is kind of cool.
One of the greatest video works I have seen. Thanks!
Muy bonitas tomas y IMPRECIONANTE
Awesome video. We have video of what appears to be these plows stored during the summer, sitting in a yard approaching Sacramento, CA.
It's nice to see them in motion - as we prepare for our next California Zephyr trip when daily service resumes on 5/24/22! :) *Cheers!*
I just followed a BNSF Rotary Plow through Central Nebraska, super cool!
This is why I love YT so much...I'm in Australia and will never get to see anything like this! So technically exciting and thoroughly enjoyable to watch 0- thank you for sharing Jake!
Is it true all the women are hot there
Funny how UP was gonna get rid of the Espee rotaries in favor of their plows until they tried using their's on that Sierra Cement. Great video. Thanks for sharing
Mark French and they have people like the Roseville Service Unit and Ed Dickens at steam shop to maintain them the rotary is the one vehicle in UP'S bag of tricks that is needed if you have 16 feet of snow up on Donner Pass or on the Eastern end of the railroad
Aaron Peavler/Geomodelrailroader Railroad Photography what does Ed Dickens have to do with the SP rotaries? The boiler is a modern package unit and only produces steam for thawing ice and the whistle.
Sierra Cement lol never heard that one before but I get it im from Alabama digging a trench is damn near impossible cause the clay is like digging thru concrete
Nice to see an "F" unit in service. Especially a "B" unit.
AWESOME!!!! Love trains and live these snow removal videos!!!!!
this is my favorite video on all of you tube ! that baby is an animal . ill bet the donners would of like to have that back in the day !
Now that's what I call a Snowblower.
You can really hear that EMD 567 roar! Amazing!
Stunning!!!! Excellent video.
Thanks so much for the interesting video. It's the first time I have seen these in operation.
Fantastic video. Thank you.
Wonderful to locos doing their job...thank you!
THIS IS JUST AMAZING THANKS FOR SHARING
A W E S O M E !!!!
Great movie!!
Amazing video, thanks!!!
Ronald Halma jjjgjgbcxtubuiioojjhhbbaaaaahhah
This is a fantastic series of shots!
- Did we hit a deer?
- Why?
- Snow is red...
Deer*
@@claypot10 yes, thanks!
Fantastic, keep up the good work guys
I saw an hour long Doc.on this a few years ago-when they fire this bad boy up,everyone in the neighborhood knows what's going on!And that's how you get over the hill !!!!
Great footage and nice catch on the California Zephyr. Thank you for braving the snow depth and elements getting to your camera locations, Nice job!! :)
This is some great footage :-) I have recorded that Rotary Snow Plow while it was in the Roseville railyard :-) An Extra "BIG" thumbs up and right into my LOCOMOTIVES playlist :-) ROCK ON!!!!!!!
This is just great! Really well done.
The biggest and baddest snowblower in the world !!!! i love watching her do her thing !
Excellent!
Wow! So beautiful. Fantastic camera angles and sound. Cool
I was wondering if Amtrak was going along this route. The plow shoulda kept going while the Zephyr was passing by! Ha, ha!
Thanks, Jake!
what a machine!!! wow.
Great video, nice upload!!!!!!!!
That's some major power behind those snow movers! I'd love to give that a try.
thanks for te video..what an awesome machine.
These videos are great so thank you, however it would be nice if you keep filming a little longer so we can see what the track looks like after it has been cleared.
Wow. You made my day thank you!
Great catch, a plow at each end!
When you have 16 feet of snow up on Donner Pass this is who you call. UP breaks out the war wagons each winter if big blizards come to Donner Pass. The Roseville Service Unit knows as Jack Webb puts it in the film Snow on the Run "keep the line clear and keep the trains moving" if snow builds up on Donner Pass the Transcontinental Railroad is shutdown and they don't want that the rotary is the only way to get the snow off of Donner Pass.
at least they kept the espee reporting marks
They already got one SP 1996 one of the Heritage units
When I rode the #5 Zephyr from MTZ on January 26, station attendants mentioned that at one point the snowfall at Donner Pass had approached a foot an hour the previous weekend! The scenery was gorgeous, and I had a lower roomette where quite often the accumulated snow wall was above window height.
When the snow piles up, even the biggest, richest railroad in the world still has to call up the old SP rotaries.
SP knew how to run this line, and obviously UP respected that tradition by maintaining the black paint and SPMW markings.
For some reason the first line made me bust out the Ghostbusters theme.
🎼who ya gonna call?
Snowbusters!
Great video- thanks for sharing!!
Cool video, thanks, from New Hampshire.
The Zephyr! Yay. I miss taking trains😫
amazing video capture - thanks for it!
Jim this one is for you!!!!!
That was a great , informative, and beautiful video. Thanks
Really cool video! Thanks!