Union Pacific’s former Rio Grande main line west of Denver attacks the Front Range of the Rockies directly using a 2% grade and numerous curves and tunnels to “make the grade.” After looping through Big 10 Curve located on a mesa, the railroad finally climbs along a foothill then turns west to circumvent Coal Creek Canyon. At this location you can look east toward the vast plains and see how high you’ve climbed since leaving Denver. As a morning sun rises higher into a winter sky, Union Pacific’s MNYPV (North Yard, Denver to Provo) manifest freight grinds upgrade out of Clay, Colorado, on a cold January 23, 2007, with the steep grade plainly evident in the stark, snowy landscape.
