Traveling westbound, but while on the Union Pacific's Mojave Sub, northbound, BNSF Railway ES44C4s 6629 and 7995, with a combined 7700 horsepower pulling 67 loaded autoracks, depart the town of Tehachapi to begin their descent into California's San Joaquin Valley. Train V-CLORIC1-08A originated in Clovis, New Mexico (a yard in which a lot of automobile trains are put together or broken up) and is heading for Richmond, California – more-or-less 400 miles away in the state's Bay Area. Approaching Cable crossovers, this train is just beginning its descent from the town of Tehachapi's 3970-foot elevation to 404-foot Bakersfield, and then, for the most part, flat land running up the Valley. The Tehachapi Mountains (the southern end of the mighty Sierra Nevada) get a fair amount of wind, and thus the plethora of wind turbines here, generating electricity for the state. (Golden Hills, California – September 10, 2024)
