On the snowy day of Sunday March 9, 2003 my dad and I left home around 7:30 and headed for Yardley in Spokane, WA.  On the way we saw our first train at Empire siding (BNSF 4115, ATSF(BNSF) 6945) with eastbound hoppers.  Then coming across the big bridge between Sunset Jct. and Latah Jct. was a westbound empty flat train (BN(BNSF) 6363, BNSF 6870).   At Yardley we met Grady McKinley from Virginia.   At the east end of the yard an eastbound manifest (SF 906, 699, BN(BNSF) 7858) waited to depart.    It wasn't snowing very much in town but as we headed out Trent towards Hauser, ID the snow began to get heavier.  At the Hauser Yard, a westbound vehicle, stack and TOFC train (BN(BNSF) 7064, BNSF 6340) waited for a green light to proceed towards Yardley.  Waiting on the east end of Hauser yard was an eastbound manifest with 3 BNSF C44-9ws and a BN(BNSF) 8099.

    On the scanner we heard about a northbound UP with a CEFX on the point so we drove up to Athol where the UP ducks under the road and the BNSF tracks.   I got out of the car and looked around for a good spot.  Then we heard a westbound BNSF blow its whistle so I quickly moved back up to get the BNSF.  As fate would have it just as soon as I moved, the northbound UP manifest train came around the corner (CEFX 136, UP 8118, SP 177(unpatched)).  The shot would have been great but oh well.  We then hopped into the car and drove down to West Athol where we quickly set up and shot the westbound BNSF manifest (BNSF 887, BN 9207).   By this time it was 9:40am so we head up north of Athol, ID to the big cut.

    At 9:55am an eastbound surprised us because we didn't hear it on the scanner and it was so quiet.  It was an eastbound TOFC with BNSF 5428, 4429, and 4232 on the point.  We then waited for a while before the next train showed up.  It was an eastbound vehicle and TOFC at 11:20am (BNSF 7148, 8026, 7071).  We then moved on up the line to Granite where a westbound hopper (BNSF 4339, 758, SF 833) flew by before we had any time to set up.  The next train didn't come till 1:05pm and it was another eastbound vehicle (BNSF 4150, 4705(warbonnet)).  My dad got some great video and I got photos as it split the signals.  Again we got in the car and continued north.   Just south of Algoma we heard the detector 11.7 go off so we quickly turned off on a side road that crossed the tracks.  No sooner did we stop and get out then a westbound stack rounded the corner (BNSF 4177, SF 923).  We then missed another westbound stack at Algoma and decided that with the road conditions the way they were it wasn't worth chasing.

    We arrived at East Algoma around 1:45pm and 5 minutes later a westbound manifest showed up (BNSF 5330, CSX 7652).  After that it was a long wait before we heard the detector 11.7 go off again.  At 3:10pm an eastbound TOFC (BNSF 4998, 5357, 5436)  rounded the corner, passed us and started out on the bridge over lake Pend Orielle.  Then we heard detector 111.8, which is on the MRL, go off.   Minutes later it rounded the corner with an SD45-2 (ATSF(BNSF) 6515) on the front and an SD40-2 (BN 8042(unpatched)) as the second unit!!  It was the S-CHCSEA with OOCL stack cars.  After taking pictures and video of the train we drove into Sandpoint, ID and to UP's little yard.  In the yard there were UP 1212(GP38-2), 3258, 8073, 3589, 3288, and 559(GP38-2).  After that we drove to the Best Western and wait while Grady went in and made a reservation for the night.  While he was in the hotel, the detectors 11.7 and 8.5 went off, one after the other so my dad and I drove a block away to the Amtrak station.  The train was an eastbound stack which passed us at 3:40pm (BNSF 4766, CN 2606, BN(BNSF) 8023).

    Picking Grady back up we drove north of Sandpoint a couple of miles before seeing a headlight.  It was a westbound stack, TOFC, and vehicle (BNSF 5294, 1119, 1121).  Then continuing on north we saw a southbound UP potash train with 2 DPUs (CEFX 115, 119, 109(DPU), UP 6511(DPU)).  We turned around and beat it back to a road crossing where we got both stills and video of it.  Driving on up north we took a side road that followed the tracks and at Naples, ID we saw the headlight of another westbound.  Quickly we drove back to a good spot to get a photo from and waited.   Not long after we heard him rumbling up the hill toward us.  Then just as the last rays of light were fading he passed by us pulling his long string of manifest west (BNSF 1042, BN(BNSF) 7823, BN 8068(unpatched)).

    We then drove back to the Best Western, dropped Grady off, and headed for home.  At Algoma we missed an eastbound because by the time we saw the train, it was too late.  At 6:55pm we saw an eastbound hopper (BNSF 7141, 7301, BN(BNSF) 6774, 6841).   It stopped in Ramsey siding to wait for a westbound.  While we waited I tried taking different exposures of the signal bridge at West Ramsey.  At 7:15 it finally arrived, westbound TOFC the Z-CHCSSE (BNSF 4732, 504, SF 604).  We followed it back to Yardley and saw two eastbounds on the way.  The first was at Hauser, ID with stack (BNSF 7919, 6392, BN 6323).  The second one was in the Spokane Valley and it had manifest (BNSF 1113, 8266, SF 816).  At the east end of the yard there was an eastbound manifest waiting to depart (BNSF 4971, 4721, 4328, CN 2565).  Also there was the Sandpoint Turn with a couple of cars and BN(BNSF) 2286, 2279, and 2929 for power.   At 8:30pm the Kettle Falls local (BNSF 2090, 2085, 2877, 2265, 2371, 2261, 2091, BN(BNSF) 2139, 2079, 2084) left Yardley with well over 100 cars (61 cars of Red Dog Ore).   The last train that we saw an eastbound manifest (BNSF 8078, 4809 BN 6796(unpatched)) which arrived at Yardley for a crew change at 8:55pm.  Overall it was an awesome day with the snow setting the stage for some terrific photos.  Also my dad got some more great video of the funnel.  Happy hunting until next time and I posted photos of the trip in the BNSF, UP and Lease Unit galleries of my website.