Railfan Crawford Hill

Locations on the Hill

MP423 - Crawford, NE

Crawford, NE, population 1,138, is located at the base of Crawford Hill. Helpers are added just west of town, and eastbounds take a run at the hill through town. Crawford is the helper base, plus home to a small yard where cars are interchanged with the Dakota, Minnesota, & Eastern and the Nebkota Railroad, a shortline operating ex-CNW trackage from Chadron to Merriman, NE. Usually, two or three sets of helpers are based in town, and several fuel tenders are parked in the yard. Several years ago when I first started railfanning the hill, 2 SD70MAC's were the helpers, but the venerable SD40-2's are back shoving loads up the hill.

There are several photo oppurtunities around the town of Crawford. The first spot is on the west side of town. A road crossing to the stockyards offers a decent afternoon to evening shot of eastbounds just getting underway with helpers attached. Also, westbounds can be photographed from this location with light falling on the sides of a train. One road crossing in town has gates, and offers a decent shot of eastbounds rocketing out of town in the morning. A local brings cars up from Alliance for interchange with the DM&E and Nebkota , but its schedule varies. It also brings loaded fuel tenders, and sometimes it swaps power with a helper set to bring a set of helpers back to Alliance for service.

MP419 - Uranium Mine Crossing

The first recommended location is located at MP419. This is a road crossing, and offers a good view of trains coming down the hill, and you can always here something working up the hill. In the morning, the sun is excellent for eastbounds, and this is the time of day you should hit the hill. In the afternoon, the west side of the crossing offers photo oppurtunities of westbounds, but eastbounds can be photographed. As the name implies, the only Uranium mine in Nebraska is located just over the hill. You will probably notice drilling equipment and mine employees in the area, they are friendly, so wave.

MP418.5 - Saw Log Road Crossing and the Lower Horseshoe

Just east from MP419 is a road crossing at MP418.5. From here, you can capture eastbounds working up the hill on a curve at MP418.7. A telephoto is a good choice here. You can follow the road along the tracks up to the first horseshoe, also known as the lower horseshoe. At the lower horseshoe, several photo oppurtunities await your camera. First, at the signals at MP417.7, at the west end of the horseshoe, you can climb the hill for a good morning shot of eastbounds. I have not tried it yet, but my guess is that a decent afternoon shot can be had of westbonds drifting down grade around the horseshoe. The middle of the horseshoe offers another good morning shot of eastbounds as the road rises up over a tiny hill as the tracks negotiate the hill through a cut.

East Lower Horseshoe to Breezy Point

The rest of the photo locations on Crawford Hill up to Belmont are a little more difficult to reach. The east end of the lower horseshoe is accesible from the road that crosses the railroad at MP419, and instead of turning east to the road crossing at MP418.5, continue south on this road. As you top a hill, you will see an unimproved road heading to the tracks to the east. This spot offers a good shot of eastbounds in the afternoon as they round the horseshoe. If you continue on Horseshoe Road, you will eventually make it up to the road crossing at the west end of the upper horseshoe. This crossing, however, looked like it might be coming out, or work was under way on it. Not sure, but use caution before crossing it. Up at the upper horseshoe, you can see the tracks around you. The only way to get to Breezy Point is by foot, so strap on your boots and take a hike.

Belmont, NE