Sherman Hill Grade Profile
Departing Cheyenne heading west, the UP's mainline splits, making it difficult to catch every train, but offers many advantages to the rail photographer. Tracks #1 and #2 are primarily for eastbounds coming down the hill into Cheyenne, although intermodal trains will sometimes head west this way. Anything heavy will have to take the less strenuous task of climbing Sherman up tracks #3 and #4. 4 track ends past Speer, about 5 miles west of Cheyenne where the line from Denver joins the Laramie sub. So, if its afternoon time and the sun is good for westbounds, you might want to spend your time along #3 and #4. If you are a morning person, tracks #1 and #2 offer the best light as eastbounds will be lit well. On to our journey up Sherman following the UP...
Borie is the location of the Borie cut-off, a line connecting tracks #1 and #2 with #3 and #4 at Speer. This allows Denver trains to bypass Cheyenne if they are headed west, or allow the dispatcher options for getting trains in and out of Cheyenne. The area is marked by an old wooden overpass over the tracks, allowing a nice photo of eastbounds with the dynamics on coming into Cheyenne. Although the road is a private road I believe for an oil company, I do not think you will be bothered by anyone in the area. Just be careful, and keep your car off the bridge, and you won't be bothered. Amtrak used to use the Borie cutoff, then stop at an Amshack just west of the overpass to load and unload passengers, but these days have past. Because of the overpass, Borie is a good place to spend the late morning hours as the sun rises in the sky, allowing you to avoid shadows associated with this time of day.
Photography is difficult around the Speer area due to numerous telephone poles
in the area. A UP road from Otto Road will take you to Speer. The road crossing
at MP511 is a decent photo location as westbounds negotiate a curve along
there way to speer. Several photo locations along the way to Speer are
possible. The tracks are headed due South toward Speer, so photos
during the late morning/early afternoon are possible.
To get to Harriman, simply follow I-80 to the Granite/Harriman Road
exit, and head south. About 15 miles south of the exit ramp is Harriman,
tucked nicely into the hills, surrounded by trees and rocks.
Harriman is one of the neatest spots along the eastern slope of Sherman Hill.
Just about all the traffic is westbound, so afternoon photography yields the
best results. The area is quite cluttered with UP MOW sheds, along with
many fences around the right-of-way, but a little maneuvering can yield a
pleasing photograph. An old water tower from the steam days still remains,
so it can easily be worked into a photo. Climbing the cut the tracks go
through heading west will give a nice photo of westbounds and the
surrounding scenery. Also, heading south across the tracks will give a
nice photo from the south side of the tracks, including the lake south
of the tracks.
MP544 - Harriman, WY
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