Even though there are plenty of sidings on the east side of Beaumont Hill and many of them overlap making it almost double track, Beaumont Hill is still a single track railroad and trains can get bunched up. Train APECI is stopped behind train RVSSE at Fingal on February 2, 1974 waiting for the westbound fleet to clear. Engine 9044 was one of the few engines to receive the experimental "Elephant Ears" as a test before the SP order the Tunnel Motors. The ductwork prevented the radiator section from drawing air in near the top of the locomotive. In tunnels and snow sheds the air near the top could be twenty to fifty degrees hotter than just a few feet lower down. Drawing in the cooler air kept the engines from over-heating.

Sunset Route Index

Train APW at West Palm Springs