Framing40s
FEPASA 50.951 E @ El Manzanar
Holding my ground perched atop a ridge alongside Route F-360, a spectacular view of the narrowing Aconcagua River basin paralleling the coastal mountain range would keep me company throughout the morning. Despite the arid climate, pastures and villages line the banks of the dry riverbed all the way to the Pacific Ocean, a fine co-existence of man and nature. From Carolmo and Concón, the Seventh Subdivision hugs the slopes of the mountains along the northern rims of the valley, snaking between fields, hills, and many front doorsteps. Much of the line is dotted with picturesque scenes such as this, and that’s not including the beachside sector to the west… [wink-wink, nudge-nudge]
An unanticipated two-hour wait would be stomached while waiting for the next expected train through El Manzanar. As for why it took so long for Train 50.951 to appear, I don’t exactly know why. 50.951 and counterpart train 50.950 do execute a crew swap along the Seventh Subdivision, typically at Colmo—maybe there was a delay with 50.951? What if the swap was done further west at Ritoque? Not having access to the road channel frequencies definitely didn’t help ease the anxiety, but it is what it is. I had the views of the valley to keep me company.
Regardless of why they were delayed, FEPASA Train 50.951 finally rounded the corner by the PK12 kilometerpost up the road at 12:15, dragging their feet the whole way past my location. FEPASA SD40-2M D-3304 does the honors powering the morning eastbound “Tortolas” service through El Manzanar, comprised of 37 pairs of empty concentrate tubs. The train originates out of the Port of Las Ventanas, transporting the aforementioned empty tubs east towards the Las Blancas transload facility, where the empties are swapped for loads set for export out of Ventanas. The engineer would throw his motor into notch 8 once they were past the cameras, speeding off towards San Pedro.
Some of y’all might be thinking that D-3304 looks distinctly North American, despite it residing in a completely different continent; if you don’t know already, the reach of EMD knows no bounds. The unit began its life in June 1980, built as SD40-2 #7212 as part of Order No° C423 for the Burlington Northern. It survived through the BNSF merger until 2003, bouncing around in lease service under First Union Rail [FURX] and National Rail Equipment [NREX]. FEPASA would purchase the unit, along with two sister ex-BN EMDs [7237, 7275] in 2013 as part of their second batch of SD40-2 acquisitions. All three were shipped together to Chile, rebuilt at Casagrande Motori in Santiago, and reclassified as SD40-2M’s—thus completing the roster of six “new” EMDs for the railroad.
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El Manzanar, Región V, Chile
EFE Subdivisión 7
Date: 06/10/2022 | 12:15
ID: FEPASA 50.951
Type: Empty Copper Concentrate
Direction: Eastbound
Car Count: 37
1. FEPASA SD40-2M D-3304
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© Vicente Alonso 2022
FEPASA 50.951 E @ El Manzanar
Holding my ground perched atop a ridge alongside Route F-360, a spectacular view of the narrowing Aconcagua River basin paralleling the coastal mountain range would keep me company throughout the morning. Despite the arid climate, pastures and villages line the banks of the dry riverbed all the way to the Pacific Ocean, a fine co-existence of man and nature. From Carolmo and Concón, the Seventh Subdivision hugs the slopes of the mountains along the northern rims of the valley, snaking between fields, hills, and many front doorsteps. Much of the line is dotted with picturesque scenes such as this, and that’s not including the beachside sector to the west… [wink-wink, nudge-nudge]
An unanticipated two-hour wait would be stomached while waiting for the next expected train through El Manzanar. As for why it took so long for Train 50.951 to appear, I don’t exactly know why. 50.951 and counterpart train 50.950 do execute a crew swap along the Seventh Subdivision, typically at Colmo—maybe there was a delay with 50.951? What if the swap was done further west at Ritoque? Not having access to the road channel frequencies definitely didn’t help ease the anxiety, but it is what it is. I had the views of the valley to keep me company.
Regardless of why they were delayed, FEPASA Train 50.951 finally rounded the corner by the PK12 kilometerpost up the road at 12:15, dragging their feet the whole way past my location. FEPASA SD40-2M D-3304 does the honors powering the morning eastbound “Tortolas” service through El Manzanar, comprised of 37 pairs of empty concentrate tubs. The train originates out of the Port of Las Ventanas, transporting the aforementioned empty tubs east towards the Las Blancas transload facility, where the empties are swapped for loads set for export out of Ventanas. The engineer would throw his motor into notch 8 once they were past the cameras, speeding off towards San Pedro.
Some of y’all might be thinking that D-3304 looks distinctly North American, despite it residing in a completely different continent; if you don’t know already, the reach of EMD knows no bounds. The unit began its life in June 1980, built as SD40-2 #7212 as part of Order No° C423 for the Burlington Northern. It survived through the BNSF merger until 2003, bouncing around in lease service under First Union Rail [FURX] and National Rail Equipment [NREX]. FEPASA would purchase the unit, along with two sister ex-BN EMDs [7237, 7275] in 2013 as part of their second batch of SD40-2 acquisitions. All three were shipped together to Chile, rebuilt at Casagrande Motori in Santiago, and reclassified as SD40-2M’s—thus completing the roster of six “new” EMDs for the railroad.
•
El Manzanar, Región V, Chile
EFE Subdivisión 7
Date: 06/10/2022 | 12:15
ID: FEPASA 50.951
Type: Empty Copper Concentrate
Direction: Eastbound
Car Count: 37
1. FEPASA SD40-2M D-3304
•
© Vicente Alonso 2022