Burlington Northern’s Hi Line in Montana: Autumn on Marias Pass

[@KLarsLohn]

Back in the early 80s, I'd hop freights from East Glacier to the top of Marias Pass to go skiing. From the top of the pass, I'd x-country ski back to my home near Bison.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Whoa! What an adventure that would be. An interesting journey up, then some great exercise on the way back. Thanks for sharing your story.

[@mjrodriguez8670]

I miss the old Burlington Northern. I sure like this video! Thanks to Dan Hadley for making this video back in 1990!

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you, MJ! We are very grateful to Dan Hadley for sharing this footage with C. Vision.

[@andrewcrumb8027]

C Vision Productions, you astound me! The route over the famous Marias Pass between Whitefish and Browning, Montana, home of Glacier National Park and the Isaac Walton Inn! You know, I happened to have the Marias Pass route add-on on Train Simulator as well as the Pentrex program, "Across Marias Pass" on DVD. I love the beautiful Cascade green paint scheme of the Burlington Northern, because green is my favorite color.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Excellent! Thank you, Andrew! Hope you enjoyed the video.

[@andrewcrumb8027]

@@CVisionProductions1 I quite enjoyed that. I think Dan Hadley did an excellent job capturing those shots of the trains during the Burlington Northern era.

[@chesapeakedproductions3009]

I always find it really cool when raw footage shot for stuff like this is publicly released (or leaked in some cases). It's really neat to be able to see all of the footage, both the used and sometimes unseen or unused. Thanks for uploading this! This was really fasinating to watch all the way through

[@CVisionProductions1]

We’re happy that you enjoyed the video. And yes, there are a few scenes in here that hadn’t seen the light of day until now. So we’re very happy to be able to share them.

[@tnrpvideo1414]

Find it interesting seeing all the ATSF power in this video before the merger even happened! This is wonderful historic footage shot so well, thank you!

[@CVisionProductions1]

We are happy to share this footage with you. We thought it was interesting to see that Santa Fe power as well. The bluebonnets looked great during those days. Probably paying back horsepower hours, but could have been leased for the fall grain rush?

[@mjrodriguez8670]

The Santa Be power on Marias Pass presaged the BN merger with ATSF. BN power also ran on the Santa Fe line across Arizona.

[@bobjennings6673]

And how long will it be that MRL power WON'T be seen?

[@ellisjackson3355]

​@@CVisionProductions1I have my favorite rr's but I always thought the red and silver paint scheme for Santa fe was the nicest

[@colinmulder6806]

Speculation would have the SF power in this video paying back horsepower hours owned to BN. Both railroads have run-through freights in conjunction with one another so it's only natural. Basically while SF power was helping out on BN'S HIGH-LINE, a few of BN'S OWN diesels were out & about somewhere working off horsepower hours on the AT&SF.

[@MaestranzaConcepcion]

Marias Pass: The inspiration for works in Microsoft Train Simulator and HP-Trainz for Trainz Simulator. Great work!! Grettings from Chile 💪🏻

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you so much! Greetings from Minnesota, USA!

[@HelenaMtJimL]

My father worked for Great Northern railway ..Living in Great Falls we happened to live close to grain silos and heard the wonderful sounds of the trains passing by..I miss those days…

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you for sharing your story. Great Falls is an interesting town, surrounded by absolutely beautiful country. We stayed there on our trips to the Central Montana Railroad.

[@AMPProductionsVideo]

Great Video! Nice to see these BN SD40-2's

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you! BN SD40-2s are some of our favorite locomotives.

[@O-PAC]

The good days when the SD40-2 ruled the rails.

[@CVisionProductions1]

It was an incredible era! Thanks for watching.

[@What06]

This is neat stuff that Dan recorded, someone did comment about this route appearing in Trainz Railroad Simulator 2006. The virtual Marias Pass was done by HPTrainz, a European Trainz group, they did a great job in representing the route into the virtual world, there are some inaccuracies but overall, it's a great route. I need to collect some more BN units, such as the GP50, B30-7AB and the SD60. I still have Marias Pass with me, I have it installed into a version of Trainz I'm using. Gotta love the Burlington Northern Railroad and the Marias Pass.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you! We appreciate you watching. Gotta love all that classic power that the BN was using in the early 90s.

[@marleycap6000]

This is some spectacular footage of marias pass..and I appreciate c vision production for releasing this!

[@CVisionProductions1]

You’re very welcome! We appreciate that Mr. Hadley has entrusted this footage with us. Thank you for watching.

[@stubbsshop]

A while back I posted about becoming a conductor based out of Whitefish, and now I can say I have officially been on these tracks from Whitefish past Browning a little ways as of Sept 2022. From the beginning of the video behind the GN locomotive (which is still there) there are now concrete platforms with walkway railing running from the shanny down to the Amtrak building. There are a few tunnels now out of service with tracks going around them near Essex. I've been fortunate enough to ride a good portion of this route lately both sitting in a trailing locomotive as well as riding in a old BN caboose along most of the section. Surely don't see SD40s out there anymore, 95% of the time they are a Dash 9 or newer GE loco, and the occasional SD70. Some of the concrete ties are still labeled "BN" with early 1990s dates.

[@CVisionProductions1]

That’s excellent! We remember your original comment. Thank you for the update, and wishing you continued success at BNSF!

[@ellisjackson3355]

Congrats!

[@BNSF1458]

Beautiful scenery!

[@CVisionProductions1]

100% agreed on that! Pretty spectacular in and around Glacier Park...

[@MrBnsftrain]

Amazing footage, especially seeing ex-Great Northern hoppers! I had Trainz 2006 with Marias Pass as a kid, so I recognize a lot of these locations and the trains that were included were very similar to what was seen in this footage (especially the occasional ATSF SD40-2, but no LMX or BNSF units)

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you! And yes, this was/is a popular route for several simulation games. And we can see why!

[@Steelers2841]

Beautiful Scenery

[@CVisionProductions1]

We agree! The area around Glacier Park is stunning.

[@TheLewistownTrainspotter8102]

33:47 I think that crossover was taken out around 2002 or 2003. Certainly after Microsoft Train Simulator came out since it's in the game's version of the route.

[@CVisionProductions1]

You know what, we wondered that too. When figuring out locations for all these shots, that one threw us off. We figured it out looking at old timetables.

[@harvey2465]

Gorgeous scenery from trackside, rode Amtrak ‘Builder in 2004.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Some of the most beautiful scenery in the United States can be found along the Hi Line in Montana. We’re glad that you got to experience it from aboard the Empire Builder! Thank you for watching and commenting.

[@DanMeyer80]

Such a good video! Traveled this line on the Empire Builder in May of 2020. Cool to see how it looked in the Burlington Northern days.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@stubbsshop]

This was interesting to watch. I am actually in the middle of my conditional offer steps with BNSF, for a Conductor Trainee position based out of Whitefish. So I'm sure there's a good chance I would actually be taking a trip down these rails in the future!

[@CVisionProductions1]

Congrats on the conditional offer! Hopefully it turns into a successful career for you. Thanks for watching the video -maybe you’ll get to see all of these spots from the cab in the near future?

[@patricknoveski6409]

The Road crews must just work their asses off to keep this all safe year round. Blows my mind how they engineered all this. Tunnels grades bridges. Crazy. Seems the train crews love to be filmed. Unreal video.

[@CVisionProductions1]

We agree! An engineering marvel, for sure. And yes, it takes lots of effort to keep this railroad humming! Thank you for the comment, Patrick.

[@treniat69]

Grazie.

[@CVisionProductions1]

You’re welcome!

[@chrishaupt9739]

Nice video train

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you very much!

[@melissafulford1765]

Nice video footage! Really glad someone took the time… I was able to be there with my family back in 2017 and always hoped to find some good footage of this place. I am also hoping someone has footage of the old BN through the Big Belt mountains

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you very much! As far as the Big Belt Mountains go, we’re guessing if there was footage of BN trains on that route, it would have surfaced by now. But who knows...

[@mahmoodkohatiPakistan]

Very nice beautiful video 📷📸. New 🎁🎁👌👌🧑‍💼

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you very much!!!

[@logandetwiler4483]

I’ve done the entire Montana Hi Line & Mariah‘s pass on train simulator 254 miles going from havre to whitefish

[@CVisionProductions1]

Neat! It’s a long run.

[@mjrodriguez8670]

And don't forget the Arcadia book, The Great Northern Railway on Marias Pass! I have read that book!

[@stubbsshop]

When we do our tie-up tickets for this trip it's 255.1mi

[@Nicola636128]

Specttacular video, beautiful scenery! Assuming that on all the trains that face the very difficult climb from Essex to Summit attack the "Helper", the 4 axle locomotives seen in the video (B39-8, GP50 and GP40-2) have no skidding problem on the steep uphill stretch indicated above?

[@CVisionProductions1]

Those high horsepower four axle units do have issues gripping the rail. Not ideal for mountain grades, but when there are enough of them, the train will move. And yes, the Essex helpers would shove trains that needed help in both directions.

[@willberestartingthischanne9984]

Nice Video

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thanks for the visit!

[@patricknoveski6409]

What would they have used in the Steam days to get over these mountains?

[@CVisionProductions1]

GN had a fleet of 2-8-8-2s that took care of business in these parts.

[@volkeraltendorf2249]

Interesting Trains in beautiful landscape. I think beside the Feather River Line this is the only trans - continental Line where is no Highway following all the time. So the landscape is relativly unspoilt. Volker from Germany

[@CVisionProductions1]

Thank you for watching, Volker! Greetings from Minnesota, USA!

[@grated_lemon5630]

did BN fit some of their locomotives with intermittent flashing ditch strobes or is it a result of the shutter speed?

[@CVisionProductions1]

Those were true strobe lights. A pretty neat addition to the locomotive in our opinion! They were especially effective in low light conditions.

[@grated_lemon5630]

@@CVisionProductions1 BN always seemed like a relatively progressive railroad compared to its' contemporaries! (LNG demo units in 1991, etc.) Obviously cannot comment on it properly as I was not around to experience these things.

[@CVisionProductions1]

BN was a true innovator. You never knew what they’d come up with next...

[@RCPE3999Fan-c1i]

You should do RCPE MHURC then making its way to rapid city South Dakota

[@CVisionProductions1]

We have quite a few of those HURC trains in our RCPE full video that’s available on KZbin and DVD/Blu-ray.

[@RCPE3999Fan-c1i]

@@CVisionProductions1 did u know that RCPE 3445 was EX-NS 3424

[@CVisionProductions1]

We knew it was ex NS. Was not sure of the number.

[@RCPE3999Fan-c1i]

Nice vid will u do more RCPE

[@CVisionProductions1]

We might. We have the footage, just haven’t used it yet. Since we already have two RCPE videos posted on KZbin, we aren’t in a hurry. Stay tuned!

[@colinmulder6806]

Now that I look at it, some of these scenes should've been in the final production of Across Marias Pass before it's release in 1992. But keep in mind, when shooting trains on video, not all of it could fit onto one production. So it's best to hold on the leftover footage for Volume 2 thus showing the deleted scenes that could've made the first volume even better. If you can get a hold of Dan Hadley, tell him to release this footage onto his own separate tape. If that happens, I'll be glad to purchase it. In conclusion, SUPERB work here & hard to believe the 30TH anniversary of this footage was just last year.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Mr. Hadley has some pretty incredible stuff. We were pleased to present some of those deleted scenes that were absolutely worthy of being included in a full production. Thank you for the comment, Colin.

[@colinmulder6806]

@@CVisionProductions1 You're very welcome. Is there anyway I can get a hold of Mr. Hadley so that I can thank him personally? I'd also like to speak to him about putting all the footage he caught onto a VHS tape release of his own.

[@CVisionProductions1]

We don’t believe that he gives his personal information out. Otherwise, we’d pass it along.

[@colinmulder6806]

@@CVisionProductions1 Fair enough. Thanks again.

[@CVisionProductions1]

You’re welcome.

[@charlesgriffith4217]

Is this out on DVD or Blu ray?

[@CVisionProductions1]

This video is not. A similar video is available from Pentrex.

[@michaelplumb8821]

What happened to the train known as the pacific zip?

[@CVisionProductions1]

Pretty sure that train ended up as BN #3, then BNSF Z-CHCPTL9.

[@matthewthebluey-brony-trai8006]

I always wanted to see what the Marias Pass looks like in the 1990's. But now you won't see old EMD and GE products anymore, (except for the C44-9Ws) everything is running by GEVO'S now as of today.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Yeah, not the same. But back then I remember that we were mostly complaining of just green SD40-2's. How silly of us! Thank you for watching!

[@stubbsshop]

Occasionally you'll see a SD70Mac or SD70Aces working as a DP unit, and then every once in a while a older GP/SD dead in tow on trains. Rarely you will get a SD70Ace as a leader and I always enjoy when we do! 98% of the time you will have a GE leader (mostly due to using Trip Optimizer).

[@stuew6]

I Any Video with PreMerger Railroads and Fallflags Railroads

[@CVisionProductions1]

Glad we could provide you with another enjoyable video, Arran! Thanks for watching.

[@paulwarner5395]

Always liked the Burlington Northern green color scheme. It's a pity that BNSF didn't retain it rather than the crappy pumpkin color scheme.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Green was good! All of BN’s paint schemes were sharp.

[@BNSFGuy4723]

Hey that crappy color is a tribute to the Great Northern !

[@thedesertdwellerfromutah4354]

​@@BNSFGuy4723Is that so? 🤔 We'll, to put it nicely, the GN pulled it off alot better.....

[@chehalisvalleyrailproducti8913]

Microsoft Train Simulator brought me here.

[@CVisionProductions1]

Cool! That was a neat simulator.

[@charlesroer972]

Nothin sounds like EMDs

[@CVisionProductions1]

Agreed! Thanks for watching.