The Wig Wag at Delhi!

www.yardlimit.com
34 miles south of La Junta, CO along highway 350 is the town of Delhi. Yes, that’s how it’s pronounced. To call it a town is being generous. There are a couple abandoned buildings and maybe a small ranch house. The road between La Junta and Trinidad is so sparsely traveled that people wave at each other.
On June 7th we went to La Junta where there’s a crew change point for Amtrak and a small BNSF yard. Almost all of the BNSF traffic goes northwest to Pueblo, but Amtrak takes the lonely track down to Trinidad before going over the Raton Pass. The next day we set out a few minutes before Amtrak 3 was due to arrive in La Junta, giving us time to get to Delhi and set up the cameras to catch the last surviving wig wag crossing signal in Colorado and New Mexico.
Almost two hours went by before I finally heard Amtrak 3 tell the Trinidad Dispatcher that he had left La Junta at 1004 am, almost an hour later than I expected. Of course, out in the middle of literally nowhere, there’s no cell service so I had no way to get Amtrak updates. It turns out that there was a trespasser incident between Lamar and La Junta.
Long before the crossbucks and alternating red lights had become standard at railroad grade crossings, there were different means of attracting motorists' attention to the very real but too often unseen danger of a train approaching. A sensible solution by Albert Hunt, a Pacific Electric technician, decided that mimicking a crossing guards' lower half wave with a red lantern, then the railroad's universal indication to stop, would be the simplest and mechanically easier than a lot of other options. The gantry mounted wig wags were supplemented by other mounts, usually a pedestal in the median or off to the right of the lane approaching the crossing. The pedestal mounted a counter-weighted target with the box upside down, causing the target to wag like a person waving for attention.
The signals were deemed obsolete in 1949 when the now-common alternating red lights and crossbucks were standardized. Nevertheless, the ones in place since then have been wagging like the family dog for every train that crosses their stretch of rail.
While there doesn't appear to be a conspiracy afoot to remove these arcane contraptions, the number of active signals is dropping fast. The relative quiet of the original Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe Railway route through Colorado's southeast and over Raton Pass allowed semaphore signals to remain in place for years. That same quiet allowed the wig wags to survive as well, until the last decade. Wig wags at Manzanola and Rocky Ford have been retired, leaving a lone survivor in Delhi. Each day, Amtrak's Southwest Chief hustles by at track speed, one train in each direction, and precious little else. The rest of the day is reserved for quiet observation with cars and coyotes, along with the occasional antelope.
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www.corailroads...
#Delhi #wigwag

[@CoasterFan2105]

Very nice! It's amazing to see that thing still out there after all these years and in such good condition to boot! It's almost like stepping back in time. Thanks for posting!

[@YardLimit]

Thanks! It's a timeless place too!

[@jovetj]

That's a maintainer's labor of love, that is.

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

It’s going away this week.

[@ethancundiff6422]

@@RyansColoradoRailProductions for real??😥

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

@@ethancundiff6422 yes, they are tearing it down today.

[@washingtonstaterailproduct5382]

It's great that they still keep it clean, Nice catches Tom!

[@YardLimit]

Thanks Parker!

[@sdrailproductions]

Was so nice growing up watching Wig Wag signals and hard to believe hardly any are still around, thank you for the information @Yard Limit

[@YardLimit]

Thank you for watching!

[@ocsrc]

Colorado would be wise to have that crossing and the wigwag designated as a National historic landmark and BNSF should have a plaque there on both sides approaching the wigwag with history and details about the wigwag with historical photos I hope the ones that were retired are now in a museum and if they ever retire this one or the semaphors I hope they contact the Smithsonian or the Franklin institute in Pennsylvania which has a huge train display with old steam engines It would make a great addition to their collection

[@YardLimit]

These are great ideas. I hope you've contacted the various people involved to make these suggestions.

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

A railfan did make a homemade plaque in 2003 but BNSF took it down.

[@EngineerDaylight]

This Delhi Wig-Wag looks pretty well maintained, the bell sounds very healthy too

[@YardLimit]

It was but it’s gone now.

[@nortonhatfield7312]

Although wig wag crossing are deemed to be unsafe, they have been grandfathered in some places in the United states.

[@YardLimit]

Not for long.

[@tomy.1846]

Thank you for getting out there to film it! Beautiful! :)

[@YardLimit]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@RailPreserver2K]

They should have a plaque at that wigwag so that it's preserved same with the old semaphore signals I think those may be the last ones in use buy a Class 1 Railroad

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

A railfan made one in 2003 but it was taken down by BNSF.

[@jovetj]

I am more amazed by the semaphores. I thought all of those were long gone!

[@YardLimit]

Not yet! Thanks for watching!

[@AMMAV_YT]

RIP Delhi Wig Wag. I’m glad that it wasn’t scrapped though.

[@ocsrc]

The Wig-Wag is no more 😢 😢

[@YardLimit]

Sadly true. Glad I got video of it.

[@cooldude243]

This reminds me of a scene in the cars movie

[@YardLimit]

Interesting.

[@amtrakfan3023]

Keep that crossing as a historical landmark

[@YardLimit]

Definitely!

[@Chuck59ish]

We used to have wig-wags up here in Saint John when I was kid, but 60 years later, the big argument is over train horns at 4 am, because there is no law about crossing arms in Canada and the railroads take advantage of it.

[@YardLimit]

That's interesting. Noise is always a big issue in the US for trains going through towns and here; pueblos. Thanks Charles!

[@emeraldzebra9360]

When I came to Florida I loved hearing the juice train or other CSX blasting through in the mornings... Reminded me I was actually in the USA everytime... I felt SO happy to hear it.

[@dominicliner1609]

Sad that wig wag railway crossing signal is not there now. I hope who's got that wig wag railway crossing signal is looking after it now.

[@YardLimit]

The signal will be sent to BNSF's signal shop in Springfield, Missouri, and refurbished for donation to the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden.

[@dominicliner1609]

@@YardLimit that's great I am so happy that wig wag railway crossing signal is being look after by that railway museum.

[@milepost4846]

Good video! Dunno why, but I always picture seeing Wile E Coyote and the Roadrunner seeing scenes like this.

[@christiancarter7563]

I’ve taken the Chief 3 times but was never able to catch a glimpse of these. Since we were moving so quickly. I’m hoping to go see it soon.

[@YardLimit]

They go by there fast. Better hurry though, it's due to disappear soon.

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

It’s only got hours left to live.

[@christiancarter7563]

@@RyansColoradoRailProductions wha? Don’t tell me there replacing it :(

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

@@christiancarter7563 yup. Tear down is going on right as we speak.

[@christiancarter7563]

@@RyansColoradoRailProductions 2021 is just 2020.2 at this point.

[@whitcraft2]

Nice, Great info too!

[@YardLimit]

Thanks, Bob!

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

It’s getting torn down this week. I was just there today.

[@YardLimit]

Thank you for the update!

[@TrainMann]

@@YardLimit its been moved to the Denver Railroad Museum, so its got a happy ending!

[@YardLimit]

@@TrainMann Thank you!

[@anb740]

This has reportedly been removed as of 2021.

[@YardLimit]

That's correct.

[@alcopower5710]

Amazing piece of history

[@YardLimit]

I'm glad I went to see it. Thanks for watching!

[@drakbar5957]

If that wig wag was on eBay , I’d be bidding. It would look great at the end of my driveway and warn others I was backing out! 😁

[@YardLimit]

That's a good idea for it. It's probably going to be replaced next year.

[@starkj92]

@@YardLimit What's your source on that? I've been hearing rumors of this wig wag's imminent retirement for years now, including from people who claimed to have spoken with MOW crews-and yet, it has outlasted these rumors and is still wagging away.

[@YardLimit]

@@starkj92 I actually had a legitimate source but I can't find it and didn't record it. My bad. However, on June 24, 2020, Mr. D Toeppen, who has been recording the demise of the semaphores, states on TO: "According to BNSF employee today, engineering on new crossing signal is in progress and wig-wag will likely be gone by end of summer."

[@starkj92]

@@YardLimit Well, if true, then I'm glad I saw it when I did. Thanks for the update.

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

@@starkj92 yes. They are tearing it down today, right as we speak. RIP Wigwag, 194x-2021

[@VictorianRailHeritage]

Awesome video I like wig wags as the best type of crossing

[@YardLimit]

Thank you. They are pretty cool.

[@RailfannerJones]

Haven't see those in a while.

[@TheRailroadCrossingChannel]

Great video!

[@YardLimit]

Thank you!

[@lindsaymoore7232]

Hello, what railroad scanner do you use? Where can I find one? Great video by the way.

[@YardLimit]

Bearcat 124 AT. Google it.

[@BorisLu]

Super video!

[@YardLimit]

Thank you!

[@MattBNSF1991]

Great video and write up

[@YardLimit]

Thanks Matthew!

[@Railhead1956]

Cool video

[@YardLimit]

Thanks Pete!

[@TheJakeman789]

I wonder if anyone is stupid enough to touch that low electrical wire connected tot he signal. That thing is low!

[@jovetj]

It's also insulated, and low voltage (12VDC). Not really a danger to anyone. It's more likely to be damaged than people around it are.