Big Boy steam locomotive returns!

[Sooner or later]

Big Boy No. 4014 will depart Cheyenne, Wyoming, Thursday, Aug. 5, traveling through Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming

Schedule
https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/schedule/index.htm

Built in 1941, Big Boy weighs nearly 1.2 million pounds, stands 16' tall, including tender he is 132' long, and carries 24,000 gallons of water.

[wswartzwel]

Thanks for the heads up. I snagged this picture of it last time it came through Arkansas. My Grandson loves trains... Will have to make sure he gets to see it.

[Sooner or later]

Wonderful pic.

I think I am going to see him as he passes through Oklahoma. About 2 hours east of me.

[herr_oberst]

I was hoping that BB was going to do another Western Swing post covid. I guess maybe next year.
I look forward to seeing this big fella in person someday.

[wswartzwel]

It is breath taking to watch it fly down the tracks It is huge, yet only makes a soft whoosh sound. Like a giant magic carpet made of steel. You need to see it while it is still active. who knows how many more years it will keep being displayed.

[herr_oberst]

^ The owners of "The City of New Orleans" want a word with you!

[wswartzwel]

[Jolly Amaranto]

From two years ago when it blasted through Sugar Land, Texas.

[Zeke]

Little too far for me but I'd love to see that. When I was a pre-teen and in the car with my granddad up in the San Joaquin Valley, he would honk at those guys driving steam locomotives in RR code . They always responded with a series of toots. Man that was a sight seeing those giants chugging along. Sometimes our speed on the highway was similar, so there was some time to look and watch. Most of the time we moved a bit faster and/or the RR tracks left being parallel to the road and went off in another direction. So sightings weren't that common.

Granddad worked for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe RR as a business agent.

[rcooled]

Originally Posted by Zeke

Man that was a sight seeing those giants chugging along. Sometimes our speed on the highway was similar, so there was some time to look and watch.

Great story...

[smadsen]

I believe 4014 was the one parked at the Pomona Fairgrounds near Los Angles for 70 years. You could climb up inside and use your imagination, if a docent was on duty.

I recall the firebox was the size of a brick lined-bedroom. Coal was delivered by a big screw, deposited inside the firebox door. The fireman use a jet of steam to "blow" the coal to the far corners of the firebox.

Glad to see it's been restored.

[mattdavis11]

Four eight eight four!

[doug_porsche]

Was within rage of me in 2019.
yep, had to go see it.
Its coming through Colorado again this year, yep, I will go see it again.

Once you see the Big Boy, every other steam locomotive is just a yard bird

[jmaxwell]

We watched it come through Oklahoma last time and paced it from Oologah to coffeeville. They were running pretty late, mostly due to people being too close to the tracks as it went by. Was great fun, though

[Sooner or later]

I drove over the Durant, Ok to see him come through (nearly a 3 hour drive). He is damn big and REALLY LOUD when he howls.

[Reiver]

What a grand machine.... beautiful.

[Evans, Marv]

I'd love to see B.B. As a young kid in a small town where a main RR line went through, I was always wowed by the huge cab forward locomotives. I think they were 4-8-8-2. We'd put pennies on the tracks for the trains to flatten. We'd also walk along the tracks and occasionally find packets of explosives. I understood they were used to strap to the tracks and detonated when the train ran over them as a signal of some kind to the operator. We'd find the along side the tracks as if they threw extras on the ground. We'd take them to school, tear them open, and sprinkle the greenish yellow explosive crumbs on the concrete or sometimes in the hallway. Kids would step on them & the crumbs would pop like pistol caps.

[Sooner or later]

It was worth the trip. A piece of roaring, clanging history. If I would have been thinking I would have waited until today and drove to Ft Worth to see him. A similar drive time (possibly less) and I would have been able to see the displays they bring along. If you live near the route, don't miss him!

The locomotive will be on display from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 14, near downtown Fort Worth, about one block east of 825 E. Ninth St. Admission is free.

Event highlights:

Meet the Steam Team. At 11 a.m., the Union Pacific steam crew that helped restore and now operates Big Boy will take questions from the audience for 30 minutes.

Experience the Union Pacific Rail Car. This restored baggage car now serves as a traveling history museum, providing a glimpse of the past while telling the story of modern-day railroading through sounds, images and interactive technology.

Interactive booths and tents. There will be several exhibits set up where participants can learn more about model railroading, acquire a souvenir and receive a free Clifford and the Railroad Crossing book from Safe Kids Worldwide, an organization dedicated to protecting children from unintentional injuries.

It looks like the displays will be up at the following stops.
Saturday, Aug. 14: Fort Worth, Texas
Tuesday, Aug. 17: Houston, Texas
Saturday, Aug. 21: New Orleans, Louisiana
Sunday, Aug. 29: St. Louis, Missouri
Monday, Sept. 6: Denver, Colorado

Future schedule
https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/schedule/index.htm#viewing

[Jolly Amaranto]

I will be helping direct traffic in the parking lot at the Amtrak station in Houston when the train arrives Monday afternoon. Then Tuesday morning I will be doing crowd control around the locomotive and in the afternoon helping to regulate the lines for folks entering the display train. Wednesday morning I will be there again for crowd control as the train pulls out and leaves town.

[Sooner or later]

There will be big crowds. There were at least 500, maybe at 1000 in Durant.