Even if they double tracked the entire Tehachapi Pass, they still wouldn’t run passenger trains over it. It would still cause too much congestion to a very busy North-South freight route used by two Class I railroads. That’s why Union Pacific only allows Amtrak Coast Starlights over it when the UP Coastline route is getting major track work done to it. Freight railroads hate having passenger trains on their tracks and only allow it if they are forced to. Amtrak/Surfliner trains essentially pay for the entire UP Coastline route. Other than the Guad Turn local and the Lompoc local…. There is no scheduled mainline long haul freight or even bare table trains down the route anymore. They removed the Cuesta Grade helper engines from San Luis Obispo as a result. It will only see the rare detour train if the Tehachapi Pass route is closed for an extended period of time. That almost never happens. I don’t want them to ever double track Tehachapi Pass. I want single track choke points so I never miss seeing a train due to another train passing in front of my view. It forces trains to stop and have to startup again when clear. A freight train having to pull all that weight from a dead standstill on a 2+% grade is a struggle and my favorite thing to watch. Just browse through my other videos and you will see plenty of those instances.

I can understand your argument, but TBH (and this isn't toward you), there are only 5 San Joaquin trains a day, and I would only recommend 2 a day traveling through the Tehachapi Loop on a fully double-tracked to and from LA, the trains are no more than 4-5 cars in length, they'd be able to run a bit faster without causing significant delays, and if Amtrak and the state are willing to support it financially, I don't see why it couldn't happen. I like seeing freight trains too, but they have to still make their destinations on time to pick up and drop off goods. @@GSkid2000

Just google "Hill 582" and you will see a google entry with a map and an option for directions. Should be the top search result on your phone and it's to the side of the search results if you are on a computer web browser. Although there is more than one way to get to Hill 582, Google directions shows the best entrance (should have a small American flag or ribbons adoring the open gate) to get to the Hill off highway 138. It's a busy highway, so you may need to come down 138 south and pull off the road to the entrance. Going 138 north and trying to do a left turn against busy traffic can be difficult. It can also have traffic backing up behind you as a result. Be slow and careful with a low vehicle going in/out because you could scrape on the lip of the asphalt that drains water down the highway. After entering and reaching the railroad tracks (Track #3), cross them and turn left. Do NOT follow Google's directions that go directly up the hill from the tracks. It is a very steep shortcut. Only a 4x4 or offroad vehicles that aren't too heavy should attempt it. It's much easier and safer to follow the tracks south. As you follow the road along the tracks, you will see the first split-off dirt road that turns right. Follow it, keep going right and you will go clockwise around to the hill and the easy (main) entrance up to 582. The land is public and owned by The Bureau of Land Management (BLM). They allowed Hill 582 to be created and maintained by railfans. Googling Hill 582 should show a webpage called "Cajon Pass - History of Hill 582 by Don E. Toles" that has tons of pictures, history and facts about Hill 582.... which got it's name because Milepost 58.2 of tracks #1 & #2 is right near it. Since it is BLM land all around there, you can camp overnight and ride offroad vehicles too. Keep it clean, respectful and have a good time watching 4 mainlines of trains.... UP's Palmdale cutoff (the highest track), BNSF's tracks #1 & #2 side by side and Track #3 (which you crossed when you entered off Highway138). UP also have trackage rights on BNSF's tracks up the pass. Track #3 is the steepest of all the tracks at a 3% grade. Because of this fact, they usually only send trains down it and not up it. Only the Amtrak Southwest Chief usually climbs it. In the rare instance a freight train climbs Track #3, it's usually a work train or a very short or light intermodal. Otherwise... all freight trains only go downhill on it. Tracks #1 & #2 are the tracks mainly used for both uphill and downhill traffic.

The full reason is located in the video’s description below it.

The AX100 has 24/30/60fps 1080p, but only 24/30fps 4K. Same with the newer AX700, but it also adds 120fps 1080p. At about $3700, the Sony PXW-Z190 is currently their cheapest prosumer camcorder with 60fps 4K. It has three 1/3-inch sensors (better at capturing more accurate color), while the AX100/AX700 both have one big 1-inch sensor (better in low lighting conditions). Getting acceptable 60fps video out of such a large sensor is hard and expensive. You are going to be spending over $5K to get a Sony cam with 4K 60fps on a large sensor. Most consumer/prosumer level 4K 60fps camcorders on the market have small sensors. Don’t know how to help with color and sharpness. I used to record at the 100Mbs rate, but switched down to 60Mbs when I realized RU-vid’s own video compression makes the higher bit rate pretty much indistinguishable from the lower one. It was just increasing upload and processing times in the end. I use standard auto settings on my camcorder. I use Cyberlink PowerDirector 16 for editing and do no color enhancements or sharpening. I use the Intel Quick Sync encoder option for the output render. I also reduce the bit rate to RU-vid’s 45Mbs rate recommendation for 4K/30fps video which further reduces the upload time. Also…. Snuffy’s Cat train videos used the AX100 a lot and it seemed better looking to me than my own. Not sure if it’s because he tweaked the camera’s settings… tweaked the video in his particular video editor…. or if the output file encoder is somehow better. PowerDirector allows me to output render in the same XAVC-S format as the original files were recorded in. RU-vid accepts XAVC-S uploads no problem. Maybe your video editor/encoder isn’t up to snuff or you don’t have the output format and it’s profile settings right.

Welcome to my channel!

It only happens if the coastal route is having serious enough track work done between Los Angeles and Oakland that doesn't allow passage of the train. Most track work only requires a speed restriction in the work zone. That's why these detours don't happen that often and why they garner so much attention from railfans when they do.

Nice and green.

Subscribed to your channel, go to me and return the subscription by watching, if you want, my videos, thank you. Greetings from Italy. Happy Holidays.

Glad you looked at this particular video because of it's extra chuggy and extra grindy sounding ES44DC and Dash 9 pulling out of Bealville at the beginning of the video. Wish I had filmed it with a better camera and especially a better microphone.... but at least I got the audio. It's why I bought my current Sony FDR-AX100. I have a lot of new videos from the trip coming.

Thanks. I was getting eaten alive by mosquitos and avoiding brine flies to get these videos. Be sure to have some repellent. I learned the hard way my first day out there. Feel free to check out my many other videos on my channel.

Thanks. Check out my other videos from other locations including my 2+ hour track view over Tehachapi Pass on the back of a private rail car.

It normally leaves Los Angeles northbound and hits the coast for 95 track miles starting at Ventura. It then starts turning inland at Surf. It briefly returns to the coast again at Grover Beach and turns back inland near Pismo Beach for the rest of it's trip up to Seattle. It only detours through Tehachapi Pass when track work is being done on the coastline and returns to the rest of it's original route at Newark....which is about 25 miles southeast of Oakland.

You are correct. Its labeled as such in the title screen of the video. If you look in the video’s description, there is the link to the original video ... or simply go to my RU-vid home page and it’s right there.

Glad you liked it! I prefer this version because humans naturally like watching scenery that comes towards us and not away from us. Plus the long climb east is better then the short climb west. That's why the majority of rail fans train watch west of Tehachapi. The other video does have the advantage of sound if that's what one prefers.

Class of '72 ? Cool.