California, United States
27 places to explore in California.
Spots (23)
- Spot
Dunsmuir (Downtown)
Dunsmuir, California, United States
Historic UP crew change point on the Shasta Route in Northern California, where the Valley and Black Butte subdivisions meet. About 18 trai…
- Spot
Cape Horn (Donner Pass)
Colfax, California, United States
A historic railroad cut on Union Pacific's Roseville Subdivision, carved 1,300 feet above the North Fork American River by Central Pacific…
- Spot
Barstow (Harvey House)
Barstow, California, United States
A major BNSF crew change and classification yard in the Mojave Desert, housed at the historic 1911 Casa del Desierto Harvey House — one of…
- Spot
San Luis Obispo (Horseshoe Curve)
San Luis Obispo, California, United States
A dramatic horseshoe curve on UP's Coast Line where trains climb the steepest grade between LA and San Francisco — 2.2% through tunnels and…
- Spot
Mojave (Tehachapi Jct.)
Mojave, California, United States
Key railroad junction where UP's Tehachapi Pass line meets the BNSF route to Barstow, with a small yard, helper operations, and 30-40 daily…
- Spot
Riverside–Downtown (Metrolink/BNSF)
Riverside, California, United States
Major junction where BNSF's San Bernardino Subdivision meets UP's Los Angeles Subdivision, with 80+ daily freight and passenger movements a…
- Spot
Fullerton (Santa Fe Depot)
Fullerton, California, United States
A major railfan gathering point on BNSF's Southern Transcon at the junction with the San Diego Subdivision. The 1930 Spanish Colonial Reviv…
- Spot
Santa Susana Pass
Chatsworth, California, United States
Santa Susana Pass carries the Union Pacific Coast Line through three sandstone tunnels bored in 1904, including the 7,369-foot Santa Susana…
- Spot
Cajon Pass (Summit)
Hesperia, California, United States
The busiest mountain railroad crossing in the United States, where BNSF's triple-track Cajon Subdivision and Union Pacific's Palmdale Cutof…
- Spot
Colton (Colton Crossing)
Colton, California, United States
Historic junction where Union Pacific's Sunset Route crosses BNSF's Southern Transcon in Colton, California. Built in 1883, the crossing sa…
- Spot
Gaviota (Coast Line)
Gaviota, California, United States
The 811-foot Gaviota Trestle carries Union Pacific's Coast Line 80 feet above Gaviota Creek at its outlet to the Pacific Ocean, inside Gavi…
- Spot
Richmond (BNSF/UP)
Richmond, California, United States
Richmond station sits at the convergence of BNSF's Stockton Subdivision and UP's Martinez Subdivision in the East Bay, offering views of tw…
- Spot
Tehachapi Loop
Keene, California, United States
A 0.73-mile railroad spiral where trains cross over themselves gaining 77 feet in elevation — one of the most famous railfan destinations i…
- Spot
Caliente (Tehachapi Pass)
Caliente, California, United States
A sweeping 180-degree horseshoe curve on the UP Mojave Subdivision at the foot of the Tehachapi Mountains, where Union Pacific and BNSF fre…
- Spot
Sullivan's Curve
Hesperia, California, United States
One of the most iconic railfan locations on BNSF's Southern Transcon. Sullivan's Curve offers close-up views of 90+ daily BNSF and UP train…
- Spot
Needles (Colorado R. Bridge)
Needles, California, United States
BNSF's Colorado River bridge at Topock carries 60-70 trains daily across a 1945 Warren deck truss spanning the California-Arizona border, 1…
- Spot
Truckee (Donner Pass)
Truckee, California, United States
Downtown Truckee depot (10065 Donner Pass Rd) places railfans steps from the Union Pacific Overland Route at 5,820 ft elevation, where 15 t…
- Spot
San Clemente (Beach Line)
San Clemente, California, United States
A 2.3-mile stretch of the BNSF/OCTA-owned Surf Line running directly on the beach in San Clemente, where Amtrak Pacific Surfliners and Metr…
- Spot
Keddie Wye
Keddie, California, United States
The world's only railroad wye with two legs on bridges meeting in a tunnel, located on Union Pacific's Feather River Route in Plumas County…
- Spot
Roseville (UP J.R. Davis Yard)
Roseville, California, United States
Union Pacific's J.R. Davis Yard in Roseville, CA — the largest classification yard west of the Rockies. A dedicated public railfan viewing…
- Spot
San José (Diridon Station)
San Jose, California, United States
San Jose Diridon Station is the central passenger rail hub for Silicon Valley, where Caltrain electric commuter trains, Amtrak Capitol Corr…
- Spot
Pit River Bridge (Shasta Lake)
Lakehead, California, United States
The Pit River Bridge is the only double-deck road-rail bridge of its kind in California, carrying Interstate 5 on its upper deck and Union…
- Spot
Williams Loop (Feather River)
Spring Garden, California, United States
Williams Loop is a one-mile rail spiral on Union Pacific's Feather River Route in Plumas County, where the track crosses over itself to gai…
Experiences (4)
- Experience
California State Railroad Museum
Sacramento, California, United States
<p data-start="357" data-end="1058">Located in Old Sacramento on the banks of the Sacramento River, the California State Railroad Museum si…
- Experience
Powell–Hyde Cable Car Line
San Francisco, California, United States
<p>The Powell–Hyde line carries visitors from the bustling heart of downtown San Francisco over Nob Hill and Russian Hill to the bayfront a…
- Experience
Powell-Mason Cable Car Line
San Francisco, California, United States
The Powell-Mason line (shown as line PM on the Muni map) is the oldest of San Francisco's three surviving cable car routes, running essenti…
- Experience
Southern California Railway Museum
Perris, California, United States
The Southern California Railway Museum (SCRM, reporting mark OERX) sits on more than 100 acres in Perris, in Riverside County's Inland Empi…