Producers: Bob Ernst (1994), Tim Walter (2024)
Locations: Council Bluffs, Omaha, Fremont, Schuyler, Grand Island, Wood River
Timeframe: Circa 1994
Length: 1 hour 26 minutes
Source: Bob Ernst
MoKan has released a few 2024 remastered shows. Here is a tour of a very busy route on Union Pacific. This line sees in the range of 100 to 150 trains daily. Volume 1 covers Council Bluffs to Shelton, Nebraska. Volume 2 continues this sub to conclusion at North Platte. Longest subdivision on UP at 242 miles. Special Note. This is a pre-merger show of CNW and UP. Plenty of both railroads are present.
A single DVD-R. Also available on blu-ray. Main Chapter Menu is location based. On-screen graphics with subtitles. Select local maps and diagrams are present. Narrated by Bob Ernst. On/ off narration. Chapter navigation.
The updated visual quality is stunning! Full screen aspect. Clear images, although not modern standards. Color balance has a natural look. Minor flaws reveal a videotape source. Very watchable. A monumental step up compared to the previous MoKan shows.
Credit to Rearview Mirror Media and Tim Walter. Digital Remaster of original source tapes. The editing and color correction all were done in 2024. The state of the art production has this MoKan release appearing as almost a different producer. Think MoKan 2.0. 🙂
Audio is environmental live. The mix is well balanced with the laid-back narrative.
To the Trains…
Council Bluffs, Iowa is at Milepost Zero and begins this show. Local maps and track diagrams illustrate the area, right off the bat.
CNW hauls empty coal gons, aka buckets in Omaha. This is Milepost 3.
At Fremont. UP 3149 has a Westbound mixed freight. This train is routed from Council Bluffs to North Platte.
CNW Zito yellow SD40-2 6934 leads UP 5012 and two more CNW engines. Coal empties at Fremont.
This line frequently has online Grain Elevators in all sizes. At Milepost 43, a Westbound train of empties roll by the camera.
At BEST. A hotshot Eastbound holds for a Westbound. Both have intermingled UP and CNW engines. He mentions about half of the traffic West of Fremont are coal trains.
Symbol LAAPZ. The Big Apple at Schuyler. LA to Chicago. A hot double-stack. These American President Lines moves were a top priority on UP.
Powder River loads and empties pass at Columbus. Illustrating the basic function of Unit Coal trains.
Grand Island sees 100 trains a day at Milepost 146. Wow! This rare footage is before the BN flyover was built. UP 6338, with a Norfolk Southern run-through, clear the BN crossing in Grand Island. Westbound NDYX carries empties.
EB BN Powder River Coal is behind a GE lashup to Lincoln, Nebraska.
Westbound SFIX runs empties part the Cargill Grain Elevator at Wood River. Next is Shelton and the end of the show.
Before you know it. This Council Bluffs tour ends. The only caboose seen was back at Fremont. Eagerly await to see the 2nd volume to North Platte.
Union Pacific Council Bluffs Sub Volume 1
MoKan has these new in 2024 remasters. Significant upgrades make a huge difference. Newer technology has made the best of older source tapes.
Additional improvements are the included track diagrams and location maps. Strong soundtrack. Even the narration sounds better. The only item missing would be a route map.
Powder River Coal is hauled by CNW and UP locomotives. Plenty of Intermodals. General freights round out the show.
Both the Chicago NorthWestern and Union Pacific fans shall find plenty of assorted locomotives. Long looks at many of the trains. Speeds up to 70mph are commonplace on this subdivision.
The Grand Island segment shows it as a highly congested bottleneck. This is before the BN flyover was constructed. A gold nugget in this program.
This modern remaster technology is impressive. Chicago Northwestern fans can enjoy a big chunk of the trains. UP nuts still have the home field advantage. Limited run-through power. Some BN at the crossings.
If one likes to dial back the timeline. This is the best MoKan release so far!
Rating: 5 Stars
American Train Video Reviews 