UP AC4400CW 5675Moab Canyon UT Moab Canyon

Driving from Helper UT towards Flagstaff AZ, I was lucky enough to see a triangle of headlights in the distance. There aren't many trains from Moab, but I was lucky enough to catch the UMTRA local. UMTRA = Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action. It is a Department of Energy project to clean up uranium contaminated soil and water from between two national parks, and bordered by the Colorado River — the very same river that runs through the Grand Canyon and powers the Hoover Dam. Every day for the next 18 years a train will take loaded containers of contaminated tailings to Crescent Junction for disposal. Amazing project. Get in before 2028 if you want photos of this train!

A great shot