Table of contents for Railfanning Vancouver
I babble on and on about railfanning around my hometown of Vancouver, Washington. Here’s an overview of the area. Posts detailing specific railfan spots will follow in the next few days.
Background
Vancouver is a suburb of Portland Oregon and marks the wye where the BNSF north-south mainline between Seattle and Portland meets the Fallbridge Division which heads up the north bank of the Columbia River to Pasco. Vancouver is a crew base for the BNSF and is only a few miles north of UP’s Portland Albina yard.
Radio Frequencies
The BNSF Vancouver yard and dispatcher use 161.250 (AAR Channel 76).
On the Seattle sub north of Vancouver the road frequency is 161.100 (AAR Channel 66).
On the Fallbridge sub east of Washougal the road frequency is 161.415 (AAR Channel 87).
Train Symbols
This is a list I’ve compiled of some trains that run through Vancouver. This list is by no means official or definitive, but it can provide a good general guide. If you have suggestions/corrections please e-mail me and I’ll get this updated.
Amtrak (daily unless noted)
| Scheduled Time | Train # | Direction | Equipment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 09:03 | Cascades #500 | Northbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
| 09:27 | Empire Builder #27 | Westbound | Superliner, Genesis P42 |
| 10:32 (MTWThFSat) | Cascades #501 | Southbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
| 11:02 (Sun) | Cascades #503 | Southbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
| 12:48 | Cascades #506 | Northbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
| 13:29 | Coast Starlight #11 | Southbound | Superliner, Genesis P42 |
| 16:28 | Coast Starlight #14 | Northbound | Superliner, Genesis P42 |
| 16:47 | Cascades #507 | Southbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
| 17:07 | Empire Builder #28 | Eastbound | Superliner, Genesis P42 |
| 18:33 | Cascades #508 | Northbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
| 20:27 | Cascades #509 | Southbound | Talgo, F59PHI, NPCU |
Burlington Northern Santa Fe
Autos:
V-PTLBLU – Portland to Blue Island IL
V-PTLKCK – Portland to Kansas City
V-TACKCM – Tacoma to Kansas City
Garbage:
U-EVEROO – Loads, Everett to Roosevelt WA
U-INBROO – Loads, Interbay to Roosevelt WA
U-ROOEVE – Empties, Roosevelt WA to Everett
U-ROOINB – Empties, Roosevelt WA to Interbay
U-ROOTAC – Empties, Roosevelt WA to Tacoma
U-TACROO – Loads, Tacoma to Roosevelt WA
Grain:
G- indicates loads. Originates in various locations. Trains passing through
Vancouver are destined for Centralia PSAP Interchange (CEW), Interbay (INB),
Longview (LVJ), Tacoma (TAC), or Vancouver (VAW).
Intermodal:
B-AUBWAT – Auburn to Watson CA
B-PTLPTL – Train to store baretables somewhere locally
B-PTLWAT – Portland to Watson CA
S-BPATAC – Bedford Park IL to Tacoma
S-CHIPTL – Chicago to Portland
S-CHITAC – Chicago to Tacoma
S-TCBBPA – Tacoma to Bedford Park IL
Z-CHCPTL – Chicago to Portland
Z-PTLCHC – Portland to Chicago
Manifest:
H-BARVAW – Barstow to Vancouver
H-EVEBAR – Everett to Barstow
M-EVEABN – Everett to Lake Yard (Portland)
M-LYDINB – Lake Yard (Portland) to Interbay
M-PASINB – Pasco to Interbay
M-PASLYD – Pasco to Lake Yard (Portland)
M-PASVAW – Pasco to Vancouver
M-PTLPAS – Portland to Pasco
M-TACPAS – Tacoma to Pasco
Union Pacific
Autos:
AGBSE – Argo, IL to Seattle
ASENP – Seattle to North Platte
Garbage:
UGLSE – Empties, Gilliam OR to Seattle
USEGL – Loads, Seattle to Gilliam OR
Grain:
GETAET – Empties, Kalama to Eastport ID
GETAET – Empties, Tacoma to Eastport ID
GSETKA – Loads, Eastport ID to Kalama
GSETTA – Loads, Eastport ID to Tacoma
Intermodal:
IAPSE – Chicago to Seattle
IDUSE – DuPont, IL to Seattle
KLCSE – Long Beach to Seattle
KSELC – Seattle to Long Beach
KGNAP – Global North to Chicago
KGNKR – Global North to Kearny, NJ
ZSEMN – Seattle to Memphis
Manifest:
MHKPS – Hinkle to Puget Sound & Pacific
MHKSE – Hinkle to Seattle
MLJPD – Longview to Portland
MPSPD – Puget Sound & Pacific to Portland
MSEHK – Seattle to Hinkle
