A Brief Stop in Unity

As is often the case when out on the road heading to an assignment, we see something interesting and have to stop. And that’s what happened this day, even if it was only brief. So here, in the “sprawling metropolis” of Unity Saskatchewan, a couple large industries, one a grain elevator (Northwest Terminal), the other a rail/truck transfer facility for petrol products (Torq Transloading) and the pair of locomotives used to switch cars about each.

The smaller of the two units is an Electromotive Diesel (Illinois), model GP35, built for the Southern Pacific Railway in late 1964. That line was a big player in the US west. Later it came to work for a smaller regional line, still in the States, Dakota, Missouri Valley & Western, before ending up in Unity a couple years back. It carries number #6354.

The second larger engine is a General Motors Diesel (Electromotive’s Canadian Plant) model SD40 from 1971. It was built for Canadian National Railways that later was rebuilt to SD40-2 specs and worked for US based Burlington Northern/Santa Fe, one of the biggest railways in that country, before finding work here. It still wears BNSF colours and carries number #6991.

Both industries handle huge volumes of cars at a time (up to a hundred or more according to each firm’s website). We believe the larger locomotive switches the grain terminal, where as the other handles the trans-loading place – the two industries are right beside each other. On our visit, both units were sitting between jobs.

A couple quick snaps and the road calls. Bye bye Unity. Maybe one day we can come back…

Oh, and those Saskatchewan skies!

Photographed that same weekend…
Kelts’ Collection – Old big rigs! Sunsets!! Auroras!!!!!

Short Subjects: reports that for any number of reasons are brief in nature. They might be updates to older articles, previews of posts planned or not yet published, brief snippets of things that don’t fit in anywhere else or subjects that are so obscure that information on them can’t be found. Or sometimes we just ramble on about Lord knows what.

If you need any more information on what we talked about here, by all means contact us!

Date of adventure: September, 2017.
Location: Unity, SK.
All shots were taken from public roads.

In Unity Saskatchewan.

These locomotives switch a couple large industries there.

In BNSF colours.

Those fine Saskatchewan Skies.