The Union Pacific heads southeast out of Bakersfield for about 15 miles of tangent (straight) track, as trains begin their assault on the crossing of the Tehachapi Mountains. At Sandcut (named by the Southern Pacific for, surprisingly, a sandy area the tracks cut through), the line makes the first of many, many curves as it climbs out of the farmland of California's Central Valley. Built by the Southern Pacific, this line was shared with the Santa Fe, and today Union Pacific owns the line and it is shared with BNSF Railway – which usually operates more traffic over this line than owner UP! BNSF train Z-STOWSP6-06L (Priority UPS - LTL Intermodal) enters this curve on its way from Stockton CA to Willow Springs IL. Heat waves can be seen above hard-working BNSF ES44DC 7043, ES44C4 8068, ET44C4 3932 and SD70ACe 8459, powering this high priority train. (Edison, California – November 6, 2015)
