SP 4449 leaves the elevators of Lakota, ND, behind as it charges eastward across the northern plains in July 2009.

A crowd gathers on the platform at the Grand Forks Amtrak station as SP 4449 receives service prior to making the run for Fargo, ND, where it will spend the night.

Even the mighty SP 4449 can't avoid looking like a model train as it races south past the giant Alton grain facility on a mostly cloudy afternoon.

Slowing for its second stop of the day at Grand Forks, SP 4449 rolls over the small bridge at Milepost 1 just west of town.

Rushing eastward for its first official stop of the day at Devils Lake, 20 miles away, SP 4449 rounds a curve and passes underneath the Highway 281 overpass.

A resident of Knox, ND (pop. 59), waves at the crew of the 4449 as the majestic engine sails eastward, momentarily bringing the tiny northern plains town to life.

After starting her July 8th journey in Minot at 8 AM, SP 4449 makes her first official "stop" at the Amtrak station in Devils Lake, ND. A large crowd was there to greet her.

With her American flags whipping, SP 4449 slices eastward under the US Highway 2 overpasses east of Petersburg on her July 8th journey from Minot to Fargo, ND. Her next stop is Grand Forks for add... (more)