tehachapi loop

Seeing is believing. The trains are so long that they have to loop back over themselves to get out of the yards. Travel north and you can actually see them coming out or the tunnels.

We followed the signs for this historical landmark, through a lovely hillside scenery of green grass, trees and cows grazing. It was a short trip until we reached the Loop. It is very cool to know that an idea to help the trains climb the large hills that was thought up 125 +years ago is still so very useful and functioning today!! some things do not need to be modernized and are just fine they way they are!! no computer technology here, just plain old smart thinking and implementation!! love this one, and so did the kids!!

I saw this first on a TV show. Reminds me of the spiral tunnels in the Canadian Rockies. Amazing to see all those power units getting it done. Impressive, lots of power being put to the ground. Can you imagine it in the era of steam?

You have to be there and see a train negotiating the tight curl of the Loop to wrap your mind around the scene. It's an exciting part of our history and the sacrifice of hundreds of workers who made this little miracle possible. It's worth the short trip off highway 58.

The Tehachipi Loop is a section of the north/south railroad, famous for linking San Francisco and Los Angeles by rail. It is one of the top 7 railroad wonders in the world.To climb the steep grade without enough flat land to get a running start, or putting on half a dozen engines (freight line only), a brilliant engineer design a spiral section of track to allow the train to gain elevation into the mountains.While we were observing, a long freight train came along. At one point, the engine was going up the hill while crossing the tunnel where the train was still coming out below! Dramatic and fun! There are more than 30 freight trains a day so it is likely if you wait long enough you might see this sight.

I'd seen a picture of the Tehachapi looks and thought it would be great to see. Our travel plans changed due to snow and we had to travel further south than I had anticipated. This took us near to Tehachapi and I took the opportunity to visit. I'm not a rail enthusiast and I tentatively look my mother and sister (81 & 60) thinking that they would just tolerate my idea. Amazing they loved seeing it. We were very very lucky to arrive and hear a train approaching. So we so the loop in action. It was a medium size train, so did not see it completely nose to tail, but nether the less, it still gave the full impact. A great spot to visit and surprisingly great for all ages and gender irrespective of you being a rail enthusiast. If you get the opportunity then don't miss the chance to see this, particulaly if you can time it with a train. It's free and it's great, not to be missed. You can pull over safely on the side of the road.

for all you rail fans out there this is a must !what a railroad wonder really enjoyed spending a little time here I could have spent a little bit more but didn't have enough time to spare. . I definitely want to return on a better day with better lighting conditions .

This is an amazing engineering marvel! Even if you are not a railroad buff, this needs to be seen. The exit off of CA 58 is well marked both directions. The road up to the loop is a very crooked one indeed, several 10 MPH corners. The view at the summit is breathtaking. The locals do not mind conversing with you. Please be courteous and stay off of Posted Land!!

This Railroad track has a cool history of how it was made. It is an Engineering marvel. The Train circles around and runs over itself in order to get up the steep grade.This is a Must See for any train buffs!Then go into Tehachapi to the Train Station Museum and get the history of the Tehachapi Loop. Just be careful where you park along side the road when you get out to take pictures. There are some good pullouts.

Be sure to get off at Keene turnoff and go to the viewpoint to see the Loop. There are any trains going through the area each dayReally fun to see.

If your not into trains or engineering this is not really that impressive. If you understand the work and physics involved in the making of this loop, you'll be impressed.

We had read that this was one of the things "to do" when in Tehachapi, but we couldn't really understand what was so special about a train going in a loop. By going to the Railroad Museum in town first, we could understand the importance of this "new" idea of having trains go up a grade. When we actually drove up to the loop, it was rather disappointing as trees have grown in the sight path. The schematic at the museum was so good we could understand what we could not see!

We are not train buffs but still found it interesting and fun to watch the trains passing through and around the loops. We meant to only wait for one of them but ended up hanging around until we had seen three!

The Tehachapi Loop is a 0.73-mile long spiral, or helix, on the Union Pacific Railroad line through Tehachapi Pass, of the Tehachapi Mountains near the unicorporated town of Keene in Kern County, south-central California. "The Loop" sees an average traffic of 40-plus trains a day, some over 7,000 feet long. Most of the trains on The Loop these days are BNSF (Burlington Northern and Santa Fe) powered, with all kinds of freight.To visit THE LOOP, I leave Hwy 58 at the Keene exit and follow the signs to the viewing areas both below and above The Loop. While famous to railfans, the Loop isn't your typical tourist spot, so there is not much here. The closest gas and snacks are 3 miles away in Keene (and that's only one very small market). The closest real lodging, gas and food will be found in Tehachapi around 11 miles away. You can expect to see a whole lot of trains, of many different flags, with awesome scenery, rolling hills and long sweeping valleys. Paved, and good dirt roads, provide access. A little hiking will get you even further.Anytime of year will provide a different look. Spring is green, and Autumn rather brown. Winter will sometimes provide very cold weather and possibly snow, so beware. Weekends tend not to have the long work windows that the weekdays have, so train frequency will be maximized. Bring something to read, when its quiet on the hill... it is quiet!

THis is worth the drive even if you are not a railroad nut! We lucked out and saw a really long freight train go through the loop! Fascinating!