Denise Anderson wrote: > > Per the trespassing issue: > > There are few instances were trespassing isn't as clear cut as it > seems. The instance that comes to mind relates to a pair of trips I > made to the Cajon Pass area in the Spring of 1996 and 1997. Since 1996 > was my first real attempt at photographing and exploring the area I was > a bit disoriented by the lay of the land and the slew of dirt roads > crisscrossing the area around Mormon Rock.
Rule of thumb re: Cajon. Between I-15 and Hiland (Summit on ATSF), as long as you are on the dirt roads that parallel the ex-SP, you are on US Forest Service access roads. No hassle from rr. cops, but the USFS Adventure Pass is required, and the easiest place to buy them is the Summit Valley Store on Highway 138 about a mile east of the Summit Valley Road turnoff. If you want to shoot at Summit, I suggest the high shot above the cut west of the crossover. However, the dirt road leading to the Summit grade crossing is a USFS marked access road, and as long as you are parked on this road and 15 feet back from the tracks, rr security people there cannot stop you. Mormon Rocks, same drill. Keep the car near the SP and you're fine, but don't park in a manner blocking the road. There are plenty of turnouts. Sullivan's Curve is still easily accessible from public roads. Take I-15 to Rt. 138 exit, go left, cross over BNSF tracks, under SP main line and take your first left. Go about 50 feet and take another left and this dirt road will take you directly to the SP main line. Follow this to Sullivan's Curve. Park in any one of the turnouts in the area. The area inside the curve is USFS property and if you have the permit, that's no problem to be there. There are several other access roads that are USFS roads...most are clearly marked "Santa Fe Fire Access Road-U.S. Forest Service." Whine if you must about the USFS Adventure Pass fee, but it's still a bargain and buying it might just prompt you to also spend a couple more bucks to buy the official San Bernardino National Forest map, which clearly shows which roads are public and which are not. BTW, if you fall and break a leg or have some kind of problem, it will be USFS patrol units (and forest service firefighters from Station 33 at Mormon Rocks May-November) which probably respond first, and if having them close at hand costs me $30 a year, that's a bargain. I understand some sort of private security force is patrolling the area around Frost, along the tracks, due to trespassers drifting out onto the tracks from the adjacant county park camping area. If you are new to the area, the high shot at the "natural crossover" there is a MUST DO, easy to access without setting foot on railroad property. Take I-15 to Bear Valley Road, go right, continue about 4-5 miles, cross the Santa Fe on an overpass, take your first left, go about a mile on paved road; you'll see the flyover to the left and the "high" shot from the hill is a no-brainer. If you are confronted by railroad security forces in Cajon Pass, they will probably be hired private security rather than railroad police. Be polite and if they ask you to move, a polite inquiry as to where you legally may be, will generally be met with some good suggestions and directions. In fact, they often post a guard at Cajon siding when M-O-W gear is parked there overnight and over the weekend. One time, the guard was shoo-ing people away but had a USFS map on hand and was showing fans how to LEGALLY get the shots they want. Last year, I tipped the Summit guys off to some "schwartzfahrers" (that's what the Germans call illegal freight train riders)...they reported this to BNSF folks in San Berdoo who gave them the "bum's rush" when the train arrived there. I figured I would have this security guard's cooperation for life; then found out it was his last week on the job there! Remember, these guys are looking for vandals, thieves and people with guns shooting at trains and equipment for sport. The place used to be thick with 'em. Having been shot-at twice by these kinds of jerks, I actually welcome the order that these security guys have restored up there. Don't try to fight with them...they see enough railfans up there and seem to be very tolerant of the responsible ones! --David R. Busse Diamond Bar, Calif. Cajon Pass "regular" since 1980. -> SPORRS: Serious Photographers of Railroad Related Subjects -> Web Site: http://www.anet-stl.com/acphotog/sporrs -> Message © SPORRS® 1998 - All Rights Reserved
