Next was a west bound. Lighting was totally wrong for the shot but I've managed to pull something out of it. But its only a C-44 leading so who really cares?
Trains were stacked up coming east so I knew I was in for some fun for a while. Next up was No. 4531 a... (you don't need telling do you?) that had an SD40 No. 8175 behind it pulling containers and autoracks.
This was too easy, stuff just kept coming east. I expect I was grinning like the proverbial Cheshire Cat. Presenting themselves to my camera next was a pair of SD40's No's 6824 and 6785. I like SD40's in green there's a squashed quality to them from the front. Kind of like someone sat on them...
Honestly this is better than beer... The high from this continuous procession of east bounds was incredible. I still wasn't done, there's a right mixed bag here behind SD75M No. 8229. There's remote control SW1500 No. 3456 (double points for a number like that) and 8602 a B40-8 which confused me when I saw it. I don't see many of them.
I couldn't take any more. I was drained. Luckily that was it for the eastbounds, there was one other westbound but you can tell what was leading that. Six trains in less than 90 minutes can't complain there.
The design was standardised in the 1920's and all Jennies on DMIR rails are based on this design, many being built in the 1950's but thanks to the DMIR's excellent maintenance programme the majority still see service today. In the photo above the diagram No. U30 can be made out this indicates that wagon was made in 1953.
The photographs above and below show some even older ones sat on a track in Proctor yard. The Jenny above is labelled U27 from 1949 and the one below U26 built 1948. Oh heck. I just realised I'm sounding like a right anorak here... But there is one last thing I'd like to point out. See the coloured strips on the label on the wagon side?
That is a remnant of one of the earliest Automatic Car Identification systems (ACI). Called Kartrak. The system was installed in 1964. The coloured reflective stripes were read by a lineside reader (often at speeds approaching 80 mph) enabling the cars location to be identified by track and dock offices.
Lastly not all cars on the ex DMIR are "Jennies". Shown above is an 85ton capacity side dump car bringing limestone up from the dock to be taken to the taconite processing plants.
Most importantly, standing proud out front #413 the one I had seen working the PRS earlier on.
Also hidden away behind some ex Illinois Central locos was #412 as well. A pair of beauties. 
It's sad to think that soon they may soon end up the same dull uninteresting colour schemes as their sister loco's behind #413. Look at them you can't tell em in all honesty that they look better in "canoodle" Red and Black than in Missabe Maroon?
I was happy now. Not great shots I grant you these are crops from the equivalent of a 300mm lens. But I got to see Maroon one last time.
Chasing the PRS wasn't the entirety of our vacation from my Trainspotting point of view. Being as Duluth is a busy port, there are a lot of trains around moving freight of all sorts and a lot of railway history. Thats where we start with this pic.
The North Shore Scenic Railroad runs along the the shore of Lake Superior for much of its route up to Two Harbours and trains can often be seen running along the shoreline. Here we can be envious of some lucky child as we see the ex DMIR loco hauling a caboose 'The birthday train" The NSSR hires out the caboose for childrens birthday parties. Lucky kids.
When we visit Duluth we nearly always take a trip on a harbour cruise run by the Vista Fleet. This year was no exception. This time we treated ourselves on the Brunch cruise. The weather was great. The water calm and the food was excellent. This trip comes highly recommended. You can almost always see some dockside rail activity too. Here's a very nice looking ACe at Midwest Energy unloading coal. Interestingly these trains are unloaded on the move as the train passes through the unloader it slows to a crawl as the contents of the hopper are discharged. The movement was slow but noticeable.
A little further along and I could see three SW's of unidentifiable type at the Peavey grain elevators. Blue and white are rather attractive (if inappropriate) colours for shunting loco's. Must be a devil to keep clean.
Finally lets finish where we started on the North Shore Scenic Railroad. Here at the Northern end of the line at Two Harbours in front of the impressive DIR station building is the lines Budd Railcar. Readying itself for the return to Duluth. The trip to Two Harbours is pretty enjoyable and is recommended also.
With our holiday almost at an end you'd think that might be it but not so...
The next day, Friday, dawned bright and sunny and with Mrs TS-USA being a notoriously slow riser I jumped out of bed and headed up lineside before breakfast. The light was great and I was sure I was going to get a good shot. The morning turn was supposed to start at 7:30 am that came and went with nothing. However just after 8 I saw something emerge fron the curve beyond the I-35 overbridge I immediately got a funny feeling this was not an Orange or even Black loco nose. Could it be? I held my breath, crossed my fingers. Then it burst into the sunlight from under the bridge. YES!!!! A DMIR SD40-T. I was so excited. I just clicked and clicked away. But I shan't bore you with 6 shots of it. Here's a couple of good ones.
To my mind there is no more beautiful sight in the railroad world than the Maroon of the DMIR. I do hope you can agree with me. I didn't want anything else from this trip at all. That was it. I packed up my camera and bounced back to the hotel and got some breakfast.
Even though once was enough. I made a couple of other trips lineside during our stay in the hope that I'd see #413 again. But alas, it was not to be, as the only other times I went I saw #903 again. 
I'm not complaining though. Number 903 was a catch. But I will never, ever forget the feeling when I saw #413 emerge from under the bridge.
After another 10 minutes or so the detector sprang to life and just as it got to the important bit, the axle count, a noisy truck went by drowning that out so as this pair of SD's 8322 and 9161 went by I decided to count the wagons for the heck of it. 114 coal hoppers.
So deciding that this spot was too noisy I moved down the line a tad to get some quiet. Very quickly I was surprised to hear a 12 axle count on the way. I wasn't properly set up and grabbed this shot of ACe 9175 and CITX 140 running light. More on them later.
Then it went quiet. Very quiet. I heard a train given clearance to head from Coon Creek to Staples so I knew something was on the way. What seemed like an age went by. I heard that there was something waiting at MP68 for this upcoming to clear so at least there was something to wait for. Then the batteries went flat on my scanner. I moved again to see if I could find a better shot for the west bound. Eventually I could see it in the distance. As it rounded the curve I got this shot of #5273.
Oooh Boy! What a belter of a shot! I won't take a better one than that for a while I don't think. But I didn't have long to gloat as what had been held at MP68 was on its way...
9135 and CITX 140 again still with the ACe leading. What was going on? Well thanks to the outstate minnesota group on Yahoo here's what hapenned.
For unknown reasons, the BNSF ran a coal train through Northtown and up the Staples Sub to the Becker Power station. The crew took it up to Becker, where they left it on Main 2. Then they ran up to Saint Cloud, where they turned the locos on the wye (this was why 9135 was still leading). After waiting for the westbound freight they crossed over to Main 1 and ran back to the train at Becker, where there they brought it into the power station to be unloaded.
