At least the western portion is still owner and operated by a shortline and a commuter/transit operator. If only more portions were saved. Womp womp for railfans and foamers, but boo hoo at the same time. It just shows that nothing can always last forever, even if we try.

Thank you so much for this video. My G Grandfather and GG Grandfather both worked for the Milwaukee Road. My other G Grandfather was an electrician employed by the Road to wire the substations and support buildings from Tacoma to eastern Montana.

T H E - M I L W A U K E E - R O A D

somebody bring them damn trains and tracks back ! ... 😢...

You can’t turn it back because it has count wheel striking so if you turn it back, it will not work

Best damn documentary i have ever watched on this railroad.

Why was this line abandoned and what replaced it can anyone tell me ? Very good immersive journey to the past thank you for this documentary!

Amazing tour of the former CMStP&P Washington Division. It really felt like you were there as a viewer. My exposure to the MIlwaukee Road was several hundred miles to the east, in a small farming community on the mainline between Aberdeen and Mobridge, South Dakota. I never got to experience Lines West across the Missouri River but remember those long freights powered by orange and black diesels in the 1970s. Thanks for allowing me the chance to experience the Milwaukee on a different division far to the west. Bravo!

I grew up in Janesville and recall all orange and black locomotives moving freight and GM vehicles around the southside by Back of the Yards. Down by the river we used to place coins on the track to create flat trinkets before moving on to catch catfish in the Rock River. This is very well produced, and certainly expanded my understanding of such a marvelous historical story.

Really loved the video!

Thank you for this great documentary. My great grandfather was a millwright from New York state that finished his carrier working consruction on the trestle in Tekoa. My son and his family ride the right of way from Avery Idaho into Montana

Wow, very impressive photography and history!

Incredible documentary. I'm so glad I stumbled upon it! This is as good as anything I've ever seen on PBS!

What a captivating and beautiful documentary...an absolute work of art! Thanks for producing and sharing this!

Simply amazing! I've watched it twice. Milwaukee has a small relationship with a Brazilian railroad, (CPEF) operated 5 GE 2-D+D-2 (Little Joe) models. A hug from Brazil.

What a interesting documentary! It’s amazing so much was done in a few short years, making the projects of today stand sill in comparison!

Thank you and God Bless I went step by step was able to tape back together my VHS tape that had split right in half. Thank you for talking so clearly and slow where I was able to understand.

This is an amazingly beautiful video. Thank you!!

🚂Very well done a tip of🎩and 🏆to the people who put to gather this history for us all to see and kind of real live this moment thank you 🚂🏆🇺🇸🤔

Absolutely a SUPERB job Todd on capturing one of my favorite railroads, the Milwaukee Road on the Pacific Extension. I grew up as a kid in the late 60's by the main road of the Milwaukee Road in the suburbs of Milwaukee, WI. It makes me sad that I can no longer watch the Road coming up the grade out of Elm Grove, heavy on the throttle or seeing the Hiawatha flying by on its way to St Paul, MN. I still looks for remnants of this once great railroad as I now travel through MT, ID, and WA. When I think about all the time, money, and work that created these now relics of history, we could never redo today what those pioneers accomplished when these were originally established. I am so thankful that many right-of-ways have gone to Rails to Trails route of reuse. Thank you, WA State Parks, for renovating bridges like the Renslow Trestle east of Ellensburg to once again allow safe travel of people over these historic structures. Now we need to get some of the GN Trestles on the Columbia Plateau Trail decked for travel! 🙂

Beautiful! Well Done

So good. This is something I've dreamed about doing. Thank you for letting me do it vicariously. I'd pay to watch a sequel from Miles City to the WA state line.

Excellent job! I can see all the hours, love and dedication that went into this documentary.

Wow I have been waiting for this for many years and let me tell you brother you did not disappoint you did a fantastic job it was top notch all the way through. Thank you very much I will treasure this I loved the Milwaukee Road and always look for pieces of it on my travels.

Oh my goodness, Todd! An absolutely wonderful journey!

I know i just left a comment, but just had to say incredible video. !!!!

Fascinating video, I love railroad history. Very well done, thanks for posting this.

Well done! Thank you for producing this video to both save the past and educate others about the Milwaukee Road.

THAT IS ON THE FORT IN MILES CITY

💜Well done, most captivating excursion. So short a life, to be lost, more could have been saved. Lesson learned I hope.😥

Very entertaining video. Thank Is there a difference between European VHS casettes and American?

I loved your documentary film. It’s really quite a professional production. You did justice to the old Milwaukee Road. I can see from your footage that you’re a skilled drone pilot, too. Thank you for bringing this extraordinary video production to KZfaq. I can see it was a labor of love.

It's fascinating to see how much still remains (bridges, tunnels, etc.) but also how quickly nature has reclaimed much.

Wow!

It’s sad. There is nothing left of the rails for many miles. If only it could be rebuilt, and Re-Electrified. The New Milwaukee Road could be a Powerhouse in Rail Transportation and have the largest electrified line in all the United States. Electrification could really help our country. Maybe derive the electricity from Hydroelectric & Nuclear energy.

Very well done. There are still a few vestiges of Tideflats Yard, and the Renton Depot still stands. The small section of track from Black River Junction is still used to service the Boeing Plant in combination with the old NP Sumas Branch, which has all but disappeared.

Very well done with an exceptional narration. Thank you for your hard work getting this done !!

I've got an AG-456 that makes the same noise, and another one that doesn't make the noise. My guess is that some type of roller or maybe the head is lacking proper lubricant and thats whats causing the noise but im not a tech either.

What a fantastic documentary. The work you put into this is mind boggling, . In 1969 I was 14 while on a family trip, out of Kansas City we were somewhere around Yakima I got two pics of Little Joe's and a GP7 running alongside the Hi Way in the mountains. I still have them today. Thank you so very much, what a journey'

I remember the work shop of the Milwaukee railroad yard in tomah wis. The line ran in front of my childhood home in Sparta wis. Western wis.

What an incredible piece of videography. The drone shots were amazing! Very well done all together. I believe this is the best video I have ever seen on KZfaq. Without doubt the most enjoyable hour I have spent in a very long time. Thank you!

I understand the history value but those rail roads should be responsible to returning the landscape to the original condition and not leave a junk yard that serves no purpose.

An outstanding documentary. So beautifully put together. Thoroughly researched. Well done. Loved it

now that cool

This pulled me in and I wound up watching the entire thing in one sitting. Excellent shooting, excellent editing - well done!

Well done!!!! And the amount of work you put into it! Very very impressive!

Absolutely beautifully done!

Thanks for this documentary. My great grandfather was a boilermaker for Milwaukee Road most of his life up to his retirement in the 1960's and my grandfather and siblings were born and raised in Malden. My dad and I used to visit occasionally and walk the grounds of the old roundhouse. He'd recount his grandfather taking him there as a young boy to watch and explore old steam locomotives before they were phased out. Said they scared the hell out of him as a little kid but in retrospect it was amazing access to the old steam engines.

Beautifully done! I worked for the Rock Island, mostly in Iowa, during my college summers in the mid-1960's. Sadly, there's almost nothing left today. You are very lucky to have serious preservationists keeping the memories alive! Thanks for showing it off!

This is an amazing video. The great Milwaukee Road passenger trains skipped the Rock Lake section. They took the UP line beginning in Plumber, ID to access Spokane and rejoined the Milwaukee Road line west of Rock Lake in Marengo.