16 photos included after text.

The Bealville Area is another area that has no amenities at all and only features the trains in several photographic locations.  These locations in my opinion are the siding called Cliff, the area near tunnel #5, Bealville Siding itself, and the area just before tunnel #2.

Route 58 is still the main roadway through the area along with Bealville Road.  You can also see Bena Road and Caliente/Bodfish Road and I'll describe them in more detail later in the following areas that they are mainly in.

ROUTE 58

On Route 58, you can easily travel from exit #139 for Keene to Bealville Road.  This distance is only 4.9 miles and will pass the exit for Hart Flat at exit #137, (no railroad access), and the overlook for tunnel #5 after 4.1 miles.

At this overlook there is a small open area to park in but do not stay long.  It is just after a guardrail and you would have to walk back about 100 feet along Route 58 to the best angle for the afternoon photo.  Again it is illegal to park alongside the roadway except for an emergency, so don't do it unless you know a downhill train is coming.

Another .8 miles and you will see Bealville Road to your right.  It is not an intersection like you would expect.  It is just a regular intersection and is controled by stop signs for Bealville Road.  There is a turn lane, but still be careful, and definately careful as you enter back onto Route 58 from Bealville Road.

Bealville Road will go all the way down the mountain to Caliente, CA just 2.1 miles away.  First though you will cross over the tracks at the grade crossing 1/2 mile from Route 58.

For future reference, Bealville Road is to the right, and Bena Road starts to the left.  I will explain more about Bena Road in the Bena Area portion.

BEALVILLE ROAD GRADE CROSSING

Since all photographic areas in the Bealville Area have to originate from here, this is where I will begin even if it is actually "out of order".  Start downhill from Route 58 on Bealville Road and after just 1/2 mile you will arrive at the grade crossing.

At the grade crossing, there is a large open dirt area on both sides of Bealville Road on the south side of the tracks.  You can also be on either side of the tracks, but more action is on the south side of the tracks.

From Bealville Road, trains approaching from the west will be working uphill and rounding the last curve of Bealville Siding.  Photos of these trains from Bealville Road are good in the early morning either winter or summer.  Trains coming from the east are going downhill and you will see them first as they enter and exit tunnel #5 in the distance.

Photos from Bealville Road are great of these downhill trains in the later afternoons in summer or winter.  Use the signals to assist you in your photo composition. 

Continue about .3 miles from the grade crossing, down the service road to a hill in the distance for an even better view of the Bealville Area.  From this hill you can get photos of trains in the morning of uphill trains as they round the curve around the hill. 

Photos of downhill trains are the better photos though.  You can see the trains before they arrive as they enter and then exit tunnel #5 in the background and if you are lucky and the train is really long, the end of the train will also be in the picture near tunnel #5.

These late afternoon photos of the downhill trains look great as the trains roll through the Bealville Road grade crossing and start their journey along Bealville Siding.  They will curve directly next to you at the base of the hillside and the train will streatch out in the distance toward tunnel #5. 

TUNNELS 3, 4, AND 5

After the dirt opening on the southern side of the tracks, to the right will be a service road that will take you over tunnel #3, past the remains of tunnel #4, past the old grade for the former "shoefly" the Southern Pacific had to build as they repaired tunnel #5, and finally tunnel #5 itself.  You will have to use the shofly as the way to get to Cliff Siding because you can't drive through the tunnels.

Tunnel #5 is less than 1 mile from the Bealville grade crossing but with the turns, might be 1 mile.  Tunnel #3 is just .3 mile from the grade crossing and the dirt road will go over the small hill the tunnel goes through.

After that another .2 miles will be the remains of the old tunnel #4.  After the earthquake in 1952, the railroad simply "plugged up" the concrete lined tunnel and moved the track to the side.  That left the tunnel exposed after all the earth was removed for the track.  Its just rare to see a tunnel lining from the outside so to me its interesting.

Also because of the earthquake, tunnel recieved alot of damage but couldn't be "daylighted" so while the railroad worked on the rebuilding of tunnel #5, they built a "shoefly", or passing track around the mountain side so trains could pass by.  This old grade is on the other side of the track from the old tunnel #4, and you should see the "S" curve it had as it went around the construction site. 

It is just another .1 mile from tunnel #4 and is the road to go on to reach Cliff Siding.  (More on that in a moment.)

Tunnel #5  is at the end of the service road and a great place to get early morning summer photos of uphill trains as they approach tunnel #5 is on the other side of the track from where you can park.

If you want to get that photo, you will have to cross the track.  I do not recomend that, but if you do...do it safely.  You will see the obvious path up the hill to a good vantage point on the side of the mountain.

There are several photo locations along the way between tunnel #5 and the grade crossing.  Just work your sun angles and have a good (safe) time exploring.

CLIFF SIDING

Again, Cliff Siding is accessed by going along the old shoefly.  Cliff Siding begins just after the north side portal of tunnel #5 and will continue for 2 miles along the very side of the mountain.  Thus the name "Cliff".  (Note: When you are at the horseshoe curve in Caliente, you can see a train as it is in Cliff.)

There are some photo opportunities along Cliff Siding, but I do not venture in there much because the sun is on the mountain side of the tracks, and there are alot of curves along the siding making for only the tight variety of photos that I really don't like much.  Lots of curves and lots of shadows and hard to get to makes for difficult photos. 

If you do decide to go along Cliff Siding, cross the tracks at the tunnel #5 portal and remain on the road on the inside of the tracks.  After Cliff Siding, tunnel #7 is .5 miles farther, and tunnel #8 is another .5 miles away from tunnel #7.

I only recomend Cliff to the very adventurous.

The last location I would like to mention in the Bealville Area sitepage is the siding itself.  You can reach alot of the siding by continuing through a couple of gates and walking along a service road that somewhat parallels the tracks all the way through the horseshoe curve, to the reverse curves, to tunnel #2.

You are however on private ranch land and remember what I said about the ranchers and their livestock?  Be very careful and courtious to any animals you might encounter.  Do be on the lookout for bulls though.  I've seen a couple in this area before.  I recomend the railroad service road that you can reach from tunnel #2.

Read about the best way to get to tunnel #2 in the Caliente sitepage by using the Caliente/odfish Road.  I recomend walking not driving in to the Bealville Siding area that is close to tunnel #2.