Union Pacific Little Rock Express

Union Pacific ran its “Great Excursion Adventure” featuring famed 4-8-4 #844 in 2011 with a great deal of fanfare, including a contest where the public could pick the steam engine’s route! Because of its destination of Little Rock the railroad dubbed this “The Little Rock Express”.

We see the train running between Kansas City and Jefferson City, Missouri, and then on to St. Louis. We then follow the train down the Chester Subdivision through southern Illinois, and from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to Bald Knob, Arkansas. We then pick up the train from Coffeyville to Kansas City and on to Council Bluffs. High speed running made for a challenging chase, with the fast running partially offset by stops in many towns for the public to come out and view the train.