Photos, videos and docs of tarboat, with the keywords: "sandaoling"

Early morning empties

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Fri, 17 Oct 2025 05:22:55 +0000

tarboat has posted:

The whole of China runs on Beijing time which means that it is still dark at 9.00am at Sandaoling in the far west of Xinjiang in December. The morning empties on this day were brought to the opencast mine in two trains. The first one ran long before the sun rose and is here crossing the desert as the first light breaks over the horizon.

Out of the pit

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 06:59:14 +0000

tarboat has posted:

JS 8384 pushes a heavy load of spoil from the pit at the Sandaoling opencast coal mine. The semaphore signal on the front unit shows clear to proceed.

Evening spoil

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 07:29:35 +0000

tarboat has posted:

Two spoil trains pass at the base of the high tip on the western end of the Sandaoling opencast pit. The Taklamakan Desert stretches out behind to the Tian Shan mountain range some 25 miles to the north.

Just a few empties

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Sat, 12 Oct 2024 06:25:23 +0000

tarboat has posted:

Snow on the desert as JS 8358 of the Sandaoling Coal Railway hurries the only three empty wagons that were available this morning from the Liushugan interchange with China Rail. The usual number would be around 60 empties at this time.

Empties at sunrise

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Sun, 06 Oct 2024 06:17:43 +0000

tarboat has posted:

Morning action on the Sandaoling Coal Railway. The sun is just rising as JS 8053 heads 61 coal empties and a van from the China Rail interchange at Liushuguan with JS 8366 banking.

The fiery tip

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Mon, 26 Jun 2023 05:48:25 +0000

tarboat has posted:

JS 6261 is in charge as another load of burning spoil is deposited on the tip at Sandaoling opencast coal mine.

Morning at the cement works

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Wed, 15 Mar 2023 06:40:51 +0000

tarboat has posted:

JS 8366 hurries past the cement works in Sandaoling after arriving back from the exchange sidings with China Rail.

Icy Desert Steam

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Fri, 29 Jul 2022 16:01:02 +0000

tarboat has posted:

There is just a bit of frozen snow on the ground as a pair of JS class locomotives drag and bank the empty coal wagons across the desert from the exchange sidings towards the Sandaoling opencast mine and collieries. It was well below freezing in this bleak and exposed spot.

Shunting

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Wed, 13 Jul 2022 15:35:13 +0000

tarboat has posted:

The low winter sun illuminates JS 8314 as it works on the headshunt at Nanzhan on the Sandaoling Coal Railway. The line alongside is the branch leading to the deep mines numbers 1 & 2.

In the shed

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 05:19:54 +0000

tarboat has posted:

A JS class locomotive sits in the running shed of the Sandaoling opencast mine after light maintenance.

Coal from the deep mines

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Sun, 02 Jan 2022 12:27:14 +0000

tarboat has posted:

JS 8053 returns from deep Mines 1 & 2 at Sandaoling. Most of the run was downhill so there wasn't much effort required, but the distant snow-capped mountains make a good background.

Sunrise empties

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Fri, 31 Dec 2021 06:48:06 +0000

tarboat has posted:

On this particular morning the number of empties to be fetched from the China Rail exchange sidings were such that only one locomotive was required. JS 8358 was making good progress up the bank as the sun rose over the desert. Once again a reward for getting up early.

Loco water

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Fri, 05 Nov 2021 06:48:34 +0000

tarboat has posted:

Water tower in Dongbolizhang yard, Sandaoling coal mine. This is used to supply the steam locomotives working into the pit.

Spoil

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Tue, 02 Nov 2021 07:04:35 +0000

tarboat has posted:

JS 8197 hurries a load of spoil out of the opencast coal mine at Sandaoling.

A lucky moment

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Fri, 10 Sep 2021 06:37:40 +0000

tarboat has posted:

This one was purely chance and with no time to plan and set up the shot. Having just left the overnight sleeper service from Urumchi at Hami and being driven in a minibus towards the opencast coal mine at Sandaoling. The first sighting from the minibus was JS 8366 heading back to the mine from the exchange sidings and we slowly overtook it on the parallel road. Looking back it was clear that a shot was demanded and just before the road and rail parted ways there was just time to stop and dash out to shoot a couple of frames before it was gone. Thirty seconds later and we would have missed it.

On the burning tip

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Thu, 09 Sep 2021 05:43:36 +0000

tarboat has posted:

Some of the waste material being removed by the stripping shovels at Sandaoling opencast coal mine was on fire. This material was taken to a specific tip where it could burn itself out. The clouds of dust and smoke in the distance are from a wagonload of spoil just being tipped.

Farewell Sandaoling steam

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Tue, 07 Sep 2021 06:27:12 +0000

tarboat has posted:

The opencast coal mine at Sandaoling is the last stronghold of industrial steam working in the world. New has been released that the steam locomotives will finish working here in October 2021 and the will mean that only the Chinese will be there to witness the last rites as foreign travel into the country will not be possible until at least November. I had two trips to this mine and it never failed to deliver great steam action. Here JS 8040 is beginning the long climb out with a train of spoil.

No empties

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Wed, 19 Aug 2020 05:48:21 +0000

tarboat has posted:

A JS class locomotive heads back light engine from the exchange sidings on the Sandaoling Coal Railway after dropping off a load of full wagons.

Empties before sunrise

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Thu, 28 May 2020 06:01:10 +0000

tarboat has posted:

JS 8366 and 8358 thrashing uphill on the Sandaoling coal railway with empties from Liushuguan. All China is on Beijing time and this remote desert area is so far to the west that even at 9.15am the sun had yet to rise on this cold January morning.

Brick tower

nobody@ipernity.com (tarboat) — Tue, 19 May 2020 10:57:59 +0000

tarboat has posted:

Water tower in Dongbolizhang yard, Sandaoling coal mine.