Lombard Canyon, a remotely accessible gorge in extreme southeastern Broadwater County, Montana, has become quite the railfan playground for those journeying to visit the Montana Rail Link. Traversed by the railroad's Second Sub, the tracks follow the eastern bank of the Missouri River and pass long abandoned sections of the Milwaukee Road's electrified Pacific Extension.

On two separate visits to the canyon, we managed to snag two passes of MRL's Missoula to Laurel road freight, the 'ML'. Our first sighting is from the overlooks on the west bank of the river, accessed by dirt roads off of nearby Route 287. The second sighting is from the actual settlement of Lombard, also accessed by a steep and narrow road filled with washouts.

MRL announced in January, 2022 that it would be terminating its lease of the former Northern Pacific line across Montana, giving BNSF full control of the line well before the 2047 expiration date. While the STB has yet to rule on this matter, the odds are in favor of a BNSF takeover, ending a 35 year run of one of America's favorite regional railroads.

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