Crawford Hill, Nebraska

Crawford Hill is a helper district with an average 1.55% eastbound grade between Crawford, Nebraska, United States, at an elevation of 3,678 feet (1,121 m), and Belmont, Nebraska at 4,499 feet (1,371 m) on the BNSF Railway Butte Subdivision. Crawford Hill climbs the Pine Ridge escarpment—formations of buttes and grassy dense sand hills lined with ponderosa pines. Manned helper engines based in Crawford are used to help 18,000-ton (16,000 tonnes) loaded coal trains from Wyoming's Powder River Basin up the escarpment.