Beginning its assault on Beaumont Hill is a westbound Union Pacific train, behind SD70M 4243 and Dash 8-40CW 9449, SD70 4224, SD70M 4xxx and SD60 2179 (with UP SD60M 2482 and SD40T-2 2941 [ex-SP 8280] as the rear Distributed Power Units). This train is passing through Garnet, the name for this part of western Palm Springs (as well as the location of Amtrak's Palm Springs station), at an elevation of just 797-feet (243 m), but in roughly 25 miles (40.23 km) this train will crest the 2,591 foot (789.7 m) summit of Beaumont Hill as it heads for the Los Angeles Basin.
The 2010 United States census reported Garnet's population at 7,543. In 1875 Garnet was a railroad station for the Southern Pacific Railroad. Since then it has had various names: Palms (original name), Seven Palms (1889), Palm Springs (1900), Pierce (1906), Gray (1917), Noria (1918) and, finally, Garnet (1923).
