The Feather River Route is divided into the following subdivisions:
· Sacramento Subdivision from [El Pinal (Stockton) and] Binney Junction to Oroville
· Canyon Subdivision from Oroville to Keddie [and Portola]
The whole line is single-track, CTC, with searchlight-style signals all the way. The speed limit is 70 mph from Binney Junction to Oroville, 45 mph thence to Poe, and 25 mph all the way through the canyon. North of Binney Junction (MP 180.2), where there are southeast, northeast, and southwest quadrant connectors, and all the way to Oroville, the ex-WP line continues to cross the lush agricultural bottomland of the Sacramento River valley. Heading just slightly east of north, the line passes ponds and rice paddies to the east, a grade crossing, Tambo (MP 185.6), and the detector near the same location, rice paddies to the east and west, mountains visible off to the east, and bridges over drainage. There is a grade crossing, a 6,249 ft. west side siding at Craig (MP 192.4-193.6), two dirt road grade crossings, Intermediate Signals at MP 198.0, and a bridge over drainage.
After passing Intermediate Signals at Palermo (MP199.5), a grade crossing, and a bridge over drainage the line shifts slightly further west as it enters Oroville. There is a cutting with a road bridge overhead, a 5,560 ft. east sidesiding adjacent to the seven track Oroville Yard (which is on the east side of the main line), from MP 202.6 to 203.7, on a ledge above the valley to the west, a six track maintenance of Way yard to the west, a wye on the east side of the yard, a spur on the east side north of the yard, a bridge over a road below (Oro Dam Boulevard), a spur on the east side to Pacifc Crest Producers, a grade crossing, and three bridges over streets.
The Sacramento Subdivision ends and the Canyon Subdivision begins at Mitchell Avenue (MP 204.5), where there is a 3,580 ft. siding. The former Oroville depot, now a restaurant, is on the west side of the line at MP 206.1. There is a road bridge overhead immediately north of the depot, followed by a second one. There are intermediate signals (MP 210.2) on the east side of the line, and a cutting just before the Feather River comes alongside to the west, south of a low dam on the river.
North (or perhaps east) of Oroville, the terrain changes as the line climbs into the yellow-grass covered Sierra Nevada foothills. Three forks of the Feather River drain a large section of the west slope of the Sierra Nevada, coming together near Oroville and joining the Sacramento River at Marysville. The original route of the Western Pacific utilized segments of the valleys of two of these forks in its climb from Oroville to the summit at Beckwourth Pass. The famous Feather River Canyon is on the Middle Fork (and later on tributary Spanish Creek), while the area from Spring Garden to Clio is on the South Fork. With the 1957 line relocation that moved the track out of the region to be flooded by the lake behind Oroville dam, the line now intersects the North Fork, as well.
At Quartz, north of Oroville, where the line used to turn east to enter the valley of the Middle Fork of the Feather River, it now turns a clockwise semi-circle across the combined rivers on a through girder bridge, where the old roadbed continues along the east side of the river, passes and snakes its way generally north, curving back and forth to follow the contours of the slope up the west face of the foothills, surrounded by typical California yellow grass and widely-spaced oak trees, passing under a road bridge, and passing intermediate signals (MP 211.6), a detector at MP 212.7, a road bridge overhead, a 6,379 ft. east side siding at Kramm (MP 213.2-214.5), curving clockwise, past a bridge over a stream, with extra track on each side for part of the siding, then curving back the other way, on an embankment, after the siding ends. The line is replete with fills and cuts to keep the grade moderate. There are two more sets of intermediate signals surrounding another embankment, a small clockwise horseshoe on the hillside at MP 217.7, an embankment, two bridges over roads, a spur to the east just before a 6,478 ft. east side siding at Elsey (MP 219.3-220.7), with a road bridging overhead, and an extra track on each side, another embankment and a bridge over a road.
This section of line includes two sets of intermediate signals, the second set just before the first SR 70 road bridge, a clockwise horseshoe curve around a bluff and through 2,410 ft. Tunnel 4 (MP 224.7), passing under state highway 70 twice within a quarter mile of highway, but almost two miles by the railroad line, reaching the 6,613 ft. siding at James (MP 225.3-226.7) before reaching the second highway bridge, with an extra track on the west side of the line at the siding. Here, the line has attained sufficient altitude to clear the level of the water behind the dam (the west branch of the North Fork, east of the line), and crosses a bridge (the lower deck of the through truss bridge, with highway 70 on the upper deck) over an arm of Lake Oroville corresponding to the North Fork.
Passing through several tunnels (2,922 ft. #5 (MP 227.3), intermediate signals, 2,583 ft. #6 (MP 228.1), 4,406 ft. #7 (MP 229.5)), intermediate signals at Dark Canyon (MP 230.4), and 8,856 ft. tunnel 8 (MP 230.4)), at Intake (MP 232.1), onto a bridge across the Middle Fork, where the line rejoins the original route on a ledge above the south (east) side of the river, down in the Feather River Canyon, with a set of intermediate signals just east of the bridge. The change in landscape across the last tunnel is breathtaking. To the west, the line is in yellow-grass foothills; to the east, it is in a deep canyon with mostly deciduous trees, but some pines and firs intermingled, covering the steep slopes.
There is a 6,859 ft. west side siding at Poe (MP 234.2-235.6), deep in the canyon, with a slide fence to the east. From Jarbo (MP 236.1), where there is a slide fence to the east, intermediate signals (with new signals turned sideways in June 2011), and a slide fence to the east, three short tunnels follow in succession (552 ft. #9 (MP 236.3), a slide fence to the east, a west-facing intermediate signal (with new signal turned sideways in June 2011), 250 ft. #10 (MP 237.0), a slide fence to the east, an east-facing intermediate signal, and 224 ft. #11 (MP 237.3)), a short through truss bridge on a gap in the ledge, a slide fence to the east, and more intermediate signals. After several miles on the south side, all the way from Intake, the line crosses to the north side at Pulga on a multi-span through truss bridge, at the same location that highway 70 enters the canyon and crosses the river in the other direction on a steel arch bridge high above the line and river.
There is also a 6,091 ft. east side siding at Pulga (MP 238.9-240.1), with new signals turned sideways in June 2011, an extra track on the east/south side, and a bridge over culverts just west of the Poe Dam. For several more miles, dams, reservoirs, and hydroelectric power stations occupy the river, now not very far below the line, with the road on one side and the railroad on the other. There is a set of intermediate signals (MP 241.6), a slide fence, more intermediate signals, the Cresta Power House (with penstocks down the east side of the valley) and a detector at Cresta (MP 243.5), more slide fencing on the west side of the line in two places, 196 ft. tunnel 13 (MP 245.0), intermediate signals, Grizzly (MP 246.1), 256 ft. tunnel 14 (MP 246.3) and a 3,683 ft. siding at Merlin (MP 247.2-248.0).
North of Rock Creek (MP249.1), the railroad crosses a side canyon on a curved deck girder bridge, following the main canyon’s turn to the east as it does so, passes the Buck's Creek Power Plants to the east, down by the river, intermediate signals and through 3,118 ft. tunnel 15 (MP 250.1) and then, some way north of the intermediate signals at Storrie (MP 250.9), the railroad (on a big through truss bridge) and highway again trade sides of the river, and the railroad, now heading northeast, remains on the south side for the rest of the way to the famous bridged wye at Keddie. By now, the railroad is again almost at river level, after having been quite a bit higher further down the canyon. The river runs freely here, being between two dammed stretches of the canyon.
There is a spur (or short siding) on the east side at Tobin (MP 253.1), just east of the bridge, a slide fence to the east, and a 6,670 ft. west side siding at Camp Rodgers (MP 254.9-256.3) with a spur on the north/west side. A group of closely located tunnels along here is known as the ‘Honeymoon Tunnels’ (603 ft. #16 (MP 257.4), intermediate signals, 325 ft. #17 (MP 257.9), a slide fence on the east side of the line, 162 ft. #18 (MP 258.1), more slide fencing, 172 ft. #19 (MP 258.2), a slide fence to the east, the Rock Creek Dam on the river, 294 ft. #20 (MP 258.3), a slide fence to the east, and 405 ft. #21 (MP 258.9)). There is more slide fencing to the east, a detector at MP 259.2, followed by the west-facing signals for Belden, 306 ft. tunnel 22 (MP 259.6), a 4,573 ft. east side siding at Belden (MP 259.8-260.6), with a shed building on the west side of the line, where the line is heading almost due east, high above the river again, a bridge over a creek at MP 261, and a slide fence to the east.
At the intermediate signals at Howells, MP 262.0, another fork of the Feather River departs up a side canyon to the north. The line passes a bridge over a culvert, through 1,258 ft. tunnel 23 (MP 262.9), passes a slide fence to the east, 616 ft. tunnel 24 (MP 263.9), Rich Bar (MP 264.5), a slide fence to the east, 233 ft. tunnel 25 (MP 265.2), intermediate signals, more slide fencing to the east in three segments, a bridge over a culvert, and a 9,810 ft. west side siding at Virgilia (MP 269.6-271.5), where there is a spur on the north/west side, a grade crossing within the siding, and a maintenance depot on the south/east side of the line. Next is 446 ft. tunnel 26 (MP 271.6), Gray’s Flat (MP 272.6), where there is a dirt road crossing, a detector at MP 273.5, a road crossing and short east side siding at Twain (MP 273.9), which has signals at the west end only, more intermediate signals, and a 3.857 ft. east side siding at Paxton (MP 276.9-277.7), high above the river again.
Here, at the confluence of Spanish Creek and Indian Creek to form the Middle Fork, a highway (SR 89) is seen heading north along Indian Creek, not far above the river, and then a railroad line is seen high on the far wall of the canyon above highway 70 which is down near the river. This is the former-WP “highline”, now the BNSF Inside Gateway, that heads north to Bieber (where the WP met the GN) and Klamath Falls. The main line now turns southeast, following Spanish Creek, passing intermediate signals, through 364 ft. tunnel 27 (MP 278.4), crossing a high trestle bridge along the canyon wall, passing through 609 ft. tunnel 28 (MP 279.0), 588 ft. tunnel 29 (MP 279.2), crossing another bridge along the canyon wall, passing intermediate signals, 538 ft. tunnel 30 (MP 279.6), intermediate signals, and 687 ft. tunnel 31 (MP 280.1).
At the east end of what seems like just another tunnel (595 ft. #32, MP 280.4), the line emerges onto Keddie Wye (MP 280.5), which comprises two high girder bridges over Spanish Creek, one curving south and one curving north, and a third line through a tunnel in the far hillside. The north line is the BNSF highline, and the south (east) line is the ex-WP mainline to Portola and Beckwourth Pass. Just east of the wye is the railroad maintenance base and (former?) crew base at Keddie (MP 280.7). There are yard tracks on the north side of the main line across from that depot building. The connection from the line east to the line north goes through the yard.