This film stars Sean Penn and Nicolas Cage as two teenagers dealing with coming-of-age problems in a small coastal CA town in the 1940s. 

The film opens with Penn smoking while walking on the tracks as a freight train approaches. This was filmed on the Skunk Train tracks behind Rose Memorial Park in Fort Bragg, CA. The engine is California Western #45, a former logging Mikado from 1924 which started pulling the "Super Skunk" excursion train to Willits way back in 1965. It was renumbered #44 for this film. Diesel trains still operate on portions of this route today (including this stretch), but #45 still remains out of service. 

GPS Coordinates:

39.450553, -123.802822

Recent photos (2023) of #45 being overhauled in the engine shop in Fort Bragg. 

Later in the film, Nicky and Hopper walk on the tracks in a heavily-filtered day-for-night scene (I brightened the images) as #45 comes barreling down on them. A documentary on the DVD shows how they did this scene with the actors and camera at an angle off the tracks pointed directly at a large mirror, which the train proceeded to run right through for the the shot. 

The final scene features the two young men saying their goodbyes at the "Point Muir" station - which is actually the Skunk Train depot in Fort Bragg. 

Oddly enough, in the reverse angle as they hop on the car this is on a different track to the north near the water tower (at first facing east) as they head off toward West Pine Street to the north.