Durango & Silverton Hosts the Polar Express 2011

The Polar Express, of book and movie fame, is coming to Durango for this Christmas season. Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad put this video together promoting it. It's worth watching, even if you're a little cynical about how much fun a train full of kids can be.



For under 5 minutes, this is one of the best promotional spots I've seen in years. It's very true to the spirit of the book and I hope the same holds true of the ride. Highball, Polar Express!

POTD - Steaming On Toward Colder Days

A sudden dip in the temperature this weekend reminded me that winter is only a little over 3 months away. Former D&RGW class K-28 engine 473 makes her way northward past the tank at Hermosa,Colorado toward the wye at Cascade on a cold, clear Saturday morning in December 2003.

Photo: Kevin Wood

Mudflow, Debris Shortens Route of Durango Train

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad had to shorten its route today after high water and debris--mostly mud--from rains made a mess of things in the Animas River canyon. Tuesday's trips had already made it to Silverton when the mudflows occurred, tying up the track and forcing at least two trains to return to Silverton and wait for buses to take them from there back to Durango via US 550.

POTD - D&RGW 315 Crossing the Animas River

John West is an accomplished photographer with many years of experience and hundreds of publishable and historic photographs under his belt, 13 of which are available for purchase. His pictures bring narrow gauge enthusiasts immeasurable joy and pleasure.

Originally Florence & Cripple Creek Railroad engine 3, the Denver & Rio Grande numbered it 424 before the Denver & Rio Grande Western numbered it 315.  Durango Railroad Historical Society restored the engine from March 2001 until she moved under her own steam in August 2007.

On August 23, 2010, during last year's Railfest, Mr. West captured #315, a former Denver & Rio Grande Western 2-8-0 steam locomotive as it crossed the Animas River near Tacoma, Colorado, on former Denver & Rio Grande Western rails, now operated by Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, which will host its 13th annual Railfest later this month.

D&RGW Consolidation 2-8-0 #315 leads a photo freight over the Animas near
Tacoma on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad August 23, 2010
Photo: John West

 

Hear That Whistle Blow

One of the more interesting groups of railfans are the ones that are into locomotive whistles and horns, the signaling devices used by engineers to communicate and warn the world outside his cab of what he's doing. An entire industry has grown around a collection of railfans who collect and, at times, sound off their affection for trains.

Durango Looks Great This Summer

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, headquartered in Durango, Colorado, is offering a rare deal for vacationers this summer and has several events planned. Durango, a town that's never really shed it's wild west image, is an amazing place to fall in love with narrow gauge, steam railroading. It's worth the travel time to get there, and if you're really brave, you'll bring your camera but leave your laptop and smartphone charging at home. Unplugging with only a hotel phone for emergencies may be the 2011 way of "roughing it," for some folks. I know that for me, doing so would certainly add to the old west, frontier feel!

You Forgot Your What!?

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad recently completed Railfest 2010, and the fans have some pretty unique souvenirs for their money. I found this picture while browsing their Railfest photo gallery. I've seen worse, but I think most folks would agree that when a person is giving a whistle demonstration at said Railfest, it's important--nay, crucial that they bring adequate ear protection. Regardless, the show, or the demonstration, must go on.

Video: D&SNG Between the Rails At Hermosa

The D&SNG is the only narrow gauge railroad that, like the UP 844, has never ceased operations. It's squat, black engines and strings of Grande Gold coaches have been delighting railfans for more than half a century.

The video below, set from a unique angle, is from Hermosa, Colorado. No analog quality here! A train running over you (or your camera) at a good 25 or 30 miles an hour is impressive, and with digital quality and a widescreen format, it's quite an amazing vantage point between the rails!

Richard L Dorman, 1922 - 2010

Anyone who has spent much time studying the narrow gauge railroads of southern Colorado has likely come across library books by Richard L. Dorman. His books were often tied to the lines and cities and towns that were born of the railroads of the Rio Grande and the Rio Grande Southern. Dorman became enamored with the narrow gauge after a 1973 trip aboard the Denver & Rio Grande Western's fabled Silverton train. He began to collect photographs, especially of the Rio Grande Southern, only 20 years gone at the time. As a result, he met a lot of the RGS engineers and wives who had photograph collections.

Silverton Mixed & Marshall Pass On YouTube

As the digital age progresses, we'll see more and more digital media used to bring us glimpses of Colorado's railroading past. Of particular interest to a lot of railfans are the operations along the narrow gauge circle.

October 2009 Trains Magazine Special Issue

If you did not receive your October issue of Trains magazine in the mail today, beg, borrow, or steal an issue! "NARROW GAUGE FEVER" headlines the issue and it delivers! Forty years to the month after the magazine's last major look at Colorado's narrow gauge, they come through again.

Map of the Month alone will pay for the issue. Had anyone figured how extensively narrow gauge was used? I would caution you that it's not to scale. Chama is not nearly as close to Durango as it appears on the map. Also, bear in mind that the Narrow Gauge Circle does not appear very well because much of it was abandoned and not converted to standard gauge.

The foldout for Midnight in Durango is beautiful! Summer nights in Durango are laden with coal smoke and the vivid dreams of 4- and 5 year-old boys whose love of trains have just begun.

Don't miss the photo essay, Return to the Land of the Narrow Gauge by John Gruber. Here's the link to the PDF offer of the 1969 photo essay. Back Issue articles also included in the PDF (Colorado narrow gauge articles in bold):

• “East Broad Top” By William Moedinger Jr., Pages 4-16, August 1941
• “Narrow Gauge to Santa Fe” By Forest Crossen, Pages 4-13, September 1941, a long, lingering look (for a magazine) at the Chili Line.
  
• “Florence & Cripple Creek” By L.C. McClure, Pages 4-5, December 1941, about the already abandoned Phantom Canyon line.
  
• “Down in Maine — Two-Footers” By Linwood W. Moody, Pages 28-29, February 1943
• “Main Line of the Narrow Gauge” By Harold M. Mayer, Pages 18-25, September 1944, details the Alamosa to Durango portion of the San Juan Extension, with a fine-toothed comb aimed at the passenger train named simply San Juan.
  
• “Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge” By Lucius Beebe, Pages 14-21, March 1947
• “Tweetsie’s Last Trip” By Jack Alexander, Pages 24-26, January 1951
• “Gateway to the Yukon” By F. L. Jaques, Pages 36-43, January 1951
• “What’s Right in Colorado” By Cornelius Hauck, Page 59, March 1955, a letter from Hauck on Richardson and Helfin's Alamosa efforts at the Narrow Gauge Motel, which would eventually become the Colorado Railroad Museum out in Golden
  
• “White Pass Meets Its Match” By Rosemary Entringer, Pages 36-37, February 1956
• “Into the Freezing Darkness” By Philip R. Hastings, Pages 48-56, April 1956, Hastings sleeps at the Narrow Gauge Motel before bucking the winter snows with now-cold D&RGW engine 499 on Cumbres Pass in 1955.
  
• “The Wide, Wide World of Narrow Gauge” By David P. Morgan, Cover, Pages 18-19, October 1969, a single-photo essay of the narrow gauge published on the eve of the abandonment of the narrow gauge from Antonito to Durango
  
• “God Made Snow for Farmers and Artists” By John Norwood, Pages 20-28, October 1969, long-time resident of the area, Norwood looks at the Chama turn over Cumbres clearing snow via rotary plow
  
• “Extra 498 and 493 West” By John Gruber, Pages 29-37, October 1969 (referenced offer), an effort to look at the Rio Grande's narrow gauge operation from the crew's vantage point
  
• “When All Roads Led to Durango” By William Moedinger, Pages 38-47, October 1969,
  
• “Out of a Misbegotten Idea, a Not Coincidental Charm” By David P. Morgan, Pages 48-49, October 1969, a single-photo essay on the RGS
  
• “The Nation’s Newest Narrow Gauge” By William H. McKenzie, Pages 22-25, April 1971, on the humble birth of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic
  

At a mere 104 pages, 13.8 MB, it seems a bit skimpy for those whose love of Colorado Narrow Gauge knows no bounds, but at $5.95, can anyone complain? I had practically no money and I still bought this! The profile of the Rio Grande narrow gauge grades from Alamosa to Pagosa Springs on page 33 is amazing! My only complaint is the ink is too light and requires some contrast work.

Forty years is a long time to wait, but it's beautiful, nonetheless.

Looking Back 40 Years At the San Juan Extension

Forty years ago, it was still possible to travel from Alamosa to Silverton via narrow gauge rail. Today, it's all a distant memory. Yet, looking back, Durango was a town that stood to lose much if the Denver & Rio Grande Western abandoned southwest Colorado's San Juan Extension. As it turned out, not all of the rail was pulled up, but the narrow gauge circle, which was already broken, quickly vanished after August 1969.

Durango & Silverton Station Burglarized

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad station in Durango suffered a broken door and jangled nerves Wednesday (the 11th) at 1:24 a.m. when a thief tripped an alarm, apparently scaring them off. One of the doors on the east side of the station was forced and a door to the gift shop was left open. A search of the surrounding yard revealed damage to the doors of some outbuildings. (Full Story)

D&SNGRR Offers Annual Pass

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad will offer annual passes for the first time in its 28 years operating the railroad between its namesake cities. Annual passes were nothing new in the days of Otto Mears, whose Rio Grande Southern Railroad connected with Durango and issued its annual passes in solid silver for a brief time. This time, no silver. But you will part with a nice C-note to grab one of the adult passes and half that for the half-pints. Visit the site to find out more.

D&SNGRR Ridership Down But Evens Up By Cutting Expenses

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad released that its ridership was down 11% from last season. Pre-emtively, the railroad scaled back operations earlier this year by removing its fourth train from the schedule. The move helped keep their budget on track this year. For more information, view the article from the Durango Herald here.

The D&SNGRR begins its winter schedule later this month on the 26th with runs to Cascade Canyon.

Christmas Trains

I have updated the Colorado Railroads Special Events Calendar to include the Christmas trains slated to run this season. The Colorado Railroad Museum, the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic, the Rio Grande Scenic, the Manitou & Pikes Peak, and the Durango & Silverton all plan to run trains this year. Only C&TS's Cinder Bear train is scheduled to run during the day.

If you have kids ages 3 to 10, I'm sure they'll get a kick out of riding a Christmas train. Prices are much reduced from the regular season fares with many running at $10 per child and $20 per adult. Hear the sleigh bells yet? You will.

Durango Railfest 2008

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad's 10th annual Railfest concludes today. Both Galloping Goose #5 from Dolores and the 315 of the DRHS made appearances this weekend. Hopefully, someone will e-mail me with pictures I can link you to.

Durango Herald Online article

Hogger Heaven? Durango Train Owner Plans Conference Center

Is this heaven?

No, it's Durango, and Purgatory's a few miles down the road. All the same, Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad owner Al Harper and business partner Karen Langhart have plans to build a railroad-themed hotel and convention center, tentatively called Railroad Crossing, adjacent to the train yard. The hotel would have approximately 220 rooms and the 26,000 sq. ft. convention center would accommodate 400 - 600 people, making it the largest hotel and convention site in Durango. The catch is, can Durango foot the anticipated $500,000 annual shortfall the new facility would likely operate with?

Once built, the property would be anchored at College and Camino Del Rio, joining with the existing D&SNGRR property on its south side. This would surround the existing General Palmer Hotel in a U-shape, with the railroad on the east and Railroad Crossing on the south and west.

Lots of hotel chains have approached Harper about building a hotel on site. The problem was that if corporate vision changed, Harper would be stuck with running or selling the property. "My dream," he said, "was to find a partner who believes when you stay at this hotel you'll be immersed in the railroad culture of Durango. This will be a railroad experience like no other."

Railroad Crossing would also have a two-level, subterranean garage beneath the hotel, conserving parking spaces in a downtown area that already sees enough cars with the railroad passengers parking for the day-long trip. Also planned are first-floor retail shops and a railroad-themed central plaza with a stationary engine and rails embedded in asphalt for moving railcars in and out of the area.

If they build it, we will come. The question is, will they be willing to bet the farm? Harper and Langhart are serious. Will Durango go with them?

DRHS #315 Continues in Chama

The Durango Railroad Historical Society's recently restored D&RGW steam engine, #315, will continue to work on the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic railroad over the summer. Click here for the article from the Durango Herald.

Durango Cancels Fourth Train to Silverton

Citing soft demand, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad has cut their fourth train from the summer schedule. This train was to leave Durango at 7:30 a.m. daily starting June 17th and ending August 8th. Andrea Seid, spokeswoman for the railroad, told the Durango Herald, "There were not a huge amount of reservations for that particular train."

The speculation is the high gas prices are the main reason southwestern Colorado is seeing soft summer demand. How badly other summer railroads will feel the gas pinch remains to be seen as most open this weekend. Yet, one thing is for certain: if the Durango & Silverton feels it already, we won't have to wait long to find out.