Featured Photographer - Gary Morris

Aside from the photo aggregate sites like  railpictures.net and rrpicturearchives.net, it's hard to find photographers with high-quality railroad photographs of the 60s, 70s and 80s in Colorado. That's why I got a bit excited when I found Gary Morris' site and his section on the Rio Grande Railroad earlier this summer. He's got his collection organized in HTML by railroad, but you can still find a few BN and UP shots in Denver if you dig for them.

Crash on Pikes Peak Tangles Operations Over Cog Wheel Route Friday

A helicopter crashed on Pikes Peak on early Friday morning, with all four aboard injured but alive. The debris field closed the Manitou & Pikes Peak Railway, also known as the Cog Wheel Route, along with the toll road running from Cascade to the summit. The four passengers were treated and released from the hospital in nearby Colorado Springs. The railway still operated trains on a shortened route and restored service to the summit house today. The toll road is also re-opened.

Tiny Town Railroad Derailment

Seldom does a tourist railroad lead the nightly newscast for something other than a major disaster, a miniature railroad doubly so. Wednesday, August 11th, a morning train making it's trip around the 15-inch gauge Tiny Town railroad was northbound along the roadway through South Turkey Creek Canyon toward the northern end of the park with 30 passengers aboard. Heading into a curve, the train derailed, spilling the 2-6-0 live steam engine #10 and ending with five of the six cars on the ground. The last car was a caboose loaded with children.

New Cumbres TV Spot Released to Air

The Cumbres & Toltec has a new TV spot that just made it on their YouTube channel.   Docent and long-time C&TS supporter, Rich Muth introduces himeself and invites everyone out for a trip. Did he say something about discounted rates?




Visit www.cumbrestoltec.com for information and tickets.

UP 844 Cheyenne Frontier Days Train west of Cheyenne at 540pm

It's not even Monday and I already have good video of UP's 844 on the front of the Cheyenne Frontier Days Special that ran this weekend. Watch for the Wyoming state capitol in the background.



Way to go, Skip Weythman! Thanks for some great footage! I also liked the pacing shot.

By the way folks, the CFD special means that the height of summer is upon us. Have you gotten out to your favorite spot yet?

Photos of UP 844 In Milliken

Kimm Wierema, who lives with a family of railfans, managed to capture some really nice photos of UP 844 on its visit to Milliken, Colorado. The last-purchased, never-retired steam locomotive of the Union Pacific was on hand on June 26th to help the City of Milliken celebrate its centennial this year.

Cumbres & Toltec Buses Passengers Between Chama & Cumbres

At last, there is good news from Chama! Because of the fire at the Lobato Trestle, the 40th anniversary season of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad was under a significant cloud of doubt. Now, the operational shuffle by the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad appears to be over for the time being. 

Royal Gorge Route Revamps Routine, Rigs Re-moisturizing Railcar

Happy Fourth of July Weekend, everyone!

It is a happy Fourth for the Royal Gorge Route and their riders. According to their representative, they're back in business. In fact, they said,

Lobato Trestle Burns, Is Chama's Season Over?

UPDATE 6/21/11: Lobato Trestle is rebuilt and in use! 

What happens when you mix creosote-soaked, wooden ties, the right amount of heat and air, lots and lots of air? A very bad day for the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad.

Gorge Train Continues Self-Imposed Suspension of Operations

As of 6:00 PM yesterday, the Parkdale Canyon fire is considered 100% contained, although smoldering fires and underground hot spots still remain. Instead of resuming train operations this morning as anticipated, the Royal Gorge Route railroad has voluntarily continued its self-imposed moratorium until the owners are sure that the route is safe to continue without risking a repeat of Monday. In a statement released today, owner Mark Greska, said,

Royal Gorge Route Temporarily Closed By Wildfire

The Parkdale Canyon fire posted yesterday is 85% contained with full containment expected by tomorrow (Sat). The fire started Monday just after noon, with some witnesses claiming the flames started shortly after the Royal Gorge Route passed nearby on it's 12:30 p.m. run.

Follow UP 844 on the City of Milliken Special

As previously announced here, UP 844 and a compliment of UP passenger equipment are making a special run to Milliken, Colorado for the city's centennial celebration this summer. Folks interested in following the train's progress online should visit UP Steam's site and track it on their big map via satellite uplink. If you tweet or simply follow tweeters, the updates will also be posted to their Twitter page.

Photo by UP Steam

Fires Cripple Two of Colorado's Scenic Railroads

Fires in two separate locations are causing major disruptions during the summer. The Royal Gorge Route has canceled trains due to a wildfire in Parkdale. More significant is the disruption caused by a fire at Lobato for the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic.

Follow up: UP 844 To Visit Milliken On June 26

Colorado Railroads has a follow up on the post, "UP 844 To Visit Milliken On June 26" According to Union Pacific's press release, issued today,

Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Hits 40, Offers Discounts

This Memorial Day weekend typically signals the opening day for a lot of tourist and scenic railroads. The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad has been settling in for a week already and has a number of events scheduled for this year. Along with the kids' Cinder Bear Express and the Wild West Trains, the C&TS is also planning celebrations of its 40th Anniversary of operations between their main facilities in Chama, New Mexico and their station at Antonito, Colorado. It looks like they are ready for this summer!

Coal Creek Canyon Bridge Knocked Out Of Service A Second Time

If you've ever had the feeling you were on a streak of bad luck, you and the bridge over Colorado Highway 72 at Coal Creek Canyon might have something in common. Last December, a significant derailment dropped hopper cars like toys all over the bridge and both approaches, closing the highway. Monday, May 17th, was a bit different, but it had a similar impact, with delayed motorists, re-routed freight and a Cal-Z sent through Wyoming.

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!

Rock Slide Causes Amtrak Service Disruption

Here's the answer to a question I know that everyone was anxious to know. The question is "Is it really possible to drive a P42 engine backward?

The answer is, if you have a conductor to spot you, sure!

Amtrak P42 #67 pulls the California Zephyr consist while running backward through Arvada, Colorado, on May 15, 2010.

6th Avenue Bridge Rollout Completed Early

6th Avenue light rail bridge rolls into place. 9News photo

The 6th Avenue Bridge Rollout has finished early. Originally scheduled for 30 hours, work was completed in 14 hours, less than half the time expected. As a result, traffic resumed it's normal flow today instead of tomorrow. Denver's 9News.com has photos of the rollout as well as video coverage.

Fastracks West Corridor 6th Ave Bridge Roll Out Next Weekend

UPDATE 4/23/2010 5:00 PM: POSTPONED ONE WEEK. Due to weather, RTD has postponed the roll-out by one week.

The RTD FasTracks West Corridor team will roll out the main span of a double-track light rail bridge across 6th Avenue just east of Simms & Union the weekend of April 23rd through April 25th, 2010. All lanes of 6th Avenue between Simms & Union and Kipling Street will close at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, April 23rd to prepare the area for the roll-out, scheduled to begin early Saturday morning. 6th Avenue and the frontage road will re-open by 5:30 a.m. Monday, April 26th.