Showing posts with label Google Map. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Google Map. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

The Route of the Rio Grande Southern

Once in a while, I come across a resource or an item so well-done, I can't help but share it. RGSrr.com is an old school site in terms of its layout and design, but one I'm very glad to count on. It has been going for years and has very handy details on the underdog narrow gauge railroad. Their work retracing route is at the end of this article.

If you have never been to see the remnants of the Rio Grande Southern, make every effort to see it sooner than later! The RGS has been abandoned for 70 years now and despite all efforts of fans and whole organizations, the San Juan mountains persist in reclaiming what Otto Mears and his partners built. Winters in Colorado are serious, but the San Juans get the most snow. The canyons are deeper, locking the snows deep late into spring and yes, even summer. One Fourth of July weekend, I was not surprised so much as impressed to find a snow and ice dam still straddling the Uncompahgre River above Ouray. Winter arrives early, stays late and works hard to break rock, timber and whatever else is in its way.

The Rio Grande Southern is not well known to many even in its home state of Colorado. By all rights, it shouldn't have existed. Born November 5, 1889, less than 3 years 8 months before the Silver Panic of 1893, it was barely off and running before it fell into receivership and out of the hands of its founder, the Pathfinder of the San Juan. It went where its namesake, the Denver & Rio Grande Western, had not dared to climb, beyond Ridgway to Telluride, Ophir, Rico, down to Dolores and Mancos and east into Durango, connecting two very distant points of the Rio Grande narrow gauge empire. 

How the little narrow gauge persisted for another 60 years is a story recounted in many books, but the miracle was thankfully preserved not just in text but on film, even into the last days of dismantling by faithful friends of the railroad that connected most of the western San Juans. The spindly-legged trestles and light, narrow gauge rails made riders quail and even refuse to travel the return trip. It was built to get ore from the mines to the mills in Durango and Denver and it did, barely. 

In this cropped view taken from the Denver Public Library, it's easy to see how the Ophir Loop used trestle and curve, cut and fill to shoehorn a railroad through the deep canyons, climbing the San Juans of Colorado
Photo: Thomas McKee

Below, we find RGSrr.com's Route of the Rio Grande Southern. It shows with remarkable clarity, exactly where the railroad ran, how it worked with valleys and loops completed by curved trestles, fighting for every foot of altitude! It has a key that shows which trestles went where and which there are pictures for. It is an incredible resource for the narrow gauge modeler and railroad historian! ⚒

Friday, October 12, 2018

The Ghost Railroad Hiding In Your Backyard

Every once in a while, an e-mail from the contact form catches my eye, like this one:
Dear Colorado Railroads,
Wasn't there a line running generally SE from Longmont, CO, generally thru Erie, then past Broomfield? If so, what became of it?


Regards,

Gregory Iwan

Dear Gregory,

Yes, there was! In fact, this area is steeped in the history of numerous railroads because the Front Range corridor between Denver and Cheyenne was the first to see development by railroads, and all of them wanted to be the first to get to wherever it was they were going! The period of 1870 to 1890 was a wild time here, with legal and financial wrangling, a great deal of courting of public opinion, strong arming, and more than a few shady dealings like kidnapping judges and taking of property by force!

I must admit that when I was initially searching, I was confused. I came across a narrow-gauge line running due north from Broomfield to Longmont. But you aren't referring to that line. The only line with all three points you mentioned was standard gauge and, strangely, it was built by the same company as the narrow gauge line! Suffice to say, this railroad has a complex, if brief, history.

The Denver, Utah & Pacific had narrow-gauge aspirations as a mountain railroad, and its ambitions were as big as its name. However, its progress seems a little more mundane. The first goal was to lay claim to a route west through the canyons and that's where their line through Longmont comes in. They were working on reaching Lyons and a potential route west over the Continental Divide. This appears to have caught the attention of the Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad. The CB&Q was also looking to expand westward of Denver and bought control of the DU&P. Because the CB&Q was a standard gauge carrier, the DU&P began converting or flat out re-building its system to match the Burlington's gauge.

The line was constructed in 1889 from Burns Junction on the Denver, Marshall & Boulder main line a little west of Broomfield by the Denver, Utah & Pacific in standard gauge. To save time and money, DU&P used 5 miles of a grade built by the Denver, Western & Pacific but not actually used. Once complete, they leased the line to the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad on September 1st of that year. CB&Q operated the railroad via its Burlington & Missouri River Railroad in Nebraska (phew!) subsidiary until February 1908, when the title was obtained by CB&Q outright.

The line connected through Erie with Longmont's branch to Lyons, which had to be standard gauged along with the connection to Denver, but the Burlington would eventually link it with Montana by controlling the Colorado & Southern whose Wind River Canyon line through Casper and Thermopolis, Wyoming.

Map



The line itself served many mines that came and went, but coal mining was curtailed by miners strikes in the late 1910s and early 20s, and the mines waned in profitability. Most of the spurs were gone by 1936 and passenger traffic also dwindled. Then in 1951, 1.5 miles of the main line between the connections with the Lafayette Loop was abandoned, diverting all traffic over the loop. From then until 1970, the line remained intact, more or less.

What became of it? As near as I can piece together, vandals burnt the bridge at Idaho Creek, severing the line. Rather than rebuild it, the Burlington Northern (I presume, based on corporate timelines) elected to serve Lafayette and Longmont via their other connections made by the control and eventual merger with the Colorado & Southern. Erie lost service in the 1980s or 90s. It's vague and unsubstantiated, but that's the best I can come up with at this time.

For a serious look at the line, I managed to find a book available in Denver's Public Library called Denver, Longmont and Northwestern by Berlyn (Billy) L. Boyles of the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club. I have not seen a copy of it myself but it looks promising, if a bit dated.

It's a little surprising to find this ghost railroad hiding in plain sight, running right through people's backyards. Who knows how much more history lies beneath the surface?⚒

References

Colorado Railroads by Tivis Wilkins
Tracking Ghost Railroads in Colorado by Robert Ormes
Colorado's Mountain Railroads by Robert LaMassena
Historical USGS Topo Maps
Rick Steel C&S History, UtahRails.net

Thursday, November 22, 2012

2012 Christmas Trains

It's Thanksgiving, and the traditional opening of the Christmas season. Since trains and Christmas have a special relationship that's deeply ingrained in American culture, it's only natural that heritage and tourist railroads run special extras during this special time of the year. Demand is often so high that some trains sell out weeks in advance, so book your tickets without delay. Here is a list and a map of the trains that are scheduled to run in 2012:


Alamosa and the San Luis Valley

Rio Grande Scenic Railroad 
ExcursionNorth Pole Express on Friday and Saturday nights until December 22, 2012. Train departs at 6:00 p.m. from the Alamosa depot. Tickets are $15 for coach or upgrade to Club for $15 more per ticket. Children are encouraged to wear their pajamas for a true North Pole Express experience

Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad 
Although there were preliminary plans for the railroad to run a Christmas train, the management change late this year has prevented the formation of any concrete plans. As of now, no Christmas trains for the C&TS. Maybe next year?






Canon City

Royal Gorge Route Railroad
ExcursionSanta Express Train departing Canon City every Friday, Saturday & Sunday at 6 pm November 16-30, then every evening at 6 pm December 1 & 2, 6-9, 13-26. There will also be special daily departures at noon on Dec 1 & 2, 8 & 9, 15-24. No trains on Christmas day. Tickets start at $22 per child and $32 per adult with upgrades to dome class and first class available for the 90 minute round trip. Also, the Canon City and Royal Gorge is offering a New Year's Eve Dinner Train.




Colorado Springs

Manitou & Pikes Peak Railway
ExcursionSanta Claus Special
Reservations by phone at (719) 685-5401 with a credit card. Saturdays and Sundays, . Times vary but generally 9:30, 10:30 AM, 1:00 and 2:00 PM. Visit site to check specific dates and times as well as status. Several trains are already sold out. Make sure that your selection says Santa Claus Special, because regular trains will also be running on these days.


Denver

Colorado Railroad Museum
EventSanta Claus Special – Steam-Up Event on December 8, 15, 16 & 22, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. The train runs every 30 minutes between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. with Colorado Railroad Museum’s locomotive and a team of historic passenger cars all decked out for the holidays. The Depot General Store will offer hot chocolate, and you can mail your letter to Santa at the RPO car.



Durango

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Excursion: North Pole Express, see featured video, Friday, Saturday and Sundays at 5:15 and 6:50 PM through December 11, and daily December 13 - 28, 2012. An additional 8:25 PM departure is available Saturdays and then daily December 14 - 23, 2012. No trains run on Christmas Day. Tickets start at $28 per child and $38 per adult.





Georgetown

Georgetown Loop Railroad
ExcursionSanta's North Pole Adventure, Saturdays and Sundays first three weeks of December, then December 17 - 24, 26 - 30, 2012 with departures at 10:00 & 11:15 AM, 12:30, 2:00, & 3:15 PM. Tickets start at $28.50 adults and $18.50 ages 3-15 for a one-hour round-trip train ride with Santa and Mrs. Claus. Enjoy complimentary hot chocolate, cookies, and candy canes, and the kids all take home a jingle bell ornament.
ExcursionHoliday Lights Train 4:30 PM on the same days as Santa's North Pole Adventure as well as Friday evenings. Tickets are $29.50 for adults and $20.50 ages 3-15. Santa and Mrs. Claus do not ride this train
ExcursionFirst Class Holiday Cheer Train First three Fridays & Saturdays in December Tickets are $36.50 per person for 5:45 and 7:00 departures with heavy appetizers and hot drinks.
All departures weather permitting. Complimentary hot chocolate at the Ticket Window



Use the map below for locations and directions

MAP: Colorado's Christmas Trains 2012


View Colorado Railroads Christmas Trains 2012 in a larger map
What is it that attracts us to Christmas trains?

I've asked myself many times why I am a railfan, and my only real conclusion is that people (men in particular) like big, noisy things that go fast. Something about all that mass and energy under control and guided by two lines of steel spiked down to the ground just holds my attention. It's the soot, steam and heat of a steam locomotive that provokes a certain sensory overload for me. The thrumming of a diesel as it works its way up a grade thrills me with a sense of awe and wonder. I even thrill to the sight of a caboose. I get very excited at the thought of riding a train ...any train.

That still doesn't explain why Christmas trains are so popular. Perhaps it's because Christmas was one time that taking a train meant something good, like going "Home For the Holidays." Maybe it's the compound wonder of children for two very exciting things. Could it be something else? Comment in with your thoughts on why folks are attracted to Christmas trains!◊