Rolling Down the Tracks with Steam Powered Locmotives

"Trains" seemed to be the theme for me for 2013.   I enjoyed a season pass on the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and rode a number of times in spring, summer and fall. Next up is a ride on the winter train over the holidays.

I also got a ride on the inaugural run of the recently restored Locomotive 463 on the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad. What a treat to see that vintage engine all steamed up and puffing from Antonito to Chama.

Here's a survivor from the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad all ready to go in the Antonito yard.

 

This fall, my husband and I travelled to Strasburg, Pennsylvania, where we took a short railroad excursion through cornfields and the Amish farmland.  Strasburg is home to the magnificent Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania .  I've never seen so much rolling stock from so many eras of American Railroading all under one roof. 

Getting the locomotive ready in Strasburg

I loved this beautiful blue engine at the  Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania.

 



New Historic Byway

Railroads hurtled America into a era of production and prosperity. When the iron horse arrived, Americans parked the wagon in the barn,  shifted into second gear and never looked back.

Southern Colorado and northern New Mexico are home to the last surviving remnants of the great Denver and Rio Grande Narrow Gauge Railroad. The Durango & Silverton and the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad, two National Historic Landmarks, operate on parts of the line and now they are sponsoring an effort to create an automobile byway along the route of the railroad that once connected their two depots at Durango, Colorado, and Chama, New Mexico.

Lucky me, I've been hired to oversee this effort.  A new byway would be the 26th in Colorado and would extend a shorter segment of one of the 25 in New Mexico. The route is really fascinating, travelling through old farming settlements, into some pretty wild country along the Navajo River and across both the Southern Ute and the Jicarilla Apache Reservations. The Tribes have offered their support, along with the counties and cities in New Mexico and Colorado.The bridge in the photograph above is a survivor from the old D&RG Railroad route.  I'm really looking forward to working on this great project. 

I've put together a website to keep people updated about the progress of the railroad byway project. You can find it at www.railroadbyway.wordpress.com .  Or you can check back here or at my website at www.thehistoricalconsultant.com for more information.

Here are links to the two railroads. The Durango & Silverton, which provides service between the two towns in its namesake in vintage passenger cars pulled by vintage locomotives is at www.durangotrain.com . The Cumbres &Toltec Scenic Railroad operates between Chama, New Mexico and Antonito, Colorado, along a spectacular route with historic steam locomotives.  Check them out at www.cumbrestoltec.com .

Thanks to San Juan Dryland Radio!

Thanks to  KSJD (yes that is K- San Juan Dryland) Radio, I was able to work with Linda Towle and the Cortez Historic Preservation Board to talk about history and historic preservation projects in Montezuma County. They have a lot going on there, from restoring the last remnant of the old Montezuma Water Company Flume, to helping place a historic grain silo on the Colorado Engangered Places List, to encouraging property owners to list their important historic homes on the Cortez Historic Register. The radio station is located in one the town's beautiful historic stone buildings that once was the home of the Montezuma Valley Bank. Listen in to our conversation at http://www.ksjd.org/audio.cfm?mode=detail&id=1243553663342