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 .
