We woke up and went to the Ponderosa Restaurant for breakfast where I enjoyed pancakes, bacon and orange juice. We packed up the car and drove Colorado 145 over Lizard Head Pass as we made our way to Placerville where we took Colorado 62 to Ridgway. I found where the Ridgway Railroad Museum had been but unbeknownst to us, they had moved. We learned later that they purchased 16 acres of land and built a narrow gauge loop on it and moved their equipment there. I was very disappointed that I had not checked this before the trip and I hoped this would be the last negative thing to happen on this trip. We took US 550 up to Montrose and found a Rio Grande station.
The Denver & Rio Grande station in Montrose built in 1912
Union Pacific caboose 25668, built by International Car in 1967, with my favorite UP slogan on it, "Carefully We Roll Along!" We took US 50 east out of town and on the outskirts, came to the museum that I had photographed in 2016.
Union Pacific baggage car 1227, a movie prop, at the Museum of Mountain West. We drove to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument and learned that the locomotive Robin and I saw being restored in 2016 was located twenty miles east on US 50 from this location. So we turned around and headed back down US 50 until I saw a familiar sight and the road to the proper train location, into which we drove.
Cimarron Canyon Rail Exhibit
The first view as we walked up from parking.
The display board at the site.
The trestle that the display train is on.
The railroad emblem on the trestle.
The display train on the trestle.
Denver and Rio Grande Western C-18 2-8-0 278 built by Baldwin in 1882.
Denver and Rio Grande Western box car 3132 built by American Car and Foundry in 1904.
Denver and Rio Grande Western caboose 0577 built by the railroad in 1886 as 93.
The display train on the trestle.
Two rear views of the display train on the trestle.
Elizabeth and the display train on the trestle. From here we drove east after some road construction to Gunnison.
Gunnison County Pioneer MuseumThis museum was closed so we did the next best thing for my lovely bride. We shot through the fence as all the train exhibits are visible through the fence along US 50.
Denver and Rio Grande Western Bumble Bee 2-6-0 268 built by Baldwin in 1882. As the railroad's oldest locomotive, 268 became part of a rolling exhibit, commemorating the D&RGW's 75th anniversary, which toured the system in 1945. It steamed daily as Cripple Creek & Tin Cup Railroad 268 with Colorado & Southern 2-6-0 9, where it became known as "Little Buttercup" because of its bright yellow livery. In 1952, 268 appeared in the movie "Denver and Rio Grande", a romanticised history of the building of the Denver & Rio Grande filmed on the railroad's Silverton Branch. In 1954, it hauled the last revenue train west of Gunnison prior to removal of the track.
In 1955, 268 was used on the wrecking train that dismantled the Crested Butte Branch tracks. It was then retired and donated to the City of Gunnison. After standing in Gunnison's City Park for three years, it was brought to Denver, where it was exhibited during the city's centennial celebration. On its return to Gunnison, it was painted black and placed in an open field at the opposite end of town from the park. 268 was subsequently restored and is now on display at the Gunnison Pioneer Museum.
Denver and Rio Grande Western gondola 710, built by American Car and Foundry in 1904.
Denver and Rio Grande Western stock car 5763, built by American Car and Foundry in 1904.
Denver and Rio Grande Western caboose 0589 built by the railroad in 1900.
View with the D&RGW Sargents station.
We left and had lunch at Subway. After lunch, we got a few miles east of Gunnison when we encountered road construction again and had to wait until it was our turn to go east. We took US 50 to Colorado 114 and went a new way over North Pass into the San Luis Valley. At Saguache we took US 285 to near Center and turned west onto Colorado 112 which took us to US 160 which took us to South Fork. We turned onto Colorado 149 and at the railroad crossing, came to our next stop, the former Denver and Rio Grande Railroad.
Detroit and Mackinac observation car 99 orginally Lake Superior and Ishpeming 21 "Munising", built by Pullman in 1901.
Butte, Anaconda and Pacific wooden coach 8, builder and year unknown.
South Fork station built in 1983, from Hooper.
Passenger equipment that has not been used between 2016 and now.
Port of Corpus Christi 25 ton switcher 1 built by General Electric.
United States Air Force 44 ton switcher 1244 built by General Electric in 1953.
Southern Pacific B30-7 7863 built by General Electric in 1979.
We decided to drive to Creede in order to the photograph the train station there. On the way, we passed another station at Wagon Wheel Gap which we would photograph on the return trip. We made it to Creede and it took a few minutes until I spotted the former Rio Grande station, now the Town Museum.
The Creede Rio Grande station built in 1891.
The main station area of the Creede Rio Grande station.
Homestake Mining 18" gauge 0-4-0CA 6 built by H.K. Porter in 1905 at the Underground Mining Museum here.
Elizabeth in Creede. We started back on the way to Alamosa but had some stops to make.
Sometimes a train would have been nice but impossible in this view.
Rio Grande Wagon Wheel Gap station built in 1883, now a private home. We received permission from the owner to take pictures.
We were surprised to see a Rio Grande handcar on the property.
Two more views of the Wagon Wheel Gap station.
A former Chesapeake and Ohio caboose 4043 in Colorado at Wagon Wheel Gap. We drove back to South Fork and I took Elizabeth to the railroad display there.
The water tower in South Fork, built in 1881.
Seaboard Coast Line coach-lounge-observation car PPCX 6401 ex. SCL 775003, nee Seaboard Airlines 6401 built by Budd in 1939
White Satin Brighton 44 ton switcher 1, ex. Amalgamated Sugar 1, exx. Amalgamated Sugar 4, exxx. Great Western 40, nee Rio Grande 40 built by General Electric in 1942.
Santa Fe business car 36 built by Pullman in 1924. From here we drove to Del Norte.
The Denver and Rio Grande Del Norte station.
Elizabeth and the Denver and Rio Grande Del Norte station. From here we drove to Monte Vista.
San Luis and Rio Grande 5904 Railway Post Office car, formerly Union Pacific 5904 built by Budd in 1963. In 1973, it became Union Pacific 903686 in Roadway Series.
Other passenger cars here.
Narrow gauge railway cars are also located here.
The Rio Grande Monte Vista station. From here we drove by the San Luis Central shops at Sugar Junction but they were all locked up tight so we headed into Alamosa and went down to see what was left of the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad. Nothing much had changed in the last four years.
Carolina Southern F7A 9163, nee Canadian National 9116 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1952.
Canadian National F7B 6622, ex. VIA 6622, nee Canadian National 6622 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1957.
Minnesota Zephyr Dinner Train F7A 787, ex. Cadillac and Lake City 71, exx. Coe Rail 716, exxx. BN 716, exxx. Burlington Northern 9756, nee SP&S 804 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1953.
Minnesota Zephyr Dinner Train F7A 788, ex. Chicago and North Western 410, nee Chicago and North Western 4082A built by Electro-Motive Division in 1949.
Views of passenger and freight cars.
Looking west and a few more passenger cars.
A line of passenger cars stored here.
SDCX Mount Hood Railroad GP9 89, ex. Minnesota Valley Railroad 306, nee Milwaukee Road 306 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1959.
SDCX Iowa Pacific E9 518, ex. Metra 518, exx. RTA 518, nee Chicago and North Western E8A 5030A built by Electro-Motive Division in 1953.
SDCX Progress Rail SD70M 4687, ex. CSX 4687, built as demonstrator 7012 by Electro-Motive Division in 1995.
BNSF C44-9W 1034, built by General Electric in 1996, here at Alamosa for high attitude testing.
SLRG F40PH 459, ex. Canadian American 459, nee Amtrak F40PHR 267 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1977.
Observation cars which may never run again. After this we drove to Arby's to get dinner to bring back to the room. We checked into the Best Western Alamosa, had dinner and I worked on the story until we finished it. Tomorrow we ride the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad from Antonito to Osier and return.
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