The Rio Grande Scenic Railroad of

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

was a

heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...

that operated from 2006 to 2019 in and around the

San Luis Valley The San Luis Valley is a region in south-central Colorado with a small portion overlapping into New Mexico. The valley is approximately long and wide, extending from the Continental Divide on the northwest rim into New Mexico on the south. It co ...

as a subsidiary of the

San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad The Colorado Pacific Rio Grande Railroad (formerly the San Luis & Rio Grande Railroad) is a class III railroad operating in south-central Colorado. It runs on 154 miles of former Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad tracks on three lines radiati ...

. The heritage railroad ceased operating excursions following a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

that damaged some of their facilities, as well as the parent company SLRG entering

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

bankruptcy in late 2019.

History

The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad was chartered in 1870. The line over

La Veta Pass La Veta Pass is the name associated with two nearby mountain passes in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of south central Colorado in the United States, both lying on the boundary between Costilla and Huerfano counties. Old La Veta Pass (officiall ...

Alamosa Alamosa is a home rule municipality and the county seat of Alamosa County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 9,806 at the 2020 United States Census. The city is the commercial center of the San Luis Valley in south-central Colora ...

and Antonito was originally envisioned as part of an ambitious and never-realized narrow gauge line linking

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

with

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

. The narrow gauge tracks crossed the pass in 1877 and reached Alamosa on July 6, 1878. The railroad was pushed on to Antonito by 1880 and ultimately to Santa Fe and Silverton. The D&RG built west from Alamosa, completing the line to South Fork and its terminus at Creede in 1881. The D&RG converted the La Veta Pass and the Creede lines to standard gauge around 1900. The line to Antonito was also converted to standard gauge, but a third rail, laid to three-foot gauge, remained to Alamosa until the end of regular narrow gauge operation in 1968. Coincident with the conversion to standard gauge, the D&RG realigned the route over La Veta Pass to lower the summit, straighten curves, and reduce grades. In 1908, the D&RG was consolidated with the Rio Grande Western to form the Denver and Rio Grande Western. In 1988, the DRGW merged with the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

; the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

purchased and merged the SP in 1996. In June 2003, the UP sold the Walsenburg – Alamosa line and its other lines in the San Luis Valley to shortline railroad conglomerate

RailAmerica RailAmerica, Inc., based in Jacksonville, Florida, was a holding company of a number of short-line railroads and regional railroads in the United States and Canada. In 2007, RailAmerica was acquired by Fortress Investment Group. Before that, it ...

. RailAmerica sold the SLRG to

Iowa Pacific Holdings Iowa Pacific Holdings was a holding company that owned railroad properties across North America and the United Kingdom, as well as providing services such as railcar repairs, leasing, management and consulting services to other operators. The comp ...

in December 2005. Iowa Pacific established the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad in 2006. Trains operated over the

Sangre de Cristo Mountains ) , country= United States , subdivision1_type= States , subdivision1= , parent= Rocky Mountains , geology= , orogeny= , area_mi2= 17193 , range_coordinates= , length_mi= 242 , length_orientation= north-south , width_mi= 120 , w ...

via Veta Pass and from Alamosa to Antonito, where passengers could connect with the

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

Cumbres and Toltec. Between 2007 and 2013, the fan trips would often be pulled by a

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

. First, there was Ex-

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

2-6-0 “Mogul” type No. 1744, but it was taken out of service quickly due to

firebox Firebox may refer to: *Firebox (steam engine), the area where the fuel is burned in a steam engine *Firebox (architecture), the part of a fireplace where fuel is combusted *Firebox Records Firebox Records was a Finnish record label based in S ...

issues. The only other steam locomotive that operated on the SLRG was Ex- Lake Superior and Ishpeming 2-8-0 “consolidation” type No. 18. The San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad discontinued the passenger excursions in 2019 following a

that damaged the Fir Concert Grounds, and then later when the railroad entered bankruptcy and began liquidating unnecessary assets. This liquidation involved the sale of locomotives and rolling stock to the

Colebrookdale Railroad The Colebrookdale Railroad, also known as the Secret Valley Line, is a tourist railroad located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The railroad operates between Boyertown in Berks County and Pottstown in Montgomery County. Operations The Cole ...

and the

Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad , sometimes shortened to Reading and Northern Railroad, is a regional railroad in eastern Pennsylvania. Its headquarters is in Port Clinton. The RBMN provides freight service on of track. Its mainl ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Locomotives

The Rio Grande Scenic Railroad collection included both vintage

steam locomotives A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

and

diesel locomotives A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving wheels ...

. Notably, they operated former

Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad The Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad , is a U.S. railroad offering service from Marquette, Michigan, to nearby locations in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It began operations in 1896. The LS&I continues to operate as an independent railroad f ...

locomotive #18, built by the

American Locomotive Company The American Locomotive Company (often shortened to ALCO, ALCo or Alco) was an American manufacturer of locomotives, diesel generators, steel, and tanks that operated from 1901 to 1969. The company was formed by the merger of seven smaller locomo ...

at its Pittsburgh works in 1910. This locomotive previously operated on the

Grand Canyon Railway The Grand Canyon Railway is a heritage railroad which carries passengers between Williams, Arizona, and the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The railroad, built by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, was completed on September 1 ...

and the

Mount Hood Railroad The Mount Hood Railroad is a heritage and shortline freight railroad located in Hood River, Oregon, east of Portland, Oregon, United States. The majority of the railroad's revenue is generated from passenger excursions although a few smal ...

, and following the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad's dissolution, it is now owned by the

. They also owned former

locomotive #1744, which was sold to the

Pacific Locomotive Association The Pacific Locomotive Association, Inc. (PLA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the physical aspects and atmosphere of Pacific Coast railroading during the period from 1910 to 1960. The Pacific Locomotive Association ...

and moved to the

Niles Canyon Railway The Niles Canyon Railway (NCRy) is a heritage railway running on the first transcontinental railroad alignment (1866, 1869) through Niles Canyon, between Sunol and the Niles district of Fremont in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, ...

Rolling Stock

The Rio Grande Scenic operated a collection of historic passenger cars in their excursion service, including: * Five remodeled

dome car A dome car is a type of railway passenger car that has a glass dome on the top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train. It also can include features of a coach, lounge car, dining car, sleeping car or obse ...

s for railroad sightseeing, with a glass roof on top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train; * 1920s-era Pullman built modernised Heavyweight archroof “open-window” cars with bench-style seating for passengers and the option of opening windows. These cars were built for the Southern Railway between 1924 and 1926 and came to the Rio Grande Scenic from Mount Hood; * 1920s-era Pullman built Heavyweight Open Air Observation No 1056 “Lookout Mountain”. This open air observation car was built for the Southern Railway as coach 1595 and later rebuilt into an open air observation (eventually 2 other open air coaches (without rear platforms) followed No 1069 “Missionary Ridge” and 1070 “W. Graham Claytor”) and was heavily used on the Southern Railway Steam Specials between 1966 and 1987, finally coming to the Rio Grande Scenic from Mount Hood.; * 1950s-era restored Pullman Coaches with large sealed windows, heating, air conditioning, and concessions; * Lounge Car ‘Mardi Gras’ restored first-class lounge car with floor-to-ceiling observation windows in a rounded end observation lounge. This car was rebuilt from a coach by the Illinois Central for use on the ‘City of New Orleans’. Legend has it this was the car that the song of the same name was written in. After a stint in service behind N&W 611 the car returned to Illinois Central livery around 2010.; * Lounge Car ‘Calumet Club’ restored first-class lounge car with flat (or “blind end”) observation windows in a flat end observation lounge. * Dining Car 448 Former New York Central stainless steel fluted side lightweight dining car, restored and used in food service.

Special events

The Rio Grande Scenic operated a variety of special events, including Mother's Day Brunch in the dome cars, Rails & Ales Brewfest, Jazz on the Tracks mountain concerts, Oktoberfest, fall foliage and pumpkin patch rides; and the Train to Christmas Town.

References

External links