The Ultimate Narrow Gauge Charter - or 5 Days on the Rio Grande

This is awesome! Um, have I missed something, but how do you get all these cool shots if you're riding the trains? Or do go ahead, shoot, then leapfrog, then shoot again?

 

Thanks, guys!

On a typical photo charter, the train drops everyone off at a scenic location and then backs up and does one or more runbys before picking up the photographers and moving on to the next location where the process is repeated.

Sometimes, like this charter, part of the line is easily chased by car and the charter operator will organize a car chase over that portion of the line and then have everyone board the train at a predetermined spot, but that is somewhat rare. ; At the C&TS, I didn't ride any of the line between Chama and Cumbres Pass since we chased that by car the three days we covered that part of the line. ;

 

Holy S$%# Michael! ; I missed these earlier today! ; Outstanding! ; I really love the shot with the "water tower" and the Cresco Trestle. ;

 

Thanks, John! ; Wait 'till I get to the east end of the line... I'm saving the best for last

 

Looking forward to that!!

 

Yep, all we have in Indiana is corn. ; Although a local theme park says "there is more in Indiana than corn" ; although I haven't found it except for maybe some soybeans. ; Maybe they can get some trains to run through Brown County Dennis, that would be some good scenes.

 

Fantastic shots, Michael. ; I have ridden the Durango-Silverton and the White Pass & Yukon. ; I would love to have been along on this trip. ; The black & whites are particularly stunning.

 

Thanks Bill!

 

Now for the rest of the climb up the 4% grade to Cumbres Pass.

About a mile and a half up the hill is Hamilton's Point which is believed to have been named for L.C. Hamilton who was a D&RG (predecessor to the D&RGW) division superintendent in 1881. ; An early W.H. Jackson photograph refers to this location as "White Rock Point." ; The exact location of Hamilton's Point is debated, although most seem to think this location is the correct one:



The next runby location was Coxo Crossing where the tracks cross Rt. 17. ; I won't share any photos from there since the wind conspired against the photographers both days that we shot there and blew the plume back over the train completely hiding it in our photos since we were shooting from high above the crossing. ; From there the train continued on to Windy Point where the line rounds a volcanic rock formation that is often photographed from below. ; The light wasn't good from below when we got there, so we elected to shoot it from the opposite peak from a location known as Rodger's Rock which is about 200-250ft above the track level at Windy Point. ; First a closeup of the train rounding the point:



And a wider shot that one of my fellow railfan photographers likes to refer to as a "Steamscape" where the train becomes a small part of a larger scene:



From Windy Point, the train only has a short climb to the summit of Cumbres Pass where the line tops out at 10,015ft. ; Here we catch an Eastbound train starting the decent to Chama. ; The yellow building in the distance is the Cumbres Section House where track maintenance crews were stationed which was built in 1882:



The pass was a constant problem from a snow standpoint during the D&RGW days. ; Early on, there was a covered turntable at the summit to turn the locomotives which was eventually removed when the newer locomotives became too long to use the table. ; Later on, the two legs of the wye at Cumbres Pass was covered with a massive 526ft long snowshed. ; Due to lack of maintenance, most of the shed collapsed in the late 1970's leaving only one section standing which the Friends of the Cumbers and Toltec have preserved since it is the last standing example of a snow shed on the narrow gauge:



The charter operator offered a unique night shoot opportunity at the top of the Pass one evening. ; Since a second crew was necessary due to the long day running from Antonito to Chama exceeding the maximum work hours for the train crews, the second crew was able to keep one locomotive at the top of the pass until 9:30pm. ; Given the clear skies and almost non-existant light pollution, I jumped at the opportunity to shoot a locomotive under the stars. ; Most of the 60 charter participants apparently weren't interested in staying at the pass in freezing temperatures and blustery winds for a couple of photos since there were only 8 of us at the shoot, but the photos were definitely worth the effort.

487 simmers under the stars while a tractor trailer speeds by:



487 on the trestle just below the Section House where the tracks crossed over the old Rt 17 alignment:



487 shot from the other side of the trestle illuminated by the moon. ; It's hard to see due to the moonlight, but the milky way crosses through the upper right corner of the shot:



I had never seen the milky way before due to all of the light pollution we have on the east coast, so the night before the charter, I went up to the pass by myself to get some shots in case the weather didn't cooperate during the planned shoot later in the trip. ; This shot was taken standing next to the Section House looking down the tracks toward Antonito:



And last for today is a shot of the milky way over the Section House when it first became visible after sunset:

 

What Roger said! ; More outstanding stuff! ; I remember the only time I was in Colorado in the summer and looked up at the stars I was amazed! ; It was hard to find the black spots between the stars there were so many.

 

Thanks guys!

 

Love those night shots!



Erich

 

Thanks Erich!

 

Next stop heading east is a location called Tanglefoot Curve where the line runs around a large horseshoe curve and then doubles back higher on the same hillside in an effort to slowly gain elevation heading west to Cumbres Pass. ; Though unconfirmed, legend has it that brakemen would hop off the train on the lower track, walk up the hill to the upper track and jump back aboard the train.



And a shot from the horseshoe curve at the far end of Tanglefoot. ; In the distance you can really see the elevation difference between the upper and lower tracks:



Next we catch the train running westbound toward Cumbres Pass late in the afternoon in a location known as Apache Canyon:



Heading east from there, we reach the beautiful Los Pinos Valley where we catch a westbound train running along the hillside west of the water tank:



Then at the water tank which is no longer used by the railroad:



And again from the same hillside as before, but this time the train is crossing the trestle in the distance:



Another shot of the trestle from the valley floor:



One freight passing another at the siding just west of the trestle:



East of the trestle, the Rio de los Pinos passes close to the tracks:



From there we head east to Cascade Trestle which is a popular spot for photo charters:



A wider view of the trestle from the edge of the hillside. ; If you look closely you can see some of the charter participants on the valley floor. ; I hear the view was amazing from down there, but I was done climbing hills for the day and opted to stay up top:

 

Thanks, Dennis! ; I'd love to see the slides from the convention trip. ; Was that one of the years they painted the boiler jacket green?

 

Darn it, for some reason I can't get the theme music for Petticoat Junction out of my head!



Erich