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Cumbres & Toltec Engine #484 prepares to get
underway.
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COLORADO
& NEW MEXICO—
In August 2004, I rode the Cumbres
& Toltec Scenic Railroad from Antonito, CO to Chama, NM. The
railroad runs over the Cumbres Pass and through the Toltec Gorge.
The train runs one way per day,
and the railroad arranges for a motor coach to the departure station
from the other end. I stayed in Chama and took the coach to Antonito,
arriving there about 20 minutes ahead of boarding time.
With time to kill, I took a look
at the C&TSR's most venerable locomotive -- No. 463, once
owned by Gene Autry, is presently awaiting restoration in the
Antonito engine house. In operation until recently, perhaps it
will be again after restoration. Number 463 is a Baldwin steam
locomotive built in 1903. It's a "Mikado," the railroading
name for a 2-8-2 locomotive. "2-8-2" refers to the configuration
of its wheels; two leading wheels, eight drivers, and two wheels
trailing. All the narrow gauge engines operated on the C&TSR
(and the Durango line) are Mikados. They were the most powerful
locomotives operated on narrow gauge railways. Old #463 looks
pretty sad today, but perhaps brighter days are ahead.
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Exiting "The Narrows" north of Chama,
New Mexico
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After visiting the engine house,
I boarded the train. The train consisted of an open-air "gondola,"
several coaches with large roll-down windows (in case you want
to breathe in the aromas and textures of cinders and smoke), and
a snack/gift shop car. There was a "first class" parlor
car for those that paid for the extra comfort and privilege. I
took my seat in coach and stayed in it most of the day. While
many passengers stayed on the gondola, I enjoyed the views from
the coach just as much.
The first part of the day sees
the train climbing slowly out of Antonito, across valleys, over
trestles, up hills and ridges, through tunnels, and around several
curves where the train doubles back on itself and you can wave
to the engineer as he waves back at you! A small electric utility
car follows the train, armed with a couple of hands, shovels and
water to put out any fires caused by a locomotive that burns 4,000
lbs of coal on each 64 mile trip, all hand-shoveled.
Lunch is at Osier, with a choice
of entrees; seconds are encouraged. Afterward, the train winds
its way along a canyon above Los Pinos Creek, over Cumbres Pass
and down a 4% grade into Chama. Along the way, I saw cowboys and
their dogs working a herd on a distant hillside, elk and deer,
and I got to stare down in awe 137 feet to the bottom of the canyon
at Cascade Creek, from the train's seemingly precarious perch
on the trestle above.
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Steaming north through Chama Valley
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Just below Cumbres Pass, the
line runs around "Windy Point," where the rails cling
to a rock ledge several hundred feet above the valley floor. The
grade was blasted out of the rock sides of the mountain. This
cut is still world-famous today as an example of "extreme"
railroad engineering.
Once past Windy Point, the engineer
does a spectacular "brake check" which results in jets
of steam shooting from the sides of the locomotive for 20-30 feet
or more. Then the train slowly moves down the mountain and the
Chama Valley, and the ride is done. Along the way, the crew points
out a water tank constructed for an "Indiana Jones"
movie -- in which the hero swings onto a train from the water
spout. The water tank is there for you to see, a bit of movie
memorabilia in the mountains of northern New Mexico. Ironically,
the tank, built for the movie, was never used by the railroad!
The ride ended in Chama at about 4:30 p.m. All in all, it was
a great day of railroading!
