On Sept. 21 we rode the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad its entire length of 64 miles from Antonito CO to Chama NM, taking the bus back to Antonito. Riding the full length and bussing back was just $17 more than going to Osier and returning to Antonito. I took over 50 pictures on the trip, and the following are the better ones. This part covers the trip up to the lunch stop at Osier. (Photos taken by Canon AS1100 IS 12 mp.)
Passengers are hurrying to board at the Antonito depot. A group of French speaking people was aboard, with a translator for the Docent’s information.
The first landmark from Antonito is Hangman’s Trestle, here obscured by discharge of contaminated boiler water from the blow down cock. The trestle accidentally was burned in filming a Willie Nelson movie made there in 1988 and was rebuilt a the expense of the movie producer. The first several miles from Antonito are through sagebrush, but the scenery gets better when the train gains altitude. Our train was pulled by a model K36 Baldwin engine built in 1925, no. 484. It and its sister engines numbered in the 480 series are the most-used engines on the railroad.
The next landmark is Lava Tank. It was necessary when smaller locomotives with smaller tenders were used on the line. The larger engines used by the C&TS do not need to take on water there.
Here our train is climbing up to the ridge on the horizon, taking the curve leading to Whiplash curve at the end of the next straightaway to the right. The roadbed near the top of the ridge can be made out just below the tall pine on the horizon. One of the pictures below was taken from the train on the upper track. The tall pine also is a landmark for nearby petroglyphs.
Climbing up to Whiplash Curve
Completing Whiplash Curve at the top of the ridge, we saw at Big Horn mountain on the horizon. The track goes past the base of the mountain where a wye is located.
This is the curve before the Whiplash Curve taken from the track barely visible in one of the above shots.
Our first water stop was at the station Sublette, named for a Mountain Man. The building at the left is the bunkhouse for workers who maintained this section of the track, and the larger building is the section house for the station agent and his family.
After Sublette, the train continued to climb. Here is the downstream end of the Toltec Gorge with nice color from turning aspens toward the left.
We are entering Mud Tunnel, so named because of the loose material through which the tunnel was bored. It is completely lined by timbers.
More color from turning aspens. The changing is just beginning here.
Yet more color.
And still more, with the Rio De Los Pinos in the foreground.
Here we are nearing Osier and lunch!
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