Ride the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad from Durango to Silverton, Colorado in 1965 (Part 2)
In August of 1965, my father (Dr. L.N. McGillis) and I visited Durango, Colorado. One of the highlights of our visit was a ride on the old Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW) from Durango to Silverton,
forty-five miles north. At the time of our visit, the Durango to
Silverton line was already 83 years old. By the 1960s, steam
locomotives had largely disappeared from the main railroad lines
throughout the U.S.
Today, over forty-eight years later, a few heritage lines like the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
continue to roll. What makes the Durango & Silverton line
interesting to me is how little it has changed since its inception the
1880s. Although heavier tracks now support the larger K-36 “480 Series” locomotives both those and the original K-28 “470 Series” locomotives began service in the early 1920s.
Built to roll on tracks that measured a mere 3 ft. between their rail
heads, the 470 Series engines were purpose-built for the narrow gauge.
The larger, 480 Series engines started life at standard gauge,
measuring 4 ft. 8 1⁄2 in. from wheel flange to wheel flange. In 1965,
old rails, which weighed about 45 lb. per yard, lay stacked alongside
the tracks in many places. In preparation for the heavier 480 Series
engines entering into service on the line, crews installed new tracks
weighing up to 90 lb. per yard.
In
preparation for our 1965 excursion, my father and I had visited the
Durango Depot early in the morning. With our film cameras in hand, we
had snapped pictures of the first section, powered by Engine No. 476
as it departed Durango for Silverton. Soon, it was time for us to
board the second section, led by Engine No. 478. In those days, the
tender cars of both engines featured a stylized “Rio Grande” logo. Reflecting a change of ownership in the early 1980s, the same trains today feature the “Durango & Silverton” name.
Although Engine No. 478 sported a traditional black and silver paint
scheme, the ten passenger cars in our train were painted bright orange,
with black trim and silver roofs. At that time, each passenger car
still featured a rooftop chimney. In earlier days, the chimneys vented
coal-fired stoves, which heated the cars during the colder months.
Although most of the passenger cars on the line today retain their
traditional livery, the stovepipes are now gone.
After we departed the Durango Depot, the steam whistle sounded each time the train approached another grade crossing.
With no less than eight grade crossings in town, the engineer and
fireman were busy watching for cross traffic and letting the steam
whistle wail. After making its way across the Animas River Bridge north
of town, the train began its slow ascent through the picturesque Upper Animas Valley.
Unlike
current diesel locomotives, steam engines use a constant flow of water
to recharge their boilers. At the old Hermosa Station, we stopped to
fill the water tank on the tender car. Once we were moving again, the
2-8-2 Mikado began a more serious climb into the former San Juan mining
district. In the 1880s, passenger and freight service to the numerous
mines was the original impetus for laying tracks up the series of steep
grades. Built in less than two years, construction required the
blasting of solid rock from the canyon walls. Construction crews
shuttled the resulting rubble to create a riverside bench for tracks
laid along the lower sections of the line. Despite periodic flooding
along the Animas River, the rubble rock staved off the floods and
supported the tracks. Over one hundred thirty years after railroad
tracks first linked Durango and Silverton, the route remains
essentially unchanged.
In
the early twentieth century, when regional gold and silver mining
collapsed, various abandoned mines remained, some hanging precariously
on the canyon walls. Built with wood from nearby forests, many were
unpainted and thus exposed to the elements. In 1965, we were amazed to
see how many of the old mines remained in the Animas River Canyon. In
the 1960s, they were a picturesque reminder of an earlier day. In the
1960s, professional photographers hiked up into the canyon and
meticulously photographed every remnant of that short lived but
industrious time in Southeastern Colorado. Many of the photographs
found their way into wall calendars of the era. While researching this
article, I was sorry to find that none of those earlier mine photos has
survived on the internet.
In order to personalize our photographs of the journey, I hiked from one
end of the train to the other. Whenever we would go around a dramatic
curve, I would lean out from a platform or a window. At that time, no
one told us to keep our heads, hands and arms inside the train. By the
time we finished our trip, we had many images of me looking back toward
the camera, or rounding a curve and one as we pulled into the
Silverton Depot.
As
first time passengers on the Durango & Silverton line, we did not
realize how long it would take to complete the trip. Including time for
several water stops along the way, the train took three and one half
hours to travel the forty-five mile route. That meant we averaged just
less than thirteen miles per hour. As exciting and interesting as the
experience was, we were happy to arrive in Silverton in time for a late
lunch.
Until its peak in the early 1900s, Silverton had serviced the needs of
miners from throughout the high country. By the 1960s, Silverton was
living off its legacy as a former mining and commercial center. Many
buildings were empty and falling into disrepair. Land and property in
the remote town was selling at an all-time low. Only a few restaurants
and old time hotels supported the town. When I visited again in 2007, I
met a white haired old man who had bought property in Silverton in the
1970’s. As modest as the man was, the list of properties he then owned
in town was worth in the millions of dollars.
In
the 1960s, passengers could wait in line for a chance to visit with the
engineer in the cab of the locomotive. When it was his turn, my father
climbed into the cab of Engine No. 478 and took a seat in the
fireman’s location. In the picture that I took of him that day, looking
forward and down the track, he looked every bit like a professional
railroad engineer.
Although the steam engine was huge, the area between the cab and the
tender was not spacious. There was barely room for the fireman to take a
scoop of coal, step on the lever that opened the firebox door and toss
the fuel in. Like a pizza oven, the idea was to minimize the frequency
and duration of door openings, thus keeping the firebox hot at all
times.
While
waiting in Silverton for our return trip to Durango, we had time to
inspect all of the running gear on the huge engine. Dripping hot water
and emitting small jets of steam were the twin air-brake compressors
that hung low and wide near the front of the engine. Using a system
originally devised by George Westinghouse in 1868, steam from the
boiler would occasionally cycle into each compressor. There, a steam
driven piston would pump air into a reservoir. Within the Westinghouse
air-brake system, low pressure in the brake lines activated the
brakes. With the train parked on level ground at Silverton, the
occasional cycling of the air brake compressor was the only sound that
the engine made. When it was time to depart, the Head Brakeman used a
valve within the cab to increase pressure in the lines, thus releasing
the air-brakes along the full length of the train.
After
a couple of hours in Silverton, a blast from the steam whistle
indicated that it was almost time to depart for Durango. In those days,
the train parked head-in at the station throughout the visit. Upon
departure, workers threw manual switches along the tracks, thus
allowing the engineer to back the train on to a wye track.
Once safely on the wye, other switches were thrown, thus allowing the
train to proceed down canyon toward Durango. Over time, these
procedures have changed. Now, while the passengers are enjoying lunch
in Silverton, the trains back on to the wye, pull forward briefly and
then backs into the Silverton station. When it is time to go, the
engine is facing in the correct direction for travel.
When
the old Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad began service between
Durango and Silverton, the train was far faster than the wagon road
previously used. Today, that is no longer the case. Although the route
of U.S. Highway 550 (the Million Dollar Highway)
between the two towns is three miles longer than the rail line, it
takes only an hour to make the trip by automobile. With a three and one
half hour train trip back to Durango, the final hour of travel can
become tedious. Passengers now have the option of taking a motor coach
in one direction and the train the other direction. Also today,
passengers can opt for more luxurious seating, beverage service and
snacks in one of several parlor cars.
Any
way you go, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is piece
of American history that travels through some spectacular scenery.
Several times in its history, the railroad almost went broke. With its
current popularity, the line now boasts up to three trains per day
during the peak summer season. With that revenue stream, I expect to
see the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad prosper for many
years to come.
This Part Two of a two-part article. To read Part One, Click HERE.
By James McGillis at 03:00 PM | Travel | Comments (0) | Link
_lg.JPG "The Million Dollar Highway, Silverton, Colorado - Click for larger image (http://jamesmcgillis.com)")
