Steam & Excursion > A not-so-perfect day on the Narrow Gauge

A few days ago I posted photos taken on the Durango & Silverton in 2011. The following photos were taken on a trip organized by Dave Gross in February 2007, and things didn't go quite as well.

1. Our track authority for the day.

2. We departed Durango a little after 7:30am, and stopped for water at Hermosa. From there, the line begins its climb out of the valley. We crossed US 550, started up the grade . . . and stalled.

The crew first attributed the stall to sticking brakes, and backed downhill to get a run at the grade. After another stall, we were told that one of the cylinder cocks had malfunctioned, and was causing a loss of power.

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3 - 4 - 5. The engineer managed to get the train moving, and a mechanical crew met the train at Rockwood to repair the cylinder cock.

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6. Normally, it's about 70 minutes from Durango to Rockwood. We have been on the road over 3 hours now as we make our way along the high line and head north.

7. The story thus far.

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8. Finally, at Noon, we are set up for our first runby of the day . . .

9. When a snow squall makes visibility near zero. So far, this trip has been a complete bust.

10. OK, all is forgiven. I can go home now, it's going to be hard to top this one.

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11 - 12 - 13. We reboard the train and travel about a mile north. The river is frozen over - the more cautious stay on the roadbed, but several of us venture out onto the ice, or over to the far bank.

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14. We had to step across a small gap in the ice, and our weight took a toll on the size of the gap. There's a suspension bridge across the river a short distance upstream, but the crew fashions a makeshift bridge for us, and soon we are on our way to Needleton.

15 - 16. Needleton tank had recently been restored, and we spent some time here taking photos from several angles.

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17 - 18. After turning the train at Cascade, we make our way back to Durango, stopping for a couple of runbys along the way.

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The next day is sunny, and cold. Frost covers the trees in white - it's truly a winter wonderland, and we are looking forward to the day.

19. A friend elected to chase the train to Rockwood - this is his 2007 Christmas card. I include this photo because none of us on the train get anything like this - as we head for Hermosa, we hear that the locomotive is steaming poorly. Another mechanical crew is sent to meet us at Hermosa.

20 - 21. Joel is not happy with 478's performance today.

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22 - 23 - 24. The blastpipe is held in place by four bolts. One of the bolt holes has cracked, and the blast pipe is no longer aimed properly. The crew makes an effort to tack-weld it in place for the day, but to no avail.

D&SNG employees are very apologetic, but the general consensus among the photographers is "this is kind of cool."

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Standby locomotive 482 is sent to take over our train.

25. We take a few photos waiting for our substitute locomotive to arrive, then board the train for a quick swap and departure.

26. Shortly after Noon, we are finally on our way into the canyon.

27. After a few hours the canyon, we make our way back to the high line.

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Excellent photos. Looks like fun.

28. Somewhere between Rockwood and the river bridge.

29. Our hosts, Dave and Jean, pose with the crew. Dave has sworn many times during the trip that this is his last time organizing a photo special. Luckily, he didn't follow through, and put together a few more.

30. One last runby through Rockwood cut and we board for the return to Durango.

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Great photos and great story. Those of us who choose to put on these charters know that from time to time you are going to get snake-bit.

Martin

Lots of winners here! Thanks for the post.

John.

Great photos (I especially like numbers 16 & 17) and narrative!

But its all part of real time railroading not just photo shoots. Wouldn't have mattered to me as like the photos taken in the snow storm, everyone has seen the perfect photo on the sunny day but how many have photos like that of real time railroading. Its taking what you get and they look great to me, just hope in that one of the river crossing no one got wet.

I've been on many a photo charter, and there are often a few problems. This one had more than it deserved, but it sure makes a great story, and still provided some very good images. Thanks for sharing this!

Steve Mitchell
http://www.yardgoatimages.com

While I sympathize with the crew's frustration it does provide a real-world example of the challenges of rail operations on that line. The photo's, especially those in the driving snow, are really great. It was never warm and sunny up in the high and windy every day and this is a great reminder of what crews faced "back in the day".

Mountain railroading, wherever it is, offers a real challenge to man and machine.

Thanks for sharing the photos and the narrative. A tip of the hat to the crew as well.

John

Nothing to see here folks. Just some boring old train pictures. Cancel my TO. NOT!!!!!!

Oh my what an amazing series.

Great photos. I'm curious about the Needleton tank though. You obviously took water there, but the warrant said it was out of service.