Passenger Trains > A Busy Afternoon at Lamy NM, 6-10-08

On June 10, 2008, I spent an enjoyable afternoon in the old AT&SF junction town of Lamy NM. The former Santa Fe station there was host to a variety of passenger train movements that day.

1. The Eastbound Amtrak Southwest Chief (# 4) slows for its Lamy station stop as it passes under the U.S. Route 285 bridge just west of town.

2. Eastbound # 4 departs Lamy for Kansas City and Chicago.

3. Following # 4, an eastbound deadhead move of the Grand Luxe Express arrives Lamy from Albuquerque, where the train had been stored overnight. The passengers on the train were on various day tours within the Santa Fe area, and would shortly begin arriving on buses to board the train and head west.

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Is there a place to wye or turn a train around in ABQ? I notice the Grand Luxe Express. Is being tow Observation Car first.


But. Nice pictures

4. The eastbound Grand Luxe Express, being deadheaded backwards from Albuquerque, passes under the U.S. 285 bridge and enters the passing siding at Lamy.

5. Once the Gd Luxe Express is safely tucked into the siding, Amtrak # 3 completes its Lamy station stop and departs westbound.

6. At Lamy station, the Grand Luxe Express crew prepares to cut the locomotives from the rear of the train and run around it to place them on the head end for the upcoming trip west.

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7. The "New York" brings up the markers of the Grand Luxe Express train, soon to depart westbound.

8. Before the Grand Luxe Train leaves, however, a Santa Fe Southern (SFSR) passenger extra, being operated for a rail industry trade group having their convention in Santa Fe, heads into town over the trestle just east of the station.

9. The SFSR special arrives Lamy just as the Gd Luxe Train prepares to depart.

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10. The head end crew boards the Grand Luxe Express train to take it west from Lamy.

11. The westbound Grand Luxe Express departs Lamy, passing under Route 285 and heading for Albuquerque.

12. Renamed Ex NYC Parlor Obs "New York" brings up the rear.

Thanks for looking.

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any idea on the number of passengers on Grand luxe?

No, but there were at least ten buses that came into Lamy with Grand Luxe passengers from the various day trips around Santa Fe. I watched them board the train and it appeared to me to be fairly well patronized. It was the "National Parks Tour" trip, I think.

There is no wye in ABQ as far as I know, but they do have a turntable that I think still works. It might be a slow process to turn the whole train however. Am I right guys?

When you said a busy afternoon in Lamy I thought it a bit of an oxymoron but for Lamy it was indeed a busy afternoon. Thanks for posting the pictures. Now if they just had some period power on ye olde Grand Luxe that would take the cake. The bricks on the platform were under mud last fall when I was there. They were trying to get the depot back in shape after a b-i-g thunderstorm.

There is wye in Albuquerque. The north leg is the also the north entrance to the intermodal yard. It meets up with the south leg behind the intermodal yard and the line continues up the east side of the valley to Kirtland AFB.

I believe the Albuquerque wye was used when the Southwest Chief ran the southern (Amarillo) route -- was that last year or the year before? The wye was used so that the train could serve the Albuquerque depot, then head west (or east). I don't know if the train was wyed before or after the station stop.

Great photos of truly the best looking train in Amerika. The best paint job and the best restoration of "old school" train cars there is. Amtrak could learn something from this outfit when it comes to paint schemes and restorations.

The SW Chief ran the southern route thru Amarillo?? When?? That's a new one on me.

Amtrak considered bypassing Abq, running the SW Chief on the BNSF Transcon and running shuttle buses to/from nearest Transcon stop Belen, 32 miles south. If it happened, it was VERY short-lived. Even tho NMDOT is buying piecemeal the old Super Chief line, Raton to Belen, Amtrak still uses it, now shares the classy, new Greyhound depot in Abq, also shares that platform with new commuter line New Mexico Rail Runner, it to reach Santa Fe by December.

Number 6 is an amazing photo. The shadows just add to the scene with the classic platform and the classic equipment. You can almost imagine being taken back years ago.

-Jacob Klatt
www.jkchubbes.com

aussiehinz Wrote:
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> 9. The SFSR special arrives Lamy just as the Gd
> Luxe Train prepares to depart.

Is that the "Pony Express" I see? What a fun car to include in an excursion.

"The SW Chief ran the southern route thru Amarillo?? When?? That's a new one on me."

during the blizzard IN se colo it ran the southern route for a week or so, that was in maybe the last couple of days in 06 and 1st week or so of 07

yes that is the pony express car, it's new home is santa fe