Why they never had to re-lay track at Leadville

from O Gauge Forum

Layin’ track.  That’s what the folks did in Central City when they wanted to build a tourist operation that opened in 1968.  That’s what the SeaBees did when they helped restore the Georgetown Loop.  That’s what another group did when they rebuilt the Central City tourist line again in the late 1980’s.  And that’s what has been happening in Como over the last year.  Layin’ track.

So, why didn’t the Leadville, Colorado and Southern have to lay any track?  There’s a curious little story about that.

from Burlingtonroute.org

There was enough traffic from the Climax Molybdenum mine that, while the rest of the narrow gauge was gone by 1941, the isolated Climax to Leadville line was standard gauged in 1943.  This kept the line running for almost four decades longer despite its only connection with the outside world being via the Rio Grande connection in Leadville.

In 1981, Amax, the owner of the Molybdenum mine, closed it down.  By this point the Burlington Northern had fully absorbed the C&S.  BN then listed the Climax-Leadville line as abandoned, but never requested authorization to pull up the rails.  The reason for this is that Pat Wadsworth, Amax’s public relations director said, “‘Even if the mine wasn’t running we still wanted the railroad connection.”  The mine did reopen here and there post-1981 and,

from Climaxmolybdenum.com

possibly, the company didn’t want to lose its connection in case things ramped up again.  He apparently put some pressure on the Burlington Northern to keep the line.  Wadsworth stated, “‘We made it clear that we could move a lot of that traffic [significant coal traffic that Amax currently shipped elsewhere via the BN] to other railroads if the Burlington really tried to abandon the Climax line.’”

In the words of Ed Quillen in Colorado Central Magazine, “that threat from Amax-which could mean years of expensive litigation for the Burlington, as well as the loss of a good customer-probably explains why the Burlington was willing to offer one hell of a bargain in 1988 [other sources say December 1987].”

from Trip Advisor

This bargain was as follows: For $10, you could have “a dozen miles of track, along with two diesel locomotives, various cars and cabooses and maintenance equipment, and the roundhouse” as long as you promised to keep the line operable.

The takers?  Leadville residents, Ken and Stephanie Olsen.

After five brief months of rebuilding several freight cars to carry tourists and renovating the old, brick Leadville depot, they began running the Leadville, Colorado & Southern on Memorial Day of 1988.  According to Stephanie Olsen this name was chosen “‘because everybody here called it the Colorado & Southern.  We couldn’t use that name, and we did want Leadville in the name.’”

Ownership of the LC&S has since been passed down to the Olsen's children: Derrick Olsen and Kirstin (Olsen) Ayers and her husband Steven.

The line still runs today from May to October taking passengers on a 2 1/2 hour trip from Leadville to close to Climax and back.

from LC&S Facebook page

Sources:

“How an isolated Railroad Kept Running for 119 Years” by Ed Quillen.  Colorado Central Magazine. 1 September 2003.  http://cozine.com/2003-september/how-an-isolated-railroad-kept-running-for-119-years/

Leadville, Colorado & Southern website. Www.leadville-train.com.  Accessed 26 February 2018.

"The Leadville Train: Sit Back and Enjoy the Fall Colors" by Kathy Bedell.  Leadville Today.  12 September 2014.