Video following the C&S Ry. from Tunnel Gulch Tank to Woodstock (Part 6)

I have a new video in a series of videos following the less-famous stretch of the right-of-way to the Alpine Tunnel from Pitkin to Woodstock.

Part 6 of this series follows the DSP&P/C&S route from the restored Tunnel Gulch Water Tank to the townsite of Woodstock.  A few rock cribbing walls (approximate locations) are pointed out.  The upper grade that leads to the west portal of Alpine Tunnel, while blocked from view by trees, is above to the left of the grade here.  The crossing of the Alpine & South Park toll (wagon) road is also pointed out.  Curiously, Part 5 was posted a year ago around Thanksgiving.  One year later, I finally came through with another part!

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!

Kurt Maechner

A First Visit to Platte Canon, part 2

This is part 2 of my recent October 2022 visit to a portion of the abandoned Platte Canon route of the Colorado & Southern narrow gauge.  Part 1 can be found here. 

 Webster

The remains of the Webster water tank

Our next stop was the site of Webster, a place where C&S trains, both east and westbound, would stop for water.  We parked in a rutted road on the right which led to a very old cemetery on the hillside.  In the distance, on the left side of 285 are the remains of the Webster water tank.  Only the base is present and a field is in the place where the mainline and the siding large enough for 43 cars once were.  Unfortunately, the supports seem to be on a gated property so we could only snap shots from afar.  I would have loved to get up close to it!  Someone later commented on a forum that he had found the owner friendly to visitors, but we didn't know it at the time.  The beams look quite sturdy for a structure that hasn’t seen a train for over eighty years.  

The westbound tracks used to curve to the right shortly after the water tank.  The railroad then crossed 285 from left to right here.  On the right, the roadbed is now Colorado 60 for part of the way until the railroad made a horseshoe curve back to the highway and began its climb towards Kenosha Pass.  We took a short jaunt up this gravel road for a few minutes and turned back around, surrounded by vibrant aspen leaves.  

Colorado 60, the old C&S grade

Back on 285 the railroad was on the right, higher up on the hillside.  Along this stretch there are some palisade rock walls supporting the grade, but unfortunately, as the driver, I couldn’t see them.  The right-of-way crossed to the left at another spot, near railroad milepost 73, which we could not identify in passing.  

Hoosier

Colorado 58, the old C&S grade

Our next point of interest was where the route crossed 285 from left to right near a siding for nine cars known as Hoosier.  To the right, then, Colorado 58 comes off of 285 and is on the roadbed (though it parallels the road to the right slightly at some point) up Hall Valley until it curves off left at the Dake townsite (where large charcoal kilns once stood to the right of the roadbed) into a balloon loop, crossing the North Fork of the South Platte River, and then travels through a cut and returns parallel but higher again than 285.  

ROW curves left up ahead. Cut is barely visible at left

We drove onto the dirt C 58 road, noticing a moose mud hole on our left that Tom Klinger told us to watch for.  He said you can sometimes see moose there, but it was vacant at our visit.  We kept looking for the turnoff of the roadbed to the left, and I thought I found it.  I precariously took my rental car on a bumpy one-lane dirt track for a little bit.  From my Google Earth maps, I knew the railroad line would keep turning left, which our road did for a little while, but when the road started curving sharply right, I had the inkling we were not on the roadbed.  Later map research revealed that I had missed the ROW and instead was driving on C 811.  Needless to say, we turned around and headed back to 285 to continue the climb up Kenosha Pass. 

Kenosha Pass

Rebuilt main line, curving into stub end of wye to the left. Long ties at right would have been mainline

Finally, we reached the top of Kenosha Pass which was littered on left and right with a multitude of cars.  Visitors flooded the area to take in the fall mountain beauty.  We pulled off to the left and drove between parallel fences to another parking spot at the hiking trailheads.  From there we backtracked on foot to the partially rebuilt Kenosha wye where helper engines once turned after assisting trains up grade.  We started walking on the tracks from what was the stub end of the wye.  The right hand side, eastbound from our walking direction, of the narrow gauge wye is completely rebuilt.  A switch leading west leads to a short several feet of track.  The switch at this point is a stub switch and I got a chance to explain to my daughter how it worked since you can actually turn the switch stand.  Unfortunately, there is no connection to the rail.  

Stub end of wye out of sight to right

Following the longer rebuilt portion to the right (east) there are some longer ties that make it appear that there were (are?) plans for a switch to build more track that would potentially connect both ends of the wye, but the ties remain rail-less for now.  The wye would need to cross the road to the trailheads too, which seems unlikely.  

    A good deal of coal dust trails the tracks.  At several spots there are good historical signs detailing the railroad and the wye.  One sign also pointed out the still-present wetland to the east that shows up in photos from the railroad era.  

The South Park

The great South Park

We hopped back into our Nissan and crested the vista where the South Park explodes into your senses as this sweeping flatland extends gloriously into the distance surrounded by stalwart mountain peaks.  This view makes it very clear why the railroad enshrined the name “South Park” in both its name and advertising.  What a sight!

The grade coming down the pass. Cut in distance

The C&S right-of-way is down below the highway on the mountainside at left.  Tom Klinger told me to look for a right hand pull off for viewing it farther down the mountainside.  I tried the first one, ran across 285, but couldn’t see anything.  We drove down to the next one, about half way down the mountain.  Then my daughter and I rushed across to the left and, sure enough, one could see, looking upgrade and left, the roadbed snaking its way down from the pass.  A cut, while distant, is easily visible upgrade to the left.  As the grade passed in front of us and down the slope to the floor of the South Park, one can make it out, though it is quite faint.  

Jefferson

Jefferson depot, soon to be an Airbnb

We scurried back to our car, drove downgrade, passing where the roadbed crosses to the right of 285, and entered into that great expanse, finally reaching the old, but still living town of Jefferson where the 1880 DSP&P depot still stands right off the highway.  The adjacent Hungry Moose Caboose restaurant, reopened for the first time in three years and under new ownership, was our place to stop for lunch.  The restaurant sits right on top of what would have been the west leg of the Jefferson wye.  

While we weren’t adventurous enough to order “The Trainwreck” sandwich which we were told by the owner was “huge” (In fact, you can buy a T-shirt that says “I survived the Trainwreck”), we indulged on a truly delectable bacon cheeseburger made from beef from a ranch just five miles away.  

BN caboose in primer west of Jefferson depot

While eating, we got to chat with the owner.  He and his wife own both the restaurant and also the depot.  They live in the former depot presently and are in the process of converting it to be an Airbnb rental.  They hope to have it available next spring 2023.  Recently, the couple replaced all the original station windows to make it better insulated.  The old windows are sitting in the yard.  He explained that all the exterior and interior walls are original and the ticket window still exists as well.  As if this hard work wasn’t enough, he acquired a standard gauge Burlington Northern caboose and put it on a short stretch of track on the old roadbed just west of the station and plans to convert it to a two-person Airbnb rental too.  

We asked him what it’s like to live in such a small town.  He remarked that he loved it, loved the quiet, and loved the closeness to nature.  There are 15 residents in Jefferson right now and the Community Center, across the highway next to the historic Jefferson school building with its old-time bell tower, offers a way to connect with neighbors.  Winters, he remarked, are challenging as it is very cold and very windy.  This reminded me of photos and stories I’ve seen of South Park cars being blown off tracks in the area.  It also explained the reason for those odd, wooden vestibules built outside the doors of the Como depot.  The South Park gets serious wind!

Como

Line to Denver at left.  Eating House, depot, & roundhouse in distance

    After our delicious lunch my daughter and I got back on 285 to head west toward Como.  The roadbed is on the right, but it was hard for me to identify it at times, at least while driving.  It looked as if the power line poles that parallel the highway beginning shortly west of Jefferson might be on the ROW.  At one location I caught sight of what once must have been a short trestle over a gully where the bridge posts still stick up from the ground. 

Repainted C&S 8311, formerly on display at Boreas Pass

    Our official last railroad-related stop was Como.  I was last there in 2018 and while it is dramatically changed since that time and I would have loved to explore more of the railroad developments, we just didn’t have much more leeway in time so it had to be a quick visit.  On this Friday, October late morning no one was around, but we got to see the rolling stock outside the roundhouse and depot including C&S boxcars 8311 and 8323, DSP&P boxcar 608, and various other non-C&S equipment.  Mia and I took a walk down the mainline to the end of the right hand line to Denver and then walked to the end of the line to Boreas Pass.  It was fun to note the coal dust resting in the grass in large piles.  

Standing on the mainline to Boreas Pass (which is behind me)

With our last stop behind us, we jumped back in for the remaining trip.  I had hoped to stop at the crossing of the Gunnison main from the right of 285 to the left just a little west of Como.  This left hand ROW is now route 7 that comes off of the highway, but sadly I didn’t have time to photograph it.  One can see the roadbed glide off and away to the left.  

End of the Line

The rebuilt scale house and Boreas Pass in the distance

One more stop I had originally planned was the crossing of the right-of-way at Garos where a wye was located, but I assumed I would see a sign for Garos.  Needless to say, no sign greeted me and I assume the townsite is long gone.

    After a glorious morning of ghost-train chasing, we made the stunning drive down to Canon City, experiencing more fog as we got close.  There we had a great weekend exploring Worldview at the Abbey for the Preview Weekend and opened our hands, in a sense, to ask Jesus to give us insight if this is good place for our daughter after she graduates this coming May.  Admittedly, I'd be happy for an excuse to visit Colorado (and more C&S sites) more often!

The Abbey in Canon City

One of my favorite parts of visiting the areas where the C&S ran is how alive it makes photographs and maps when one can visualize the spot today.  I am so happy, as I sit writing this on our airplane home, that just a few moments ago I did just that.  I opened up Tom and Denise Klinger’s Platte Canon Memories & Then Some and paged through the photos with that wonderful feeling that says, “I was there!”

Platte Canon train near Maddox Now and Then

 Just before Maddox ice pond, we passed Platte Canyon high school.  A few years back I came upon a before and after video near the waste water treatment plant for the school.  It shows a 1929 C&S double header at the same spot.  The mountain in the background is spot-on for the before and after.

A First Visit to Platte Canon, part 1

  When I interact with C&S fans online, it’s encouraging to know that I’m not the only one who lives far, far away from the railroad I enjoy so much.  Living in Ohio doesn’t afford me many opportunities to just hop over to the lovely state of Colorado, but in October of 2022, a surprise opportunity presented itself.  

My oldest daughter, Mia, a senior in high school, got very interested in a Bible-based gap-year program based in Canon City, Colorado named Worldview at the Abbey.  My wife and I loved the vision of the program and our daughter’s excitement about the possibility.  Still, sending our oldest across the country by herself without having made a personal visit as parents first seemed a bit intimidating so we signed up for a preview weekend in October.  

The main point of this trip was, of course, for me to check out the program with our daughter, but the chance to visit Colorado, even for a mere two and a half days set my mind ablaze with what C&S visits I could make!  I got to work checking out the routes we could travel via the DSP&P Historical Society’s Google Earth overlay and corresponding with the ever-helpful Tom Klinger, co-author with his wife Denise of five stellar C&S books.  

Map of ROW and new walking trail

Because our flight was to arrive in Denver around 1pm on Thursday, we basically had Thursday afternoon and evening and Friday morning for C&S adventures before the Abbey preview weekend program began Friday afternoon in Canon City.  Tom Klinger helped me work out an itinerary for my available time.  This itinerary began with a visit the Colorado Railroad Museum Thursday afternoon and even a possible short hike on one of the new walking trails built partially on the old C&S line up Clear Creek Canyon.  After this, the Klingers had graciously offered us dinner at their place in Wheat Ridge, just next to Golden.  For Friday, our plans included getting to Canon City by the back route via Route 285 in Platte Canyon, as I had never been east of Kenosha in past Colorado visits.

Disappointingly, our first plans were blown off the track like a boxcar in the South Park when our plane to Denver was delayed a frustrating three hours.  By the time we at last landed and got our rental car (which required another hour of waiting in line), we were at least glad we could visit with the Klingers whose hospitality and company were simply a delight.  As I am in the process of writing a C&S book, it was a joy to hear Tom and Denise relate their completely unplanned foray into becoming authors after A.A. (Brownie) Anderson’s son shared his family photo albums with Tom and kept saying, “Tom, I want you to write a book.”

My daughter and I woke up Friday morning to a dreary day.  On our way south to catch 285, there were times we could barely see the car in front of us through the fog.  This was not an encouraging prospect for sight-seeing!  When we later crested the mountains, the misty, foggy morning finally gave way little by little and the sun came out.  Our sights were stunned to see the Rockies awash with a mix of deep green pine trees juxtaposed by stunning yellow aspen leaves.  For us flat landers, it was an act of spontaneous praise to the Creator as we barked one “Woah!” and “look at that!” after another.

Due to our need to arrive in Canon City by 2:30pm, we had to make a few cuts or short visits along the way.  I wanted to visit Pine to see the two gondolas on display, but since I could not figure out a way to get from Pine, which required a drive down Pine Valley Road off of the highway, to Bailey without backtracking to 285, we skipped it.

Bailey

With anticipation we entered South Park railroad country at last as 285 makes a sweeping right hand curve in the old town of Bailey.  We pulled off to the left in the center of the curve.  Helen McGraw-Tatum Memorial Park was easily visible straight ahead of us behind a shop bearing a William Jackson photo of a Mason Bogie and a coach near the Alpine Tunnel.  The first sight to see was an old South Park railroad bridge across the North Fork of the South Platte River leading to a footpath.  

We rolled over the gravel, parked on what was likely the South Park right-of-way, and walked over to a delightful small park dedicated to an adventurous woman who loved the history of this area.  Helen McGraw-Tatum is known to many C&S fans for her film recording of C&S No. 9 hauling the last passenger train in April 1937.  

Spanning the creek is the old Mill Gulch bridge from Platte Canon.  We walked across the ornate bridge several times with it’s ornamental “Keystone Bridge” sign high up on top.  A note in the November 1977 Rocky Mountain Rail Report gives a little background on the structure.  

Mill Gulch Bridge

THE HISTORIC MILL GULCH BRIDGE, or as it is now referred to, the Keystone Bridge, (it was built by the company of the same name) will have a new resting place near downtown Denver if all goes as planned. The Denver Water Board has offered to dismantle and move the old DSP&P bridge from the canyon, and reassemble it across the South Platte River near Denver's Mile High Stadium.

A permanent bridge is needed at the location to provide fans attending events at the stadium, a way in which to cross the river from certain parking areas. The Water Board has to replace the bridge in the canyon with a stronger one (which will use the same abutments) to allow movement of heavy construction equipment. It was the intention of the Board to disassemble the bridge anyway, and store it until a worthy recipient could be found. So it will now be preserved and used, although not in quite as picturesque a setting.

The bridge was taken apart in the summer of 1978.  In the November Rocky Mountain Rail Report the following was explained, along with a new plan for the bridge’s use.

The Denver Water Department is in the process of widening the narrow gauge roadbed farther into the canyon, to permit access by heavy construction equipment, so the bridge had to be replaced. The large girders at the top were used to support the structure as it was carefully taken apart. They were then lowered onto the abutments to become the main supports for the new bridge. The old bridge is now in storage, and is to be given to the Forest Service, who has indicated it will be used near the Keystone Ski Area.

The bridge was never used in Denver or the Keystone Ski Area, but was instead put back together and placed in Bailey in 1985.

Glen Isle and Grousemont

Next, we visited the old Glen Isle way station to the left of the Keystone bridge.  Originally located at the Glen Isle resort just a bit west of this spot, the open air station had been restored in 1994 by combining it with another way station from Grousemont.  Inside, one can look up and see signatures of passengers who put their names here while waiting for trains.  Unfortunately, it is a bit hard to decipher which are original as many recent visitors seem to have kept up the tradition of adding their names.  Still, some are dated from the 1920’s and ‘30s.  

To the left of the Glen Isle station, a C&S standard gauge caboose, donated by the railroad in 1973, rests on what was the South Park’s right-of-way.

 
From there we hopped back onto 285, now a two-lane highway and right on top of the former C&S roadbed.  We passed Glen Isle where the old hotel with its rounded front, dating from railroad days, still stands on your left.  Of many resort hotels along the South Platte River, it is the only one still standing and serving vacationers in the canyon.

Maddox

Our next marker was to look for Fitzsimmons Middle School and Platte Canyon High School on our right as a marker to remind us to look for the old Maddox Ice Pond on our left, where scores of C&S cars were loaded with ice on a siding that could accommodate 48 cars.  Once we passed the school, we easily
identified the large square, man-made lake still glistening in the fall sunshine.  We pulled off onto a left hand driveway and took some photos of the lake, and then ran across the street to a gated driveway.  This path was a rutted dirt road which connected with the old right-of-way where it veered to the right away from 285, leading to a ranch called Mile High Anglers, a provider of guided fly fishing tours.

Cassells

We headed back on the road, this time with the roadbed on our right.  It was hard to see traces of it, especially as the driver!  We made two quick stops near what was called Cassells in early railroad days.  The site once hosted a resort built and operated by the Cassells family and it also sported a siding large enough for five cars.  In 1930 the property was sold and given to Catholic Charities and rechristened “Santa Maria,” a camp for underprivileged children.  Today it is a YMCA camp, where one can still see the enormous, 55-foot tall 1930s-era statue of Jesus with outstretched hands named “Christ the King”  on the side of a mountain rising above the North Fork of the South Platte.  We made a quick stop to snap a photo of this at a turn off in the road.

We made another short stop in the Cassells area to find where the railroad’s roadbed crossed 285 from right to left.  The ROW runs through a property on the right, passing a shed and then a house.  The roadbed seems to be used today as the driveway.  We photographed and filmed that, but when we crossed the highway, we were unable to find any roadbed traces easily visible from the road.  

Grant

While I wanted to stop in Grant where a bridge that was part of the end of the wye is still in use for a road, I decided to skip it, knowing it was on private property, and I was not sure how close I could get.

*******

In part 2, I'll continue our trek onto Webster and over Kenosha Pass to the great South Park.