I had certainly read about the construction camps at the east portal of Alpine Tunnel, but this was my first visit to the site of one of the three camps. The amount of workers employed during the several year construction of Alpine Tunnel is truly staggering. The amount of turnover in those workers as they worked year round above 11,000 feet is equally staggering.
This photo shows the view from the east portal (behind me to the left) looking toward the sign telling of one of the camps. This one was the closest to the east portal.
This is the sign at the site.
This is the trail continuing past the sign. This was once probably the main thoroughfare through the construction worker cabins. This supply road continued downgrade into Tunnel Gulch then turned back to travel along Chalk Creek to St. Elmo. Opposite of this point on the other side of Tunnel Gulch was another construction camp. This trail facilitated the move of all the construction equipment as well as the mountains of redwood lumber needed to line the tunnel.
Here we are from the a part of the construction camp area looking back (at my fam!) toward the railroad grade in the center as it turns to the right to enter the (now collapsed) east portal of Alpine Tunnel.
The construction camps and the supply trail were rediscovered in September of 1962 by Dow Helmers, Bill Bruce, Rick Bruce, and Charlie Webb. The story of their discoveries can be found on page 60 of Historic Alpine Tunnel by Dow Helmers.
The 1880 Jefferson depot keeps reinventing itself since its days as a South Park Line depot ended in 1937. I found two great current videos of the depot recently. Below the videos is a telling of meeting the current owner last fall (2022) and their plans for the depot and adjacent caboose.
This second video is a news spot on the business now running both the restaurant and the Airbnb in the depot.
Excerpt from this post detailing a trip to the South Park with my daughter in fall 2022.
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!
For those who might not have a Facebook account, here is the video posted by History Colorado showing the work being done in the Fall of 2023 on repairing the stone wall below the Palisades on the South Park Line's western approach to Alpine Tunnel.
The first piece of C&Sng equipment that I ever came across in my first visit to the Colorado Railroad Museum as a teenager was Rotary 99201. The reason I saw it first was because it wasn't even inside the museum. Instead, the giant snowplow was sitting on a Burlington Northern spur across the street from the CRRM entrance. It remained there for many years until being brought inside the grounds along with a Union Pacific switcher.
This rotary is fascinating for many reasons.
1. It was built for the famous Alpine Tunnel route, but it was found to be too large and heavy. To my knowledge, no photos of a trip on that line with 99201 exist.
2. It was so large, in fact, that it could also be used to clear standard gauge routes. The C&S simply switched out the running gear. The 99201 was used out of locations such as Cheyenne, Wyoming.
3. It plowed the last surviving stretch of the South Park Line, the standard gauged Leadville to Climax, Colorado branch.
4. While it was a steam powered machine it outlasted steam powered locomotives. The Leadville to Climax branch was the last regularly-scheduled class 1 steam operation, using steam locomotives until 1962. The coal-fired Rotary 99201, however, was still used for three more years being pushed by C&S diesels.
The following photos are from early 1990 visits to the museum.
A Burlington Northern freight rumbles past on the former C&Sng Clear Creek Line across the street from the museum.
99201 on the old spur across from the museum entrance.
The South Platte Hotel along the C&S narrow gauge still stands, but barely. The video below tells a bit of its history and the structure's current precarious situation. C&S railroad book author Tom Klinger appears in part of the news spot as well.
Thanks to someone over at the C&S discussion forum I got word that the old C&S narrow gauge depot in Dumont (on the way to the Loop) was moved to the Moffat Road Railroad Museum. It's a bummer that it is leaving C&S territory, but it's great to see it going to what looks to be a good new home. The depot had been moved from its original location in Dumont and was most recently used for a rafting company. Now it will go back, at least partially to its original design: selling train tickets, albeit for a children's-sized train. Here is the article from The Aspen Times.
A wealth of railfan history exists in the archives of the Rocky Mountain Rail Report, the newsletter of the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club started in 1939. Here is some miscellaneous South Park Line/C&S-related news from the 1979 editions.
1979
March
(Man who rode the last rotary through Alpine Tunnel turns 95)
OUR VERY BEST WISHES to George Champion who just celebrated his 95th birthday! George worked on the South Park line (he rode the last rotary snowplow run through the Alpine Tunnel) and the Moffat Road and is a fountain of information when the topic of conversation is about those fascinating lines.
(Ed. You can hear an audio recording of Champion describing his experience taking a rotary through Alpine Tunnel below)
July
(Exploring Como and Boreas Pass with Ed Haley, Dick Kindig, and George Champion)
A PORTION of one of Colorado's most colorful narrow gauge lines will be the subject of the club's August field trip as we explore the Breckenridge Como grade of the DSP&P. The 20-mile grade over Boreas Pass has not heard the exhaust of a steam locomotive since the late 1930's, but most of the route is still intact, and a few relics of the railroad's past are still evident.
Baker Tank 2018
The field trip will start at the east end of the Villa Italia Shopping Center in Lakewood near the Joslins store. Departing from there at 8:00 A.M. on Saturday, August 18, we will proceed to Breckenridge and the beginning of the grade. There will be a number of "wandering" stops along the way, such as at Baker's Tank and the summit, but only one very short walk during the day.
Just about anyone could make this trip, and the road is passable for autos. Ed Haley, Dick Kindig, and George Champion will be along to answer questions on the line, and describe points on interest relating to some of their experiences in riding the line back in the "good old days'?" We will stop along the way for lunch. We ask everyone to bring their own picnic lunch and beverages, and perhaps a blanket to throw on the ground.
Richard Kindig
Upon arrival at Como, we will take a look at the site of the rail yards, including the station and roundhouse. George, who is intimately familiar with Como, will explain the yards and answer questions and show photos of the facilities as they once were. Supper will be served in the old Como Eating House by Keith Hodges, who is renovating the structure for use, once again.
After supper, we will go up to the old school house and enjoy a slide program by Ed Haley and Dick Kindig on their experiences in riding the passenger train from Denver to Leadville by way of Como and Boreas Pass.
The fare for this all-day outing, which will cover the handout, dinner and program, is $7.00 for adults and $3.00 for children under 12. Tickets MUST BE PURCHASED IN ADVANCE, and will be sold on a first-come first-served basis. Please send orders to the club's post office box. Please use the order blank at the end of the newsletter, or forward the same information.
August
THE BOREAS PASS-COMO FIELD TRIP will take place on Saturday, August 18. Refer to last month's newsletter for details and ticket order blank.
A reminder that tickets must be purchased in advance, $7,00 adults, $3.00 under 12. For those who have ordered theirs already, the tickets will be in the mail soon. Even if you have been over the pass, and many of us have at one time or another, this is still a good opportunity to refresh the memory (and the lungs), get first-hand information on the line, have dinner at the recently reopened railroad eating house in Como, and see a slide program on riding the line in the 30's. The drive is about 150 miles round trip from Denver, and will include little walking. Departure from Villa Italia Shopping Center is at 8:00 A.M., although if you wish to meet the group on the south end of Breckenridge, we will depart from there no sooner than 10:00 A.M. Bring a picnic lunch. If you have any questions, call Darrell Arndt at 321-2723, or Ardie Schoeninger at 238-4485. * * * * *
(Ed. Take this same adventure over Boreas Pass with me below!)
