It really wasn't off on a side road, but rather right on the main road leading to Royal Gorge Park, just a mile from ITS entrance. A person heading to Royal Gorge bridge HAD to drive right by the RGS; you couldn't miss it! I have yet to ride the full sized train THRU the gorge, but I wouldn't think that it would have been much of a factor. Fares for the full size train are rather high in comparison with the little RGS. If a person is going to visit the bridge itself, then a ride out on the RGS would add materially to the experience. That's why, in my opinion, the Royal Gorge Park itself should look into acquiring the RGS and adding it to their list of attractions

Did some looking around for images on this road, and found some interesting ones in the form of postcards.

The most intriguing one is a card that claims the road had a steam locomotive on its roster. The back of the card reads: "MINIATURE SCENIC RAILWAY--ROYAL GORGE--CANON CITY, COLORADO--This tiny steam locomotive carries thousands of passengers annually to view the wonders of the Royal Gorge." Curiously, the engine is lettered "The Grapevine Route," and is named the "Aroma." Could it be the card itself is improperly labeled?

http://www.cardcow.com/352200/miniature ... -colorado/

Another postcard is from the main station and gift shop; from what is visible of a couple of vehicles, the photo may date from the late 1960s:

http://www.cardcow.com/199673/royal-gor ... ad-depots/

WHOA! Confirmation of steam on the Royal Gorge Scenic, and in the form of helper service with MU'd diesels to boot!

http://www.cardcow.com/221557/royal-gor ... -colorado/

At the other end of the line:

http://www.cardcow.com/171891/royal-gor ... -colorado/

A day with two trains operational, one with MU's diesels, the other with the large single unit that appears in the recent news story photos. One wonders, how much of this equipment, including the steam engine, is still there?

http://www.tias.com/image.html?s=http:/ ... 00232.html

The twin unit diesels once more, at the main station; Of note are the two old fellows who are apparently supposed to keep the train running. Note the fellow on the left is holding an oil can:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROYAL-GORGE-MIN ... 132419338O.

Some other images from the area, starting with the bridge itself, which apparently is still considered quite an attraction. I do hope it isn't still in use for auto traffic; it's old enough that it may have corrosion or fatigue problems, and the lanes on it are rather narrow by modern standards.

http://www.cardcow.com/7307/suspension- ... -colorado/

http://www.cardcow.com/25505/suspension ... -colorado/

http://www.cardcow.com/311149/royal-gor ... -colorado/

http://www.cardcow.com/304764/suspensio ... -colorado/

http://www.cardcow.com/240733/m-1288-ro ... -colorado/

http://www.cardcow.com/192003/royal-gor ... -colorado/

This shot is interesting in that it shows an aerial tramway paralleling the bridge. Is that still there?

http://www.cardcow.com/29315/famous-roy ... -colorado/

Equally interesting was that the canyon and the bridge were lit up with big lights for at least a while. Whether the effect came out as it does in the postcard or not may be debatable:

http://www.cardcow.com/14608/royal-gorg ... -colorado/


There is also an inclined railway in this location, which I understand may still be operational. If my memory is right, it runs from the bridge to the former D&RGW line at the bottom of the canyon.

http://www.cardcow.com/115226/bottom-st ... -colorado/

http://www.cardcow.com/89636/upper-stat ... -colorado/

Have fun.

Nice collection of post card shots. The first steam locomotive "Aroma" (not sure where that came from!) is not really part of the RGS. This engine operated at the Royal Gorge bridge itself, in the same general area which is now traversed by the Silver Rock Railroad, a CP Huntington operation.
The shot with the steamer double headed with the diesels is, indeed, proof that steam once operated at the Royal Gorge Scenic. This engine is now running in Scottsdale, AZ in a much altered condition.
Now if we could just convince the Royal Gorge Park to look into acquiring the RGS, sell off the CP Huntington, regauge its track to 15", and link the two railroads together, then they would have a very nice addition to their park. And the RGS track provides a view of the Royal Gorge Bridge available from no other vantage point. (And BTW, the bridge is STILL open to vehicular traffic, as the bridge had been strengthend a few years back with new anchoridges and re-inforcements.)

Tower Operator -

Years ago, when the wife and kiddies and I visited the bridge, the deck was made of wood planks and you could see down to the river and rocks below right through the gaps. My wife, when I pointed this out to her, was not to happy! Perhaps when the above strengthening took place, a new roadbed was also incorporated.

Les

Well, the bridge STILL has the plank surface. And you can still see the river, rocks, etc., below. In fact, it gives me shivers just to WALK out on it, but if you have the nerve, they will STILL allow you to drive across as part of the entrance ticket price.

Les Beckman's and Tower Operator's comments about the (historically accurate) plank deck of the bridge reminded me of several things.

First, I'm from Wheeling, W.Va. originally, and we have a very old pre-Civil War suspension bridge. This bridge has had for a long time an open steel grating for its deck and sidewalks. If Les's wife was upset at a planked deck, can you imagine her reaction to a deck that is almost transparent, like the various metal roofwalks on freight cars?

I recall when I was younger several bridges over a creek near where I lived, and the rattling sounds their plank decks made. That steel grating deck of the suspension bridge was nice and noisy, too, though different, with a hum that varied depending on your speed on the bridge. It would get quite low if you came to a stop, with an interesting vibration through the whole car as you stopped. The bridge also had quite a bit of bounce, noticeable when you were stopped, and especially noticeable if you were crossing the bridge on foot.

Another episode with plank decks involves the bridge over the East Broad Top at McMullen Summit. I was there for one of the Fall Spectaculars some years ago, and after riding the train earlier in the day, was just watching things, recording things with those organic cameras called eyes. One of the night trains was to come, and a lady traveling with her family noted all the people standing about and stopped to see what was happening.

"This is something like a railroad festival" I said to her; "This railroad is running some special trains, and one of them is due in a few minutes, and it will have a steam engine."

She: "Oh, I have to get a picture of this!"

She went to the van, and came back with a camera and a little boy; her husband remained in the van. She took up a position on the bridge right over the center line of the track. We spoke a little more, but had to do so quietly, as some other railfans mentioned they had recorders going to capture the sound.

Me: "Ma'am, this is at the top of a grade, that engine will be working hard coming up it. It will be puffing out a lot of smoke. You may want to stand off to the side."

She: "Oh, we'll be all right."

Here came No. 15, puffing along in the dusk with a wonderful plume, supposedly caused by a season of the EBT having to run with coal that wasn't up to its normal high standard.

No. 15: "Whuff-whuff, whuff-whuff, whuff-whuff, whuff-whuff, whuff-whuff. . . ."

The locomotive and its geyser of smoke went under the bridge, and the smoke came up around the bridge and right through the cracks between the planks. It looked as if there was no bridge there! Immediately she and her boy had two of the biggest coughing fits you ever heard, and I had the biggest laughing fit you ever heard! Blast, I told them not to be over the center line, and the effect was even worse (or better) than I thought it would be! Whooee!

I must apologize, to the lady and her son for laughing when I shouldn't have (even if I couldn't help it), and I hope the people making the sound recordings will forgive her, her son, and myself for ruining their recordings. On the other hand, they might sound funny now. . .

J3a-614:

That is a wonderful (and funny) story about the lady and the EBT Mike. Years ago, when I was still a kid, my dad would pack the family and ride north from our home on the far south side of Chicago up to Round Lake, Illinois. No expressways in those days, so for much of the way, we were on U.S. 45. When we hit the C&NW's Proviso Yard, the road rose up on what I heard later described as the longest wooden bridge in the world. I don't know if that was true or not, but as I remember it, it was very long and had wood planks. I don't recall seeing active trains from the bridge, although they must have been running down there under us. What I DO remember is seeing long strings of dead NorthWestern steam. Boy, how I wish I had been just a bit older, and had a camera, and would have been able to convince my dad to stop on the other side.

Les

I think standing dead-center on that bridge at least once while EBT steam chugs underneath had become something of a "rite of passage" for Eastern steam fans. I've seen at least one cap blown clean off the head and off the bridge by that blast; I've also seen engineers shut off the throttle a little prematurely if they sense that some "clueless newb" isn't going to budge from dead center.

Some people were asking about this railroad on a couple of Facebook pages featuring park trains, and an answer came up that the track and equipment have wound up on a private railroad at Wellington, Colorado.

http://www.owlcanyonrailway.com/

The steam locomotive "Aroma" is on display, near the bridge, according to a Facebook poster.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =3&theater

https://scontent-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/ ... e=5CE3FE27

I believe that "Aroma" is a 4-6-2 built by Bill Daney, an early pioneer in 15" gauge construction. Before the operation at the Royal Gorge, he ran a 15" gauge operation in a city park in Pueblo. He also built the locomotives and probably some of the rolling stock that operates at the McCormack-Stillman operation in Maricopa, AZ which is all 5" scale narrow gauge equipment.

Rob Gardner

The posting with the link at Park, Zoo, & Amusement Ride Trains" has generated a number of responses. One fellow there said this about the "Aroma:"



Don't know how accurate it is--we know how some of us can be full of hooey--but the name choices suggest common ownership and a sense of humor!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1547083 ... up_comment

The McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park is in Scottsdale, AZ (which is in Maricopa County)

Thanks for the correction, Earl!

Rob Gardner

Ok, there were two railroads at Royal Gorge. The one that was sold was the Buckskin Joe railroad. The track for the Royal Gorge one is still there as of last summer with about 300 feet of it buried under a new concrete sidewalk. The locomotives are on display, a gas CP Huntington and the 4-6-2 steamer. At least someone had the sense to cap the steamers stack as they both sit outside.
Mike Nix