The Cumbres & Toltec

The Cumbres and Toltec. . , Antonito grew out of the race to build the first railroad through the southern Rockies. The Denver and Rio Grande Western arrived in 1880, built the town, then kept pushing westward over a rugged, remote stretch of the San Juan Mountains. To save money and to accommodate the route's alarmingly tight curves, the D&RGW opted for narrow-gauge track. Clinging to steep slopes as it twisted over the Continental Divide, the line reached Chama, New Mexico, in 1881, unlocking a vast region of timber stands, coal fields, and mineral veins. Later the railroad added deluxe tourist service, seating passengers in converted freight cars. Riders boarded at the old depot, which sits across the highway, to enjoy a day of scenic thrills. , It was said that the conductor, in the caboose, could borrow the engineer’s chewing-tobacco plug on one curve and return it on the next, so sharp were the turns. , , Robert Athearn, Rebel of the Rockies, The Antonito-Chama line enjoyed a short heyday. By World War I it was losing passengers to the automobile and freight to the trucking industry. The Great Depression further weakened the line, and by the 1950s it was used only for periodic tourist specials. In 1967 the railroad finally shut down; but historians and train buffs quickly moved to preserve it. In addition to its remarkable engineering and vintage steam engines, the Antonito-Chama line was one of the last of the pioneering railroads that helped populate the West. The states of Colorado and New Mexico bought the sixty-four-mile route in 1970 and reopened it as the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad, a "living museum" of frontier transportation. The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad operates every summer, using historic engines and passenger cars., [photo captions] , . Antonito railroad depot, 1885 , . Along the Cumbres and Toltec line, June 1955