Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad, Heritage railway in Rocky Mountains between Colorado and New Mexico, United States.
The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad is a historic narrow-gauge railway running 64 miles through the Rocky Mountains between Antonito, Colorado and Chama, New Mexico. The route passes through two tunnels, over wooden bridges, and along canyon walls as it winds through pine forests and open mountain terrain.
The line was built in 1880 as part of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad network to supply mining camps in the San Juan Mountains. After mining declined, Colorado and New Mexico jointly purchased the railway in 1970 to preserve it as a working museum.
The railway operates with steam locomotives maintained using 19th-century methods, giving visitors a direct look at earlier railroad techniques. The workshops in Chama display machines and tools still used today to repair the historic rolling stock.
Trains run from May through October and can be boarded in Antonito or Chama, with full-day trips including a lunch break at Osier Station. The cars are not heated, so travelers should bring warm clothing as the elevation keeps temperatures cool even in summer.
The line crosses the Colorado-New Mexico border eleven times between Osier and Antonito. Its own publicity calls it the highest narrow-gauge railroad in the United States, with Cumbres Pass at 10,015 feet (3,053 m). Two Leslie rotary snowplows, Rotary OM and Rotary OY, are kept at Chama; in winter up to 500 inches of snow can fall on the pass.
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