Royal Gorge Route

D&RGW train #1, The Royal Gorge, pictured on the 1960 timetable coverThe D&RG built west from Pueblo reaching Cañon City in 1874. The line through the Royal Gorge reached Salida on May 20, 1880 and was pushed to Leadville later that same year. From Salida, the D&RG pushed west over the Continental Divide at the 10,845 feet (3,306 m) Marshall Pass and reached Gunnison on August 6, 1881. From Gunnison the line entered the Black Canyon of the Gunnison River passing the famous Curecanti Needle seen in their famous Scenic Line of the World Herald. The tracks left the increasingly difficult canyon at Cimmaron and passed over Cerro Summit, reaching Montrose on September 8, 1882. From Montrose, a line was laid north through Delta, reaching Grand Junction in March 1883, which completed a narrow gauge transcontinental link with the Rio Grande Western Railway to Salt Lake City, Utah.

The line from Pueblo to Leadville was upgraded in 1887 to three rails to accommodate both narrow gauge and standard gauge operation.

Narrow gauge branch lines were constructed to Crested Butte, Lake City, Ouray and Somerset.

In 1998, the Union Pacific Railroad sold 12 miles (19 km) of track through the Royal Gorge in an effort to preserve this scenic route. Two new corporations, the Canon City & Royal Gorge Railroad (CC&RG) and Rock & Rail, Inc. (R&R), joined together to form Royal Gorge Express, LLC (RGX) to purchase the line. Passenger service on the new Royal Gorge Route Railroad began in May 1999. The Royal Gorge Route Railroad operates trains on their 12-miles of track through the Royal Gorge year-round. The Railroad is a heritage railway. -- Wikipedia

Features:

• Sharp Painting and Lettering
• Multiple Road Numbers
• Wire Grab Irons and etched Metal Details.
• Factory ready to run on DC or DCC with optional SoundTraxx® Tsunami® Sound
• Equipped with  Kadee ® couplers