Railfanning Colorado s

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1 Railfanning Colorado s 2010 Kalmbach Publishing Co. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher.

2 Joint Line By Doug Tagsold Photos by the author A trip across the HO scale Denver, Front Range & Western

3 What better way to spend a sunny summer day than to railfan one of your favorite railroad hot spots. The memories of one such day back in 1987 on the Joint Line from Denver to Pueblo, Colo., are ones I will cherish forever. The history of the Joint Line begins with a narrow gauge line built by the Denver & Rio Grande from Denver south to Pueblo; it became standard gauge in The Santa Fe built its own line from Pueblo north to Denver in In 1899, the Colorado & Southern (now Burlington Northern) was granted trackage rights on the Santa Fe line. In 1974 the Santa Fe s line through Colorado Springs was removed, leaving only the Rio Grande track from Palmer Lake, south through Colorado Springs to Crews, where the Santa Fe line resumes. The majority of tonnage over the 120-mile Joint Line on that summer day in 1987 was an endless parade of BN coal trains to and from Wyoming, as well as several general merchandise or trailer-on-flatcar trains from all three railroads. Here are some photos from that memorable summer day. GMR 1Previous pages: A pair of Santa Fe GP38-2s backs through the yard in Denver to its train as BN switchers put together another southbound freight. 2Below: Santa Fe freight no. 424, with unit no in the lead, pulls out of the yard and onto the Joint Line track. 84 GREAT MODEL RAILROADS 2002

4 Railfanning Colorado s Joint Line 3Above: The southbound Santa Fe train pulls past Denver s Union Station, where excited passengers are waiting to board a special summer excursion to Winter Park on the Rio Grande s ski train. 4Left: As the Santa Fe freight disappears into the Denver skyline, an empty BN coal train led by an EMD SD60 continues its journey back to Wyoming for another load of Powder River coal. GREAT MODEL RAILROADS

5 Two-track staging yard for CSDU Power Plant 40" 40" 38" Palmer Lake Larkspur bridge Oil loading rack Colorado Springs Department of Utilties Power Plant COLORADO SPRINGS 10 38" Feed mill Lumberyard Duckunder THE JOINT LINE Lower level Scale: 1 4" = 1'-0" 12" grid 38" indicates elevation in inches Englewood Littleton Big Lift Sedalia Palmer Lake DENVER South Denver COLORADO DENVER Castle Rock Larkspur Greenland Monument Academy COLORADO SPRINGS Keller Crews Fountain Scale: miles Buttes PUEBLO Pueblo Bragdon Pueblo Junction Rio Grande northbound main line Santa Fe southbound main line Castle Rock Pueblo Junction PUEBLO Santa Fe yard office 11 Access Helix 38" 5 Dispatcher s desk 38" 54" 6 Up to helix and upper level 50" 58" Plainview Stairs up Pueblo reverse loop From helix to upper level " 46" Hwy " Up Rocky Flats Up 48" 40" Yard lead Down A A Denver Union Station 2 Denver Union Station backdrop Prospect Junction BN engine facility TOFC loading Hopper car wind break Lower-level backdrop 1 Big Ten Curve DENVER Rio Grande North Yard Six tracks classification Four tracks arrival/departure Cargill grain elevator Three-track staging yard (reverse loop under Big Ten Curve reappears in front of grain elevator) Down Utah Junction Rio Grande diesel sand and fuel rack Rio Grande yard office 38" Up BN 38th Street Yard (three-track staging yard) Diesel shop

6 60" Glenwood Canyon Bond Colorado River Station Glenwood Springs Lumberyard Mid Continent Coal Mine 60" Energy Coal Mine Seven-track staging yard with reverse loop 61" Granby Station 60" Engine Yard office servicing facility GRAND JUNCTION Helix below 62" Railfanning Colorado s Joint Line 62" Upper level Scale: 1 8" = 1'-0" Winter Park Winter Park Ski Resort 64" Moffat Tunnel East Portal Reverse loop Down to helix and lower level Pinecliffe Tunnel No. 29 South Boulder Creek Tolland 61" Up 58" 5Top: We catch the Santa Fe southbound freight near Castle Rock, Colo. The climb from Denver to Palmer Lake is on a tough 1 to 2 percent grade, so catching up with southbound trains by automobile while railfanning isn t hard. 6Above: As the Santa Fe train rolls out of sight, Rio Grande Pueblo to Denver freight no. 166, led by an aging GP30 and GP40, glides by on the northbound main. ILLUSTRATIONS BY RICK JOHNSON AND KELLIE JAEGER GREAT MODEL RAILROADS

7 Railfanning Colorado s Joint Line 7Above: Continuing south, we catch Santa Fe train no. 424 as it crosses the girder bridge just south of Larkspur. 8Right: The southbound Santa Fe freight is held at Palmer Lake, where the Joint Line becomes single track. After only a short wait, the reason for the red signal becomes apparent. Northbound BN freight no. 91, led by GP50 no. 3148, rounds the curve around the small lake and begins its descent into Denver. 9Far right: After the BN train clears, the Santa Fe dispatcher gives train no. 424 permission to continue south on the single track. Palmer Lake, which was man-made, was used as a water supply for Rio Grande steam locomotives. Today it s a popular picnic and fishing area. 88 GREAT MODEL RAILROADS 2002

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10 Railfanning Colorado s Joint Line Meet Doug Tagsold Afamily vacation to Colorado in 1989 convinced Doug, then a New York Central modeler, to switch to mountain railroading. His HO scale Denver, Front Range & Western was featured in Model Railroader in the July and August 1999 issues. Doug is the fourth generation to operate his family s funeral home business and is also a volunteer fireman. He lives in Blissfield, Mich., with his wife, Diane, and their two children, Steven and Jennifer. 10 Far left: Our southbound freight zips through Colorado Springs, past the former Rio Grande depot, as a local Rio Grande switch crew moves cars to the various local industries. In the background is the CSDU Drake power plant, a major coal customer of the Rio Grande. 11 Above: Our train, Santa Fe no. 424, pulls into the SF yard at Pueblo, ending its run on the Joint Line. As soon as the train s caboose has cleared the switch, another empty BN coal train will begin its trip on the Joint Line. For us, it s time for a break before we head back to Denver. GREAT MODEL RAILROADS