Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad

When we went to pick up our tickets, it was about 90 degrees in Durango. We asked the gentleman at the ticket window what clothes we should plan on wearing on the trip. He indicated the weather for the next day was forecast to be a little funny. I asked him funny ha-ha or funny peculiar. He laughed and said to at least take a light jacket. Linda and I had enough heavy stuff with us to handle 0 degree weather, so light jackets were no problem.

Getting on the train at 8:00 AM, we were ready for 2 1/2 hour (50 miles) trip up the mountains to Silverton. We were scheduled for a 2 hour layover at Silverton to eat and do some looking around the town. Of course, they expected you to do some shopping.

About 2/3 of the way up the mountain it started to snow. By the time we arrived in Silverton, it was a snow storm. We had to get off the train about 100 yards from the nearest place where we could get out of the weather. We were very cold and getting wet which made it worse. Linda was not a happy camper because her light jacket was one she had bought in Cripple Creek. It was warm, but not water proof. We went to the nearest eating place and got a burger plus a little warmth. After that, we went across the street and bought some zip up sweaters which had hoods. That helped a lot.

We wandered around until the train was ready to leave and take us back to Durango. We were scheduled to get there at 5:45 PM. Everyone got on the train and took their seat hoping for some warmth. The train finally started down the mountains with the windows totally fogged over. Little chance to take pictures. About 1/2 way down, the train stopped because of a slight rock slide on the track. A few minutes later, the train stopped again for the same reason. We arrived in Durango about 6:15 PM, damp, still a little cold and ready to get in our room and some warm clothes.