Durango Rail Road is also known as the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and was established on August 5, 1881. The line was laid down to haul silver and gold ore from the San Juan Mountains and this historic rail road has been in operation for the past 126 years. By the end of July 1882, the tracks to Silverton were completed and the train had begun hauling both freight and passengers. During the latter part of the 1960's the Durango Rail Road was registered as a National Historic Landmark and was awarded National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. The Durango Rail Road is owned and operated by American Heritage Railways with home offices in Coral Gables., Florida.
The Durango Rail Road runs from Silverton Freightward Museum to Durango Railroad Museum. It passes from Elk Park, Cascade Station, Tall Timber Resort, Animas River and Needleton.
The train mainly has 4 types of seating options which are:
- Vintage Coach
- First Class Parlor Car
- Open-Air Gondola
- Silver Vista
Apart from these the train also has wheelchair accessible coaches. These seating arrangements are specially designed because the train is meant for a breath-taking journey for the visitors.
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The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad winds through spectacular and mind-blowing canyons in the remote wilderness of the two-million acre San Juan National Forest.
The Winter Cascade Canyon Excursion is the roundtrip run from Durango to Cascade Canyon along the scenic and remote Animas River. The charges are $45 for adults and $22 for children. This train runs from March to May. Children below the age group of five can travel for free unless they occupy a seat. During the summers, the charges are $65 fro adult and $35 for children for standard classes. In case of premium classes, like parlor class, grande class, vista class, Presidential class cinco animas and Presidential class nomad the charges are slightly higher in comparison. Usually the charges range from $89 to $149 for adults. These rides are exclusively meant for adults only.
The reservations to the Durango & Silverton train should be made six weeks prior and should only be made from the time of origination or Durango. Any additional space may be sold by the conductors on a special space available basis. Unoccupied seats will be sold as “no-show”.
Always remember to carry enough warm clothes because the train climbs nearly 3,000 feet to Silverton and the high mountain ranges are cooler than Durango. Relive history with the sights and sounds of yesteryear for a truly spectacular journey on board the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.
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