The railway was the easiest and most comfortable way to travel until a proper road into the Grand Canyon was built in 1920, and it also transported all the water for the Grand Canyon until 1926, as well as livestock. The railroad was initially built from Chicago to Los Angeles, passing through Williams, Arizona, to transport ore in the Wild West. Built following the Grand Canyon’s establishment as a forest preserve by presidential proclamation in 1893, the first passengers climbed aboard on September 17, four years later. KOAA News5 on your time, streaming on your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and AndroidTV.Almost as old, but not quite, is the Grand Canyon Railway, a steam chugging train that has been transporting passengers to the Historic Village at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon since 1901. "Were just excited and we're hoping to kind of be a shining light for the Pikes Peak Region as tourism rebounds here in 2021," said Johnston.įor more information and to purchase tickets, you can visit their website at _ Johnston says that after being closed since late 2017, they're just happy to be back in business.
Our journey down the mountain provides more time to soak in the scenery.įor anyone who's done the drive, this is far more relaxing. The trip includes 40 minutes or so up top before returning back to Manitou Springs. The air is thin on top of the mountain, but the views are worth it.įor those not from Colorado, you're bound to feel the altitude. Views like this carry on for the final 15 minutes until we reach the 14,115 foot summit. "We have a point on the line there that's called Inspiration Point because the view is just inspiring, and that is really the first time that you get the oohs and ahhs from a lot of the customers that aren't from around here," said Johnston.Ĭloser to the summit, there's a clear view of the Continental Divide on the left side of the train, and Colorado Springs to the right.
The real show starts as we climb above treeline just past the 5 mile mark.
Downhill, it can only max out at 8.5 mph.Įarly on, we see lush forests, large boulders and beautiful waterfalls. Traveling uphill, the train reaches a top speed of 10.5 mph. It's a surprisingly smooth 1 hour and 10 minute ride to the summit. The train ride to the top of the mountain climbs more than 7,700 vertical feet on nine miles of track. Our adventure begins at the newly renovated depot, elevation 6,320 feet. "We took an 1890s built building and upgraded it with all the modern amenities that customers require now," said Johnston.Īs for the depot, Johnston jokingly says that it's a blend of Bavarian and Victorian style architecture. In addition to new track and new trains, the depot also received some much needed TLC. "It's exciting! It's a bit of a relief, everything that we worked for the last three and a half years to finally have the doors open again, have customers on trains, it's been everything we hoped for and more," said Johnston. Three and a half years later, Johnston tells News 5 that they couldn't be happier to see the trains back in operation. and about 40 in the world," Assistant General Manager Ted Johnston said.Īs you may recall, the train closed down in 2017 to undergo major infrastructure improvements. "Not many 14,000 foot mountains have a railroad going up the side of it, and we're lucky enough to have one here at Pikes Peak. It's the world's highest and longest cog railway.
#Pikes peak cog railroad series#
MANITOU SPRINGS - In our exclusive new series Adventures with Alan, we'll travel across Southern Colorado week-by-week to show you thrills and chills, hidden gems and well-known spots.Įntertaining guests since 1891, the Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway is a unique, one-of-a-kind experience that takes riders from the foothills of Manitou Springs to the top of Pikes Peak.
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