Railroading and Fishing in Colorado

I love Colorado. I love the weather, I love the mountains, I love most of the people I come across. Weed is doing good things there. It's the top place I'd move if I could find a job there.
After seeing 4023 in Omaha, I drove across the Nebraska prairie to arrive in Denver late in the evening on Sunday 6/15/2025. I'd already gotten tickets to the UP Steam Shop to see 4014, Friday of the same week, so heading all the way to California was out of the question unless I extended the trip. I considered going out to Ogden, UT and Promontory Point, but in the end decided to spend a few days in the mountains. I have an awesome fishing spot north of Breckenridge (the exact location is a secret. Maybe I'll send the location to subscribers only.)

Forney Transportation Museum
I saw Big Boy #4005 on Monday at the Forney Transportation Museum. This is a great museum, especially if you're a car enthusiast. They have a whole range of antique vehicles going back to the early 1900s. Many examples of early cars like Model T, Model A, and some of the first fire trucks. They also have early electric cars like this 1916 Detroit Electric Opera Coupe:

This type of car was advertised with an 80-mile range, but did 210 miles on a single charge in an endurance run. What might have been if we pursued this tech 100 years ago?
Another fun piece of the car collection is Amelia Earhart's roadster. They have stories of her driving very fast and scaring people. I think that probably tracks:

Of course, the real reason for visiting the Forney Museum was to see #4005:

4005 was the only Big Boy involved in an accident. On April 27, 1953, the engine and the first 18 cars derailed when a section gang through a switch incorrectly near Wamsutter, Wyoming. The track crew was trying to help a rancher move a large herd of sheep across the tracks. According to reports, the worker attempted to close the switch again, but was unable. The worker in charge of the switch had only been on the job for a bit over an hour. The foreman was later held partially responsible for putting an untrained man in the position.
More details on the Forney web page, Disaster on the Rails.
Colorado Model Railroad Museum
On Monday afternoon, I visited the Colorado Model Railroad Museum in Greeley, CO. 5500 square feet of HO scale railroad? Yes, please. The museum is located next to the UP Greeley Subdivision. When the real trains come by, the museum workers all run outside to watch them. These are my people.

The layout itself is gorgeous. They have real working signaling throughout. Trains actually stop at reds and wait for other trains to pass, then go again when they receive a green. It appears 100% automated, with no operators.


The coolest thing is many locomotives are equipped with cameras. Off to the side, they have a cab with working controls, and a first person view using the engine feed. Sadly, I didn't get a good picture of it, but Hyce has a great video.
Colorado Railroad Museum
On Tuesday, I visited the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, CO. Unlike a lot of other museums with static displays only, this one has a 3ft gauge loop where they run live narrow gauge equipment. While I was there, they were running one of their Galloping Goose powered rail cars for a news crew.

The Museum has their own steam shop to keep things running. They have a viewing area to get a look:

And you can't be in Golden without having a beer train:


Aside from all the big train equipment, the museum also features a G-Scale garden railroad, and an HO scale layout.


Inside they have several models of steam locomotives, including Big Boy #4019 and UP #844.

In all, the Colorado Railroad Museum is well worth the time, especially for the operations.
Georgetown Loop Railroad
One fantastic thing about Colorado is the number of tourist trains and train history that seems to be everywhere. After spending a few hours at the Colorado Railroad Museum, I had plenty of time to stop off at the Georgetown Loop Railroad on my way into the mountains. Georgetown is not all that far from Denver, and is a bit longer ride than what you can get in Golden. The museum wasn't running trains for the public the day I was there, so I had the itch to get out on the rails.

Like the name implies, the railroad runs in a large loop, passing over itself before continuing up the mountain from Georgetown to Silver Plume. The 4.5-mile journey takes a little more than an hour there and back. They also have a mine tour that you ride the train to access. I've never done the mine tour, even though I've done the railroad several times. I should really do that.
The railroad also features a small museum at the Silver Plume station, and tons of vintage narrow gauge equipment, both diesel and steam.

Rocky Mountain National Park
Not train related. After spending time near Breckenridge catching fish, I made my way up to Fort Collins where I stayed Thursday night before going to Cheyenne on Friday. (Cheyenne had weirdly expensive hotels). Instead of taking the Interstate back through Denver, I made my way along CO-9 and US-40 through Byers Canyon and into the park on US-36.
Ok, somewhat train related: I missed seeing Amtrak in the canyon by about 10 minutes. I almost turned around to catch up and grab a few pictures but decided not to as I wanted to make sure I had plenty of charge to make it across the mountains. In the end, I had to wait to enter the park anyway, and with so much down hill, I actually gained more energy than I used going up.
Words can't describe the beauty of the park. The road climbs to over 13,000 feet, a truly spectacular view above the clouds. I couldn't find a parking spot at the summit, so I settled for taking pictures close by.


If you made it this far, thanks for reading. In the next few days I'll post 4004 and the account of the UP Steam Shop.