Satrurday, APRIL 3, 2010 (13TH DAY)

9:25 we boarded the Durango-Silverton Steam Train Narrow Gauge- D&SNGRR-in seats #21 and #22 in the Parlor Class car called Animosa. It is really nice with tables and chairs. We were served free honeybuns, coffee, tea, water, sodas; but we had to pay for the mixed drinks. We waited for lunch before we ordered anything alcoholic. One man from Pennsylvania said it didn't matter he was still on eastern time. Daddy had 2 scotches and water, which were really more like 4 shots because the lady was heavy- handed with the liquor. I had something called a "Rusty Spike" which is Frangelico, Baileys and coffee. We are at 6500 ft, going to Cascade Canyon at 7400 ft. Cascade Canyon had a snow blizzard yesterday. The train stops halfway up to refill the water for the steam at a place called High Line- which is 400 ft. above the Animas River on a rock shelf. When you look out the window below you, all you see is the water. The RR track follows the Animas River which flows to the Colorado River also. This train line was built in 1881 and only took 9 months to complete. Its top speed is all of 21mph with a 2 1/2% grade!
The mountain is covered with Ponderosa Pine trees. Those over 100 years of age have orange colored bark. The Aspen trees were here first but when the pines towered over them they died. Ten years ago was a forest fire and now the Aspens are growing again. There are prarie dogs popping out of holes they have in the ground. They are a little bigger than a squirrel but light brown and really cute. Also here are the Pinyon Pines which have shorter needles and the Indians ground the nuts into flour. The bears eat the acorns from the Gamble Oaks growing here. They just pull down a branch, put the whole thing in their mouth and eat it acorns and leaves.
The RR was built to bring the silver, gold and copper down from the mines. Charlie Baker found the gold here in 1865, but the land was owned by the Ute Indians and he couldn't take it away. So he went back East to fight for the Union in the Civil War and came back out in 1874 after the Berno Treaty was signed by the Indians allowing the minerals to leave. There are no records kept about the men who built the RR; but they were Italien, Chinese and Irish. Most of the cut-thrus in the mountains were all done by hand with hammers and chisels. In 1969 a film showed this train being robbed at the High Line with Paul Newman and Robert Redford called Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
The Animas River up here is green because of the non-oxidized iron and a trace of copper flowing down from Silverton. The land on both sides of the tracks are full of snow from yesterday's blizzard. When the snow starts melting from the sun it drips down the rocks; overnight it freezes into icicles hanging over the rocks. We have seen many of these and they are sometimes dripping.
Back in the RV we napped then went out to the Casino in Ignacio to eat. Daddy played craps, but it was just okay. Tomorrow morning is a long drive and there are no Presbyterian churches around.