Taking a Ride on the Durango-Silverton Steam Train!
We finally accomplished our childhood dreams of riding on a steam locomotive train, or choo-choo, to us, for short! Months in advance we booked the Durango-Silverton Steam Train Ride in Colorado. Originally, we booked the tickets for May. However, after arriving in Colorado in late April, we were afraid the weather would be too cold in the open gondola car.
Although it states expressly on your tickets when you purchase that no refunds or exchanges are allowed, we called the customer service number and asked if we could change our ticket days to later in the year. The very nice lady in customer service moved our tickets to September 9 on our desired seats with no issues. Although we had a little rain on the return journey, otherwise the weather was perfect.
Of course, when the day of our train finally arrived, we had already changed our traveling plans many times throughout the year. It was a little more difficult than we initially thought to travel to the train depot in Durango. When we originally booked our tickets, we thought we would still be truck camping and staying in the area. But the middle of the summer we decided to quit truck camping and hook the camper back up.
Which meant, we were sitting at the Thousand Trails campground in Gunnison, CO for our train ride. This was a long nine-hour roundtrip drive with the West Highway 50 Bridge closed. We also did not realize that the train ride was from 9:00 a.m. to 6:15 p.m. Wow! It was a long day, but so worth it.
A Steam Train Ride through the San Juan National Forest
The Durango-Silverton Train provides you with so many options to experience this gorgeous train ride. You can choose a diesel engine or a steam engine train from the Durango Depot to Silverton. If you want a shorter ride, you can take the Cascade Canyon Express that lasts only 5.25 hours roundtrip. The Cascade Canyon Express does not travel all the way to Silverton, but instead turns around halfway.
If you do not want to ride the train roundtrip, you can choose a bus one way and ride the train for the other. You can take the train to Silverton and catch the bus back. Or you can take the bus from Durango to Silverton and catch the train back to Durango. There are lots of options and season specials to experience this exciting adventure.
We decided to take the long way and booked the steam engine for both ways. When we booked this train ride, we did not realize that it takes 3.5 hours each way and you stop in Silverton for two hours. Of course, the website clearly states this. We tried to be really smart before our trip and we brought tuna fish and snacks. However, not realizing how long the day was going to be, we left them in the truck. The only regret we have on this trip was not bringing our snacks with us.
But, riding a train through the San Juan Forest! Wow! We will never forget this amazing train ride through the gorgeous national forest. The views of the Animas River and the gorgeous Canyons of the Rocky Mountains will have you standing up on the train for better views and photographic moments. We oohed and ahhed once we reached the national forest on our steam train.
We booked the open car, or gondola, on the 9:00 a.m. Steam Train from Durango. After riding the train, we would again book the gondola and the steam train! You can see so much of the scenery and everyone on the gondola has a first-class seat facing the open windows. We brought sock caps and I brought gloves, just in case. And, on the return ride from Silverton, we used them!
The Steam Engine provided the childhood glee of the chugga chugga. Every time the engineer blew the whistle, we giggled and tried to capture it on our recording. Seeing the steam rise above the engine and sometimes, from the sides of the locomotive, made our faces light up. We were our childhood selves again, riding a choo choo train!
The San Juan Mountains and the Animas River
Although the right side of the train from Durango to Silverton has the best views, if you ride the train both ways, you will see all the views. Most websites that we searched recommended booking the right side. And, we did for our morning ride. However, in the morning the sun was right in front of us on the way to Silverton. And on the return ride to Durango, the afternoon sun was also right in front of us! If we booked again, we might take the bus to Silverton and ride on the right side back. Or sit on the left in the morning and the right in the afternoon, depending on the time of year.
For the first part of the trip leaving Durango, the views are not spectacular. You ride a little ways through the town of Durango, which is more fun on the way back, as I will explain later. The Missionary Ridge that you can see after leaving Durango is nice, but not epic. You also follow the highway for a long while and can hear the noise in the open gondola. But, you are riding a steam engine and that in itself is so much fun.
After you pass the Missionary Ridge, you start the climb. Just when we thought, well at least we experienced a steam train, we begin to see the Needle Mountains. The views become amazing. As you travel further along towards Silverton, the Animas River makes its appearance. The colors of this river in places remind you of a glacier lake. You cannot get over the beauty of the river with the Grenadier Range in the backdrop.
The most exhilarating part of the journey for me was the river below, the mountains in the background, and the train taking corners around the rock. You can witness the Engineer on the Locomotive with the steam and whistles, maneuvering around rocks with the river below and the mountains in front. Oh, my goodness, what a sight! Sometimes you will also see the Conductor waving his hat on the side of the train, which adds to ambiance. I had to stand up to take in the entire magical scene. I would have done a happy dance on this amazing ride, but the train rocks along on the tracks and the cars sway from side to side. What an adventure!
One gentleman living in the area was explaining to his family beside me the different scenes along the route. He kayaks the river and frequently catches the train. Of course, I had to eavesdrop to learn about the underground cave where the river flows and different scenes along the journey. I enjoy listening to the knowledge of others when they have more experience than I do.
Another fun tip while traveling on the train is that along the journey, the train passes inches by large rocks. Windell and I both let out a couple of deep breaths on some of the turns around these rocks. We tried to record these close encounters with our GoPros without bruising our knuckles, and it is a memorable experience.
As the train continues towards Silverton, you gasp with delight on the views. Waterfalls make their appearance and the gorgeous river below with the amazing canyon views wll make you gasp. Eventually, you reach the town of Silverton for a two hour exploration and lunch.
Arriving at Silverton, Colorado on the Durango-Silverton Steam Train
Everyone disembarks the train in Silverton for a couple of hours to eat and explore. Silverton is a very small touristy town with mainly dirt roads. Because we had forgotten our tuna fish, against our usual adventuring style, we bought some lunch in Silverton. Although many tourists were waiting in line to enter one restaurant, we choose to go cheap and eat fried food.
The main enterprise of Silverton seems to be tourist shops and restaurants for those arriving for the train. To stretch our legs after the long train ride, we walked the town for a while after eating. There are public bathrooms that are clean with plenty of stalls. It was fun to walk around after the train ride, but the town is very small. Silverton is not a place we would visit if it was not our train stop.
If we were to take the train again to Silverton, we would remember to bring our tuna fish and snacks and sit in the public area, recalling our amazing train trip thus far. If you like the touristy things, there are many shops in Silverton, although some were closed on the day we arrived. We did buy our postcards here, knowing that we would be late getting back to the Durango Depot.
Ending Our Memorable Steam Train Experience
In addition to the beautiful train ride and the delightful steam engine, riding back through the town of Durango is another enjoyable experience. On the way back, during the afternoon, people wave at the train. It is so much fun to see the children and adults alike, waving as you pass them by. People wave from parking lots, balconies, and even at the railroad crossing when you travel past them. You cannot help but wave back. Some bystanders even asked how our trip was as the train slowed through the town.
This friendliness of the town at the end just enhanced the entire experience. We had such a warm, fuzzy feeling taking a steam engine train with views of mountains, a river, and waving at the friendly people as we returned. If you like train rides, or have a childhood dream of riding a train, we recommend the Durango-Silverton line. We highly recommend the Steam Locomotive and the open gondola car. Bring your cameras so you never forget the amazing beauty. Or better yet, record yourself giggling with delight when the engine whistles!