"There's a high level of excitement and interest in the Rio Grande's narrow gauge lines today. Perhaps more so now than at any other time since the narrow gauge lines were built. There has always been a certain romance of the rails where 3-foot-gauge trackage is concerned, and even more so with those lines that ran through the scenic wonders of our country, such as the Rocky Mountains. Dreamer and railroad builder General William J. Palmer projected a railroad to Mexico City, but instead his 3-foot railroad went west, to Salt Lake City and Ogden." --From inside of book jacket

Take a nostalgic 100 year Journey through the Rocky Mountains aboard the narrow gauge railways that snaked through them.

This is a comprehensive, illustrated account of the growth and decline of American narrow gauge railroading. It documents a long-gone era, bringing to life ancient steam locomotives, railroads and rolling stock that have mostly disappeared without trace. The basic facts and information on the subject are heavily illustrated with photographs, drawings and maps, presented in an encyclopedia format.

In this third volume of his narrow gauge chronicle, noted narrow gauge preservationist Robert Richardson continues to take a close look at the Rio Grande Southern, the 172-mile narrow gauge route that wrapped itself around the craggy and forested San Juan Mountains between Durango and Ridgway, Colorado. In just two years, Otto Mears built a railroad that climbed four mountain passes and featured 142 bridges, including numerous high, spindly trestles. In this 224-page hardbound book, Bob hones in on the town of Ridgway, the various RGS “oasis” towns in the wilderness, mine-rich Telluride, the RGS’ locomotive fleet, the Galloping Goose era and high-in-the-sky Ophir. He also talks about important old RGS records and how he obtained copies, relates humorous insights about hunting season on the line, the Montezuma Lumber Company operations at McPhee, and the last runs of the famed RGS trains.

The Rio Grande Railroad operated in the spectacular Colorado Rockies. Their slogan was "Through the Rockies, not Around Them." Photos include 2-8-0 Consolidations, 2-8-2 Mikado's, 0-6-0 six-wheeler, 4-6-0 ten-wheeler, the big 4-8-4 Northerns that Rio Grande liked to call "Westerns" and the larger 2-8-8-2 Mallets. Also included are Electro-Motive passenger and freight locomotives FT, F3, F7, General Purpose and Special Duty series, Electro-Motive SD40T-2 "Tunnel Motors," SD45 and SD50 locomotives, American Locomotive PA-PB and RS-3 series, Fairbanks-Morse H-15-44, and diesel-hydraulic ML-4 locomotives from German manufacturer Krauss-Maffei.