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Post 19 Aug 2022, 19:46 • #1 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/09/05
Posts: 2524
Location: US-CO
Yesterday, I took the train from Durango toward Silverton yesterday and got off at one of the flag stops to fish a section of Cascade Creek that is pretty much too far for a day out and back. Taking the train put me much closer to that stretch of water.

It was a beautiful day and I caught a fair number of trout...browns and rainbows. However, given the remoteness of the stream, I had expected to find bigger fish there than I did. The trail to several of Colorado's fourteeners runs nearby and maybe some of those peak climbers catch and keep trout as they pass through. I doubt many do though...just don't know why the trout were not 14-15" versus the 8-10" fish I caught.

There is one photo at 4:08 that shows a swim or turn around spot...I have swum through there in the past but it was time for me to head back to catch the train by then. On that earlier trip, I did catch larger fish above this obstacle.

Anyway, it was a great day, on a beautiful stream, with spunky trout as fine company, with a nice train ride to boot.

The video I made about the day is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vqXoOxHYIo


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Post 19 Aug 2022, 19:59 • #2 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/11/06
Posts: 2516
Location: Nature Coast Florida
Great report.

Thanks


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Post 19 Aug 2022, 20:15 • #3 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 01/02/12
Posts: 1859
Location: Gig Harbor, WA
Donny, that video is just outstanding. What a great way to spend a day and get a train ride as well. I am envious. Roy


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Post 19 Aug 2022, 20:20 • #4 
Master Guide
Joined: 11/11/13
Posts: 774
Location: US-CA
That was a amazing day. It was so cool you took the train. The scenery and fish are gorgeous well done!!!!!


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Post 19 Aug 2022, 20:30 • #5 
Guide
Joined: 04/18/20
Posts: 169
Location: Far Western 'burbs of Chicago
Very cool idea!

I rode that train way back in my teenage years on a family vacation. I can still remember the breathtaking scenery and the thrill of looking down the steep drop to the river.


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Post 19 Aug 2022, 21:56 • #6 
Guide
Joined: 02/23/11
Posts: 238
Location: Tulsa, OK
I’ve been wanting to do the same thing on the Chama train and camp for a few days.

Outstanding!


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 07:14 • #7 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/09/10
Posts: 1355
Location: US-CA
Always a good trip with you.


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 08:00 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 05/19/14
Posts: 3925
Location: USA - Illinois
Fantastic trip Donny, thanks for sharing it with us!


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 08:13 • #9 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19079
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
great combination
and since Cumbres-Toltec came up, here's the view of Wolf Creek from the train.
Image

The narrow gauge rails were restored by contributions and volunteer historical societies.
When we used to sweep CO/NM border in the 90s, Cumbres-Toltec was still being restored, was mostly a stockpile of old trains, and Chama only had Vera's Mexican food and the tire store, which are now both gone.


Last edited by bulldog1935 on 20 Aug 2022, 08:51, edited 1 time in total.

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Post 20 Aug 2022, 08:32 • #10 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/18/12
Posts: 1712
Location: Bozeman, MT
Excellent! Great trip! Curious though. Was the train track and access to that area built for mining? Is that why that train exists? In other words, was that track built to get to the mine that ruined the Animus River?


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 09:25 • #11 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/16/05
Posts: 2537
Location: Georgia
Thanks for the tour! A good day. I’ve a fair number of those “hmmm, smaller fish than I expected” days of late. Still, these are the good old days.


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 10:21 • #12 
Master Guide
Joined: 06/07/12
Posts: 865
Location: US-CA
I wish we had trains to good fishing out here in CA!


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 11:17 • #13 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/12/16
Posts: 4094
Location: USA-CO
Outstanding report, Sir! Those are some very pretty rainbow trout.


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 16:49 • #14 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/09/05
Posts: 2524
Location: US-CO
Hellmtflies wrote:
Excellent! Great trip! Curious though. Was the train track and access to that area built for mining? Is that why that train exists? In other words, was that track built to get to the mine that ruined the Animus River?


The railroad came to the area in 1882 (and has been in operation ever since) to support the significant mining in the Silverton area. Before that supplies and ore went over Stony Pass to South Fork, then on to destinations. The wagons and teams had to be unloaded and sometimes hauled up cliff faces to get over the pass. The construction of the railroad solved that. These were some of the richest mining operations in the nation's history. The problem is that the strata that held silver, gold, and other valuable minerals also held heavy metals, arsenic and other toxins.

Back in the 70s when the EPA Superfund was set up, the residents of Silverton prevented their area from being included on this list for fear it would hurt their tourist industry. So....the abandoned Gold King Mine was used to capture and hold the toxic runoff for many years. In 2015, under EPA supervision a test drill to measure the captured water level caused a leak which resulted in 3 million gallons of toxic water to flow down Cement Creek and into the Animas River. I was up scouting for elk that day and could see the leading edge of the deluge as it came down the valley.




The Fish and Wildlife people were pretty smart and caged 100 trout from the hatchery and tossed them into the polluted river to see if they would survive...all but one did. These toxins had been seeping into the Animas for a century and as the river approaches Durango being fed by several unpolluted feeder streams, the insect life can survive as do the trout. In fact, the stretch through town is one of Colorado's few stretches of Gold Medal water. But, up high, the more fragile insects cannot survive and many miles of the river are not suitable trout habitat. In 2016, after the spill, the area was included on the Superfund Cleanup site list.

PS: Here is a video of the Cumbres-Toltec train mentioned above. I shot the video while Aurelio and I were fishing along the train's route a couple of summers ago. Note that their coal train does not have the highly effective smokestack scrubbers that are used by the Durango line to prevent soot complaints from the townspeople.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyXWpMV43Ig


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 19:31 • #15 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/26/12
Posts: 1188
Location: Fairfax, Virginia
Hi Donny ! I'm glad you had such a nice day trip, and thanks for the great entertainment :)

When were the scrubbers retrofitted onto the train engines ... had to be fairly recently ??

Pecos


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Post 20 Aug 2022, 19:45 • #16 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 09/18/09
Posts: 5561
Location: Relocated to the Drought Stricken West.
Thank you for taking the time to share your trip. Was the pickup uneventful? Having a train drop me off and then relying on someone to stop and pick me up would be nervewracking the first time I did it. I guess if you've hiked that before and are prepared, it isn't as big a deal.

I really loved Durango the one time I was there. The river trail is neat and even in town the wildlife is amazing. Maybe when I retire it can be a place to spend some time. Though visiting Aurelio has me liking Taos as well.


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Post 21 Aug 2022, 09:37 • #17 
New Member
Joined: 07/06/14
Posts: 10
Location: US-Greater Northeast
Thank you for the write up and imagery. Reminds me of hearing the stories of the men back in the day hopping the trains up into the Catskills and Adirondacks for their fishing adventures from the Big City.

Personally viewing the deluge as it made its way down river must have brought several waves of emotions over you at the time. The information that there is some recovery though is refreshing and a positive in all of it.


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Post 21 Aug 2022, 19:13 • #18 
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Joined: 02/26/14
Posts: 3578
Location: US-MN
Nice trip! Great way to travel!


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Post 21 Aug 2022, 19:35 • #19 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/09/05
Posts: 2524
Location: US-CO
pecosjuan wrote:
Hi Donny ! I'm glad you had such a nice day trip, and thanks for the great entertainment :)

When were the scrubbers retrofitted onto the train engines ... had to be fairly recently ??

Pecos


They did scrubbers some years back but since the 416 fire and the lawsuits that resulted, a few of the locomotives have been converted to use diesel to generate the steam to run the trains. The train I rode on was a modern diesel locomotive. Here is an article that tells the story...

https://www.durangotelegraph.com/news/t ... g-the-air/

Note that in the picture with the article, the train emits no smoke.


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Post 22 Aug 2022, 07:54 • #20 
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Joined: 02/27/16
Posts: 2329
Location: US-IL
Very cool.Wish I could do that.When my daughter lived in NYC there were a few trips like that but only required a hike of a few blocks.My busted up legs can only do a mile or two at 800 feet and flat ground.I am a train geek.In my town we have a fireless steam loco.It was charged with steam.Has NO firebox.Was used in the Chicago stock yards in and out of buildings No danger of sparks igniting anything .Pretty impressive for the early 1900s.Out west they used compressed air locks in the mines.No sparks and the added benefit of surface air as exhaust.Have always been disappointed this tech has not been revisited seems pretty enviro friend my.Coolest fishing trip ever in my book


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Post 22 Aug 2022, 08:52 • #21 
Guide
Joined: 01/10/16
Posts: 186
Location: Parkersburg, WV
I've never fished the Animas or any of the tributaries (unless you count Island Lake) but I have ridden the train from Silverton to Durango. I don't recall the location on the ride and if it was on the Durango end or not, I just remember there were some butt-puckering sections of the ride. The train rocked side-to-side and it was on a cliff that looked to be about 100' straight down. :eek

Also, it was September 2015 when we were on the train and I remember the stream being slightly off-color.

Chris


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Post 22 Aug 2022, 10:01 • #22 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 12/05/06
Posts: 2090
Location: US-PA
As a wild-eyed train nut; the thought of taking one to a fishing destination has been a desire after years spent fishing in the Catskills & Pocono Mountains and reading about the well-known resorts with stagecoaches to pick-up travelers at the train stations.

Even though there currently are tourist lines that travel through some decent fishing destinations in PA, the schedules are sporadic with almost no intermediate station or other stops near fishing.

However, as a kid the very first fishing trip of my life was realized via a public transit bus line that replaced an interurban trolley line torn-up before I was born. Wearing rolled down hippers & my vest with my trusty Eagle Claw Trailmaster in hand, I used that bus alone or in conjunction with my thumb for many years to get me to the places I frequented. :)

Nice story Paveglass!!


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Post 22 Aug 2022, 10:43 • #23 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19079
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
yeah, there's got to be a way to haul bike on train, pack rod, etc.
A buddy was telling me he can't take a bike to Big Bend (Alpine), since the train stop has no union freight handlers, and the bike has to continue to El Paso.


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Post 22 Aug 2022, 13:53 • #24 
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Joined: 02/27/16
Posts: 2329
Location: US-IL
When i was kid growing up in Chicago we took the bus fishing and sometimes the L train.With our poles and buckets either to Lake Michigan or the edges of the city to fish public ponds or sometimes golf course and cemetery ponds.Could not imagine letting my 10yo grandson take the bus with just some other kids like we did.


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Post 22 Aug 2022, 15:25 • #25 
Sport
Joined: 02/22/12
Posts: 54
Location: Motherlode
Ah yes, the (not so) beloved rolling smoking roadblock….

Having lived in Durango in the 90’s, I wasn’t a big fan, but succumbed to family wishes and did the trip to Silverton and back in ‘12. The year that the Springs burned. It was concerning to see brush fires starting in the “wake” of the train, but apparently there was a crew tagging along after the tourist attraction just for that reason.

Now, hopping off, hiking in and fishing is something I could easily get into, especially doing an overnight. Glad you had a great trip, sorry the fish were a little small.


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