Sam,
The train that you are thinking of is the National Park Service Train run in November of 1968 from Durango to Alamosa.
This footage was shot by the late Frank Osterwald. I used some of it in the tour (with permission from Doris) to illustrate what a particular scene looked like when the railroad was actually running.
Since Earl's tour was from Chama to Antonito, I showed the NPS train in reverse order.
But it is pretty unique stuff, as it is the last time that 483 was in Durango, as well as the final eastbound departure from the depot. (As far as I can tell, they built a special connection from the loop to the mainline just for this train...earlier 1968 photos don't show the loop connecting to the main where 483 departed from).
Also there is some pacing on the new "fast track" between Gato and Arboles (the camera was under-cranked, so '83 seems to be going a bit faster than she actually did).
Other scenes that I can remember are crossing the San Juan river on the double-truss bridge near Jaunita, Gato, Chama, Coxo, Sublette. Probably more.
The red paint you refer to is the movie paint from "The Good Guys and the Bad Guys". The D&RGW simply left the movie paint on, painted "483" on the cab and "Rio Grande" on the tender, and sent her east wearing brown, red and gold.
I'm not against peddling this video to anyone who is interested (first I have to FIND the program).
The editing is pretty crude by my standards of today, but again, this was not a feature release, just a Friends work session tape.
If anyone is interested, let me know, then I shall commence digging. Don't expect a fancy box with a pretty picture on the cover!
Les
