This month's Trains cover

Just went out and got my mail out of the box, including the May issue of Trains. I am amused by the blurb "Colorado narrow gauge Tales from before the tourists." When exactly would that be? 1870? AFAIK, the tourists showed up about ten minutes before the first train ran! Rio Grande usually did more passenger business in June-August than the rest of the year put together in most years before 1940.

I remember on my next to the last trip on the (Really Good) Zephyr in May of 1981 there was a guy in the same dome as I who, as we worked up the Western Slope thru snow showers (WAAAY Cool!) told us, in a vedy upper-crust British accent how he was making a trip to see the USA after graduating university and, just as ever generation of his family since 1884, he was including the D&RG since it was their tradition. I told him that his great-great whatever would have gone thru the town I was living in (Gunnison) and we had a merry olde time.

hank

ps Yeah, I know what Trains meant, it just tickled my funny bone. Remember there was a chapter in Beebe & Clegg's "Mainline of the Rockies" (1962) entitled "Here come the Tourists" and 'tweern't about the Silverton!