Re: Changes along the narrow gauge

Those of us who live and work in these "tourist" towns see and know a different perspective of what daily life is. There is myth vs. reality. The train is there for sure but underneath that lays the basic businesses, like oil and gas in Durango, very important for the last 60 years, as well as the traditional industries like ranching and farming, regional shopping and medical care, service industries, and then the icing everyone comes in contact with is the tourist stuff like motels and restaurants. Ft. Lewis College is the largest employer in Durango followed by local government. The railroad's employment is no where near the top of the list. Add in skiing at Purgatory and now in Silverton, and there's a tremendous economic base that has little or no relationship to the train. There is one business in Durango, Mecury Payment Systems (

) , that has 500 employees plus more in Denver. These people process credit card payments and are new to the community in the past 13 years. Their new office building has a nice view of the north end of Carbon Junction, but that's about it as far as the narrow gauge goes. Even 2-bit Silverton, where I've staked my fortune for the past 44 years, has a life its own from the train. True, we are far more dependent on the train than Durango is, but there's enough going on to maintain a small community all year.

Fritz