Hi Grant,
Your enthusiasm is great. Your focus on rolling stock seems to be misplaced. Rolling stock WILL happen IF we can get the grade together and prove its economic viability.
I think you're getting overanxious on the back end details of this. We need your enthusiasm, but right now we need to locate the grade and see if it can be reassembled. We need to prove that an undertaking like this would be economically viable.
We also need to get communities to understand what we are doing and see what it would take for them to support us. This includes La Plata County, Chama, Durango, Ignacio, the Ute Indians, the Navaho Indians, the Apache Indians, the states of Colorado and New Mexico, and many more government entities. We do not want to stir up the @#$%& by pushing too soon on the wrong items. A few years ago, I heard that some residents of Durango wanted the D&SNG to move their terminal outside the city limits (if I recall correctly) to reduce the smoke and grime from the downtown area.
We need to recognize that we are not trying to form an operating railroad company, we are trying to find out if relaying the track is politically and economically and physically possible. If it is, then handing it off to an existing operation(s) is the best idea.
We need most importantly:
1) What is the current condition of the grade?
2) Make exploratory contacts with the political bodies involved,
3) We need to be able to show people that the project can be economically viable (self supporting),
4) Understanding of what we can do to gain credibility in the eyes of those we talk to,
5) Get someone to watch the CDOT proceedings that Jessica Stacy pointed out to see if they are willing to work with us in providing the new highway design with the hook(s) that might allow us to relay track through the proposed construction site. A CDOT design that does not consider the possibility of a railroad crossing the highway in the area might be a death knell to rebuilding the line.
6) We need to consider incorporation as a non-profit company so that corporations can donate funds to us and so that we can apply for grants. I am almost of the opinion that is we get to the point of trying to acquire the R.O.W., we should have our ducks in a row already for economic viabilty of the line and at that time merge with (FOR EXAMPLE) the Friends of the C&TS for further development. We'd need to negotiate on that, but first let's see if it is economically viable.
Do you have ideas on what revenue sources we have in the region that the railroad would bring? For instance I was speculating on gambling trains in addition to regular tourist trains. Would the D&SNG, or the C&TS, or you yourself be willing to take hard-earned money and put it in a money loosing operation for years on end?
Can you find addresses for the Chambers of Commerce or the Visitor's Centers of the town and counties along the route and see about contacting them?
To gain group credibility, maybe we need to do something like the Friends of the EBT and adopt say the Arboles water tank and cars and maintain them with paint and document them with drawings. Can you find people to help with this? Can we become caretakers of the Gato station site and/or the rotting stock cars in Dulce?
We are years away from acquiring property and talk now about rolling stock is a mute point until we determine the viability of the proposed railroad in terms of both putting the track back down and it being self-supporting. If we can prove to the D&SNG and/or the C&TS the economic viability of the project, their "surplus" rolling stock will be made available.
Moves to acquire rolling stock for ourselves may be miss-construed that we are trying to compete with the D&SNG and the C&TS and we do not want to alienate them. They will probably be the ones we turn the line over to for long term operation and care.
As I see operations that may make the line profitable, the first is gambling trains. On the east might be a train from Chama to Dulce for the Jicarilla Apache casino in Dulce. Since Chama is a small town, I'm not sure this operation would be anything but marginal.
On the west, a gambling train from Durango to Ignacio would be more likely to be profitable with the Southern Ute Indian Casino. Additional traffic might be obtained from the La Plata County Airport to Durango. If a train ran from Arboles to Durango, those interested in recreation around Navajo Lake could ride the train.
Additionally, sightseer's who do not mind a whole day outing could ride the line. It could be operated similar to the C&TS way. One train departs from Durango and Chama each day and they meet at say Gato and return. Passengers could ride one end, the other end, or straight through by changing trains. The issue is if they have money for only one trip, would they choose the semi-arid desert country of the main line or visit the Animas Canyon or Toltec George? I personally love the desert and the drive from Arboles to Gato is both barren and beautiful. However I know many that do not like the desert because of its barrenness and its foreboding.
Although I would not be against freight traffic, the line was abandoned in 1968 because of the lack of freight traffic.
Maybe an auto-train where someone driving through the area from Durango to Chama would have their car loaded on the end of the train and they would ride in the front. When the day is done, the'll have had time to see the scenery between Durango and Chama and have not "wasted" a day in any one place. The handling and facilities cost of doing this I'd think would be prohibitive, but Amtrak does do it between Lorton, VA and Sanford, FL.
Let's get the groundwork done to see if this is viable. I know the D&SNG has 13 derelict cars at Hermosa. If we can show them a way to make money by restoring them, they will come through.
Keep the faith.
Doug.
