Re: Monarch Pass

Another factor was likely winter conditions. Marshall Pass is lower in elevation with somewhat less snowfall. Relatively few areas on Marshall were subject to snowslides. Anyone who drives Monarch Pass regularly in winter (and I did for several years) can testify that it can have some horrendous winter driving conditions, along with several areas subject to slides. Ironically, the pass in that area with less rigorous winter conditions is Cochetopa Pass (pronounced "Coach-uh-tope" by locals, the "a" is silent), which was never traversed by a railroad. Its primary hazards are blowing and drifting snow in the open "parks" down from the summit on either side of the Continental Divide (similar in that respect to the area from Osier to Cumbres on the C&TS), with black ice a common feature in the Cochetopa Canyon on the west side.

For most of its years of operation, the Monarch Branch was not operated in the winter. By contrast, snow problems were not that common on Marshall Pass, while, of course, the DSP&P route through the Alpine Tunnel was often a winter nightmare. All in all, Marshall Pass was not bad choice for the D&RG. Far more hazardous on the narrow gauge mainline from Salida to Montrose were the numerous slide areas in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The D&RG locating engineers must have learned some lessons over the years. Tennessee Pass was another D&RG Continental Divide crossing that suffered less winter problems than many other rail crossings of the Continental Divide in Colorado.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/22/2016 08:23PM by Wade Hall.