Like John West, the gauge was the least of it. Narrow gauge circa 1960 represented operations that were a throwback to the turn of the 20th century, with steam locomotives pulling ancient equipment, frequently on far flung remote lines. Most standard gauge railroads in the US and Canada were dieselized by then except for a few logging, coal hauling, and industrial lines. Before I ever visited there I was not terribly enthused by the Rio Grande mainly because I don't care that much for outside frame locomotives. (I still don't.) That all changed, however, in October of 1960 when I first visited the Rio Grande. The whole nature of the operation was fascinating and it was a far flung fully steam powered operation over high mountains and spectacular scenery. I managed to catch a dual gauge WB freight out of Alamosa on my first day there, and it actually had a meet with an eastbound train in Antonito, the only time I ever saw that. What totally clinched it for me was my arrival in Chama the next day. I was driving a 1954 Ford with a 6 volt battery, and it was not very enthusiastic about starting the engine at the 7500 foot elevation of Alamosa. As a result, I and my traveling friend Paul Orlow decided to overnight down in the area of Espanola, New Mexico the following night because of the lower elevation. That night we had a cloudburst in the Espanola area and as we drove up to Chama things just started to get whiter and whiter the closer we got. Chama was totally blanketed with fresh snow on the ground when we got there and gradually the sun came out and stayed out for much of the day. The whole area was a winter wonderland, and we were able to chase two hill turns all the way to the summit, the only time I was ever able to do that. (For those who don't know, Route 17 back then was a dirt road not maintained in winter that could turn into pea soup when wet. You had to be good on the wheel in an automobile to navigate it when it was wet.)
After a day of chasing some of the most spectacular winter action I have ever had the opportunity to chase before or since, the outside frame aspect of things just didn't matter any more. I was hooked and made several more trips to the Rio Grande before redirecting my energies after the 1964 trip.
Tom Gildersleeve