Re: another blast from the CATS past, '74 brochure

I have one of those brochures. In the spring of 1974, there was serious doubt if there would be a 1974 season. When the brochures were printed, all seemed by good, but by spring the gas lines were growing, there was fear of no gas at all that summer, no one would go on vacation. The economy was sliding into recession. Scenic Rys was on the verge of collapse. All the schedules were rubber stamped with a disclaimer about reduced schedules. In the end, diesel #19 ended up running Cumbres - Sublette round trips on weekends in June and July, with steam coming on in August- October. The four-day a week schedule was resumed and continued to the end of the season with trains running Tues, Wed. Sat. and Sun.

As I mentioned in an earlier thread about the 1974 OM operation. The C&TS was at the end of its rope. The filming of the movie "Bite The Bullet" in the spring saved the day and gave Scenic enough cash to get going in the spring.

Thankfully, the dire predictions of no gas in the summer of 1974 did not come to pass, and those who could afford to, went on their vacations.