En route to Antonito, Colo., our Cumbres & Toltec train makes a photo run-by for Trains tour members. (Three photos by David Lassen)The Rio Grande Scenic descents La Veta Pass.The Fir Summit Amphitheatre, accessible only from Rio Grande Scenic trains.It was 70 degrees and partly sunny yesterday at Trains world headquarters. Today it’s gray and 50. All of which has me thinking about Colorado, and not just because with Wisconsin winter is fast approaching, other places start having a certain allure (at least for a California native).One reason I was thinking about Colroado is that those sorts of temperature changes — and ones far more dramatic — are a big part the Centennial State. I think we had a range of more than 60 degrees in one day on my Trains Tour of Colorado in June 2016, going from the 40s at the start of our day in Leadville to the 20s at the top of Pikes Peak to the 80s in Colorado Springs. As I told a few people in preparing for the tour, no matter what you do in Colorado, there’s a good chance at one point in the day you will be dressed completely wrong.But, you know, that’s OK. The occasional clothing discomfort is well worth it to take one of my favorite train rides anywhere, the Cumbres & Toltec. That’s another reason I’ve been thinking about Colorado; I’ve recently been doing some indexing of my photos, including the flash drive with my pictures from that Colorado trip. One of the coolest things on the Trains Tour was the photo run-by the C&T arranged for us on Tanglefoot Curve, one of the signature spots on the railroad; here’s one of my shots from that (By the way, to the earlier point about weather — while this was on June 9, you’ll note there are still some fairly prominent patches of snow.)The great thing about that tour was that it covered a lot of ground; even though I lived in Colorado for four years, the trips on the Leadville, Colorado & Southern and Rio Grande Scenic were new to me. If the Cumbres & Toltec was and always will be my favorite Colorado experience, the Rio Grande Scenic is the one I’d most like to explore a bit more. La Veta Pass is spectacular, and if it’s not quite bucket-list material, seeing one of Mountain Rails Live concerts at Ed Ellis’ venue atop the pass, Fir Summit Amphitheater, is certainly on my wish list.The final reason I was thinking about Colorado is, as the season quickly ebbs away here, I haven’t had much luck with getting many good fall-colors photos. The colors hadn’t peaked here when we had a big rainstorm come through and knock down a lot of leaves, and they hadn’t arrived yet on my last trip to Chicago. By the time I get down there again, the opportunity will probably be gone. Thanks to its aspens, Colorado, of course, has a great fall-color season. Which is one reason we’ve added a fall trip to our Colorado tour schedule next year. You can never guarantee that you’re going to hit the peak moment, of course, but there’s at least a chance. And with all the great mountain rides on the tour, you’d think the odds are you’d hit it right in at least one of those places. If you do, the photos should be spectacular. And if you don’t, well, you’re still taking some of the great tourist railroads the nation has to offer. (It’s why I’m kind of hoping the boss will send me on that one — hint, hint — and why I’ll completely understand if he takes it for himself.)One other thing, since we’re talking about tours: In addition to the Colorado trips, we’re offering one to India in February. If that interests you, the deadline (Nov. 15) is fast approaching. If that one’s not to your taste, keep watching. We’ve got other ideas on the horizon.
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