The train started as a freight carrier, but almost immediately, people snapped on the train's incredible views and began hopping aboard.
When mining began to wane in the '50s, the train became primarily a tourist transport. The last mine closed in 1991. Silverton is now entirely a tourist town and virtually empties out in winter.
The train trip from Durango to Silverton, which runs through Oct. 27, is three and a half hours - the train averages 13 mph - and, of course, it's another three and a half hours back.
On a friend's recommendation, we take a tour bus up to Silverton (an hour-and-a-half ride) and the train back. Doing it this way adds $9 to the round-trip cost ($65 both ways by train), but I highly recommend it. Seven hours is a long time to spend on a train, even a scenic one.
Besides, the drive up on the San Juan Scenic Byway offers a different view from that of the train, and we get a lot of history and local information from our driver.
He tells us that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid once robbed this train. (Happily, there is no re-creation of a train robbery during the ride.) He also says there's a chance we'll see elk, deer or a black bear later while we're on the train. We don't, but we do see a bunny. - More at Statesman.com
