Pikes Peak Cog Railway - Railfan Travel

Quick Facts about the Pikes Peak Cog Railway

Railroad Name	The Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway
Website	https://cograilway.com
Train ride	Self propelled cog railway railcars to the top of Pikes Peak and back
Location	515 Ruxton Ave, Manitou Springs, CO 80829 Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/hnCozkKr7xq6G1FSA
Length of trip	8.9 miles one way
Cost of single ticket	$58.50
Special Trains	Occasionally they have run one of the restored steam engines.

Information about the Pikes Peak Cog Railway

The Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway (also known as the Pikes Peak Cog Railway) is a cog railway that climbs among the most renowned mountains in the USA, Pikes Peak in Colorado. The base station remains in Manitou Springs, near Colorado Springs.
cograilway.com

Construction on the line was started in 1889 and the very first train reached the top on June 30, 1891. Cog railways prevail in Switzerland and also located in various other parts of the globe, but this is just one of just three such lines staying in the United States, the others being the older Mount Washington Cog Railway in New Hampshire, as well as the short Quincy and Torch Lake Cog Railway.

Initially powered by steam locomotives, the line later switched over to diesel-powered engines and also self-propelled rail cars. The train was closed in between October 29, 2017 as well as May 20, 2021, for a complete repair that saw the substitute of the track framework, the reconstruct of older rail automobiles and also the purchase of three brand-new train sets.

History of the Pikes Peak Cog Railway

The idea for the railway came in 1888, after a trip to the summit by innovator Zalmon G. Simmons, that had actually founded formerly the Simmons Bedding Company. Simmons had actually created a wood telegraph insulator while on the board of directors of Western Union, and was surveying Englemann Canyon for telegraph lines to the top of Pikes Peak. It was an unpleasant two-day trip on a mule and also after his return, Simmons was persuaded that there required to be an extra “civil” setting of travel to the top of Pikes Peak and decided to fund the building and construction of a railway.

The line would begin at a depot in the community of Manitou Springs, situated at an elevation of 6,320 feet, and climb 8.9 miles to the top of Pikes Peak at an elevation of 14,115 feet. The average grade of the line would be 12% but would top out at 25%. Trains can not keep grip on the rails at grades steeper than 10%, so the railway would certainly need to utilize a cog and rack system to assist pull trains up the hill and regulate the rate of the descent.

The line was built as a standard-gauge railway with an Abt rack system as well as wood ties. Service was begun in 1890 on the first sector of the line from Manitou Springs to the Halfway House Hotel.

Three steam locomotives were constructed for the line by the Baldwin Locomotive Works that each included central heating boilers offset by 16 degrees to keep them degree on the outstanding likely qualities. While most locomotives pull rail cars and trucks, these heavy steam engines would certainly press the line’s wooden passenger cars up the hill, lowering the chance of a runaway car.

The locomotive was so effective that the initial locomotives were reconstructed as Vauclain compounds in 1893. All 6 steam locomotives were reconstructed in 1912 to comparable specs and would melt slightly under 1 load of coal per journey.

Prior to the begin of the Great Depression, Spencer Penrose bought a stake in the line. Penrose was the proprietor of The Broadmoor, a well-known hotel in Colorado Springs.

Under the control of Penrose, there was an effort to find more economical ways to run the line. Therefore, gasoline-powered railcar # 7 was created in 1938. The railcar was meant to be a less costly alternative to operating steam locomotives throughout quieter times of the year. The railcar was a significant success, and led the railroad to purchase five ‘streamlined’ diesel engines from General Electric, which were geared up with matching passenger cars, obtained from 1939 forward.

The diesel engines slowly supplanted the steam locomotives, though some steam operations lingered until the 1960s as backup power and to run the snow-clearing train (where their better weight meant they were much less likely to derail).

The railway started switching to a fleet of self-propelled railcars in 1964, purchasing two systems (# 14 and also # 15) from Swiss Locomotive as well as Machine Works (SLM), which would certainly resemble equipment utilized on lots of Swiss cog railways. The air-cooled, 8-cylinder diesel engines in the very first devices proved to be less than satisfactory on the railway over the timberline and were replaced by water-cooled engines. The railcars confirmed to be an excellent enhancement to the railroad and also the fleet bought two even more railcars (# 16 and also # 17) in 1968.

As tourism increased in the 1970s the train needed extra capability. In 1976, the railway took delivery from SLM of two larger railcars (# 18 and also # 19). 8 trains per day came to be feasible with the new tools and house sidings.

By the 2000s, the rail infrastructure was beginning to reveal its age. Train supervisors reported that in 2017 the track geometry had become so poor that the cog wheels were wearing out two times as promptly as they performed in the 1980s. Wintertime procedures were suspended on October 29, 2017, to carry out upkeep on the railway, but crews quickly understood much more significant repair services were needed and in March 2018 it was revealed that the train would certainly close forever.

The Anschutz Corporation, which owned the railway, estimated a full repair of the line would certainly set you back $100 million. The business worked out a take care of the city of Manitou Springs that would provide $36 million in tax obligation breaks for the railroad over a 50-year duration if the business completed the upgrades. The arrangement was joined November 20, 2018.

The major repair job would include the near-complete replacement of the track infrastructure, the rebuild of facilities and also older rail cars as well as the acquisition of three brand-new trainsets.

Starting in March 2019, teams tore up the old rails, Abt rack system, and also wood ties, some of which had been in area considering that the line was first constructed in 1889. Work began at the depot in Manitou Springs as well as reached the top in September.

While the track job was underway, teams at the railway stores in Manitou Springs started to reconstruct the four two-car SLM railcars (Nos. 18, 19, 24 as well as 25). Each railcar was transformed to the new Strub system, received a new transmission with a retarder for vibrant breaking and was repowered with brand-new diesel engines.

The railroad additionally positioned an order for 3 trainsets (Nos. 27, 28 and also 29) from Stadler Rail of Switzerland. Each trainset would certainly consist of a diesel-electric engine, two coaches as well as a control vehicle, and noted a return to locomotive-hauled trains. Furthermore, a snowblower (No. 30) was purchased from Stadler’s partner, Zaugg AG Eggiwill of Switzerland. The snowblower has a diesel engine to turn its blades, however it is not self-propelled, however rather serves as a control automobile and pushed by one of the Stadler engines. In February 2021, the brand-new equipment was delivered from Switzerland to the United States, arriving in Manitou Springs the following month.

At the same time, the city of Colorado Springs (which operates the Pikes Peak Highway) developed a new visitor center up, while the railway built a brand-new platform. Down in Manitou Springs, the depot obtained a 2nd boarding track as well as system.

The line reopened on May 20, 2021.