Anyone know if the scenic train between Durango & Silverton is threatened by the fire near Durango? We have reservations for it in about 2 weeks.

We have reservations for the train on July 7. Service has now been suspended, but they are hoping to be back in operation by July 4 if conditions permit. Check out www.durangoherald.com and my earlier post and responses about Durango and the Missionary Ridge fire.

The last report I heard was that train service was suspended because the train set a grass fire yesterday. It was quickly dowsed. The forest service asked to suspend service. The train company is said to be acquiring modifications to prevent sparks. The train is not directly threatened by the Missionary Ridge fire. So, keep in touch with this site or call the railroad for updated info.

The train frequently causes fires. Residents here and the Forest Service accept this as a cost of tourism; also the railroad predates the Forerst Service - the track is on private property. In the last couple of weeks, even before the MR fire, local sentiment had been growing steadily toward stopping the train. The idea is that whatever we lose in tourism now will be outweighed by maintaining our beautiful forests to attract more visitors later. The railroad owner made this decision voluntarily, and we hope the train can resume trips soon.

Mary Hart, with Durango's tourist office, says the train is still running several trips a day between Durango and Hermosa. She says the Durango-Silverton route will be reassessed July 4.

The fire was believed to be human caused. Officials said it may have been started by a cigarette, but were still investigating.

ROAD CLOSURES
C.R. 501 from highway 160 up to the dam
C.R. 243
C.R. 240 from its intersection with C.R. 245 north to C.R. 501
C.R. 245 is open
C.R. 234 is open

The railroad officials said something about running a diesel locomotive from Rockwood to Cascade Canyon. If that's the case, you can still see some of the most spectacular parts of the route.