Train Rides near CO.Springs etc
 

Looking for suggestions on Train Rides near Co.Springs for the last week in July. Nephews children 12,4,2 - parent will be going with us. Would like to take them on a all day train ride. Maybe stop at a town for lunch,get off etc. Thank you.

Adding to above request - we would like the train to be steam.

I suppose it depends on your definition of "near". the closest such train I am aware of is the Georgetown Loop Railroad in the mountains west of Denver. However, that's 90-100 miles from Colorado Springs. There is a closer train that runs along the river bank in the bottom of the Royal Gorge but I believe it is powered only by Diesel locomotives. I believe they are the old F-8's and F-7's - streamliners.

Neither one of these would be all day.

The other steam trains relatively close that would be an all-day trip are the ones at Chalma (sp?) NM and the other at Durango, CO. Both of these are a fairly long drive from C-Springs and would probably require at least one overnight stay and, for Durango, probably two nights.

There are no rides of that nature in that area. The best for all day, steam would be the Silverton Railroad out of Durango.

'Tis true.

Agree with the above. FYI - the train out of Chama, NM is the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic RR. The only thing remotely close to the Springs is the cog railway up to Pikes Peak, but don't think that's what you're looking for.

We were just in Denver last week and the paper had a great summer feature of things to do. Among them was the steam railroads. As others have said, they are in the mountains (more than CO Springs is). Here is a big list. I was interested in the Georgetown one. This list includes one at Leadville that would be interesting, I'd think.

http://www.railserve.com/Tourist/Nor...rica/Mountain/

The OP asked about an all day train, Steam engine, stop for lunch. The only thing that meets those requirements is the Silverton. The Georgetown is about a 30 minute run each way. The old silver mine in the middle is quite interesting. The Leadville is a 20 mile diesel run for a couple of hours.

I know you asked about an all-day train ride, but I would recommend the Georgetown one, especially for the younger kids. It's about 30-45 minutes each way (if I remember right) with a mine tour in the middle. I think the mine tour is optional, but we did it, and the kids liked it. An all-day train ride is pretty long for little ones.

While you are in the Springs area, I'll bet your kids would love to see the Cave of the Winds in nearby Manitou Springs. My 5- and 7-year-olds loved it.