A Ride on the Leadville Colorado and Southern Railroad

This summer we drove into the town of Leadville, which at 10,152 feet, is the highest incorporated town in the United States. In the late 19th century this silver mining town was the second highest in population in Colorado after the city of Denver and was once the most famous silver mining camp in the world. Leadville once overflowed with fortune-seeking miners and infamous outlaws. Wealthy businessman Horace Tabor, the Silver King, his second wife Baby Doe, and gun-slinging dentist Doc Holliday are just a few frontier characters who contributed to the town’s history. (All photos and photo collages will enlarge if clicked on)

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This sign located along the entrance to town tells of some of Leadville's history

I loved that Leadville's nickname is "Cloud City," as the day of our journey up from the Denver area was filled with sights of beautiful and mesmerizing low-lying clouds.

Most of the town of Leadville looks like a page from the past, with an old-west flavor and Victorian-era buildings built between 1880 and 1905. It is situated between two mountain ranges, the Mosquito Range to the east and the Sawatch Range to the west; both of which include several nearby peaks with elevations above 14,000 feet, Mount Elbert, at 14,440-feet elevation (4401.2 m) is about 16 miles southwest of Leadville, and is the highest summit of the Rocky Mountains of North America and the highest point in Colorado. Mount Massive, which lies west-southwest of Leadville, at 14,428 feet elevation (4,398 m) is the second highest summit in the Rocky Mountains and state of Colorado, and the third highest in the contiguous United States.

We were excited to have tickets to take a trip on the Leadville Colorado and Southern Railroad on the day we visited. The train runs daily from late May to early October, The train journey is full of breath-taking panoramas across the Arkansas River Valley and humorous narratives about Leadville's colorful past.

We chose an outside seating car so that we could enjoy the scenery to the fullest. 

The two and a half hours train ride is narrated with the history of the line and the Leadville area as it travels north along the Arkansas River Valley, rising up 1,000 feet off the valley floor, giving us some spectacular views of Freemont Pass and the two tallest peaks in Colorado, Mt. Massive and Mt. Elbert.

Some glaciers can be seen on the high peaks.

There were many picturesque views along the train ride...

...beautiful valleys and mountain views.

Views of forests...

...and wilderness.

I noticed that there were a massive amount of pine cones on the trees and there is a myth that the more pine cones on the trees the more severe the winter will be ahead. What do you think? According to the Farmers Almanac, the winter of 2019 in the northern hemisphere will be a "teeth-chattering" cold one, with plenty of snow. Colorado can certainly welcome a lot of snow, and while I like cold weather I'm hoping the weather will not be excessively cold!

At the end of our ride, before returning to Leadville, we had a view of the Climax, Colorado Mine area. The Climax Mine is a major molybdenum mine. Shipments of molybdenum from the mine began in 1915. At its highest output, the Climax mine was the largest molybdenum mine in the world, and for many years it supplied three-fourths of the world's supply of molybdenum, which was mainly used in the production of steel and armor plating during World War I and II. After a long shutdown, the Climax mine reopened and resumed shipment of molybdenum on May 10, 2012.

On our return train ride back to Leadville we saw more magnificent views and even a zip line rider that crossed over the train. The Leadville Colorado and Southern Railroad offer a zip line special along with other special event train rides on their website on this link.

We really enjoyed our ride on the Leadville Colorado and Southern Railroad.  This was our third train ride in Colorado, as we traveled on the Georgetown Loop Railroad --click here to read that post--and the Royal Gorge Route Railroad--click here. 
Of course, we rode the train at the nearby Colorado Train Museum many times--click here--and even the miniature train in the adorable Tiny Town--click here. I'd say without planning it we've become train aficionados! All of the trains offered different experiences and scenery and all of them have helped to keep a part of Colorado's history alive. There are many other things to do in Leadville, and we know we'll be back to do more someday, but taking a train ride on the Leadville Colorado and Southern Railroad was a great way to spend the day!

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