The Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad ( RR) is a narrow gauge heritage railroad

Heritage railway

thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...

 that operates seasonal tourist trains between Cripple Creek

Cripple Creek, Colorado

The City of Cripple Creek is a Statutory City that is the county seat of Teller County, Colorado, United States. Cripple Creek is a former gold mining camp located southwest of Colorado Springs near the base of Pikes Peak. The Cripple Creek Historic District, which received National Historic...

 and Victor

Victor, Colorado

Victor is a Statutory City in Teller County, Colorado, United States. The population was 445 at the 2000 census.Victor is in the heart of Colorado's gold country, home to two of the major gold mines in the Cripple Creek mining district...

, Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

. The railroad uses a revitalized section of the original Midland Terminal Railway

Midland Terminal Railway

The Midland Terminal Railway was a short line terminal railroad running from the Colorado Midland Railway near Divide to Cripple Creek, Colorado. The railroad made its last run in February 1949.-History:...

 and the Florence and Cripple Creek Railway

Florence and Cripple Creek Railway

The Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad was a railroad running northward from junctions with the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad at the mill towns of Florence and later moved to Cañon City, CO, on the banks of the Arkansas River, up steep and narrow Phantom Canyon to the Cripple Creek Mining...

.

Engines in inventory

As of the 2008 season, the railroad operates three coal-fired narrow gauge steam locomotives. Engine #1 is an 0-4-4-0 Orenstein & Koppel articulated mallet built in 1902. Engine #2 is a 0-4-0 Henschel built in 1936. Engine #3 is an 0-4-0 H. K. Porter tank built in 1927. Engine #4 is the W. G. Bagnall  0-4-4-0T, built in 1947; this engine is currently in restorations. The 5th engine is a 1951 General Electric

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

, four wheel, Diesel-Electric engine. The engine is currently being used by the CCVNG track crew. This engine was originally a battery operated for underground mining at the Idarado Mine near Telluride.

Rail gauges

Although these narrow gauge railroads, when they operated, were laid to (standard gauge

Standard gauge

The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

) and (narrow gauge) respectively, the current railroad is laid to a gauge of . The new CC&VNG RR started operations on June 28, 1967.

Track route

The track system begins at Bennett Avenue/5th Street going south out of Cripple Creek, goes past the old Midland Terminal Wye, then over a reconstructed train trestle, continues past some historic mines and finally terminates very near the abandoned Anaconda mining camp. The return trip to Cripple Creek completes a total of four miles.

Stations and depot

The Bull Hill Station, in Cripple Creek was originally built at the Anaconda Mine in 1894 by the Midland Terminal Railroad. However, it was moved to Bull Hill in 1912, east of the town of Victor. Then in 1968, the depot was moved to Cripple Creek.

See also

• List of Colorado historic railroads
• List of heritage railroads in the United States

External links

• Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad Official Site
• Map of the Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway at the Old Colorado City Historical Society
• Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad Photos