Verde Canyon Railroad
Posted: Wed Apr 14, 2021 10:36 pm
Curtsey of my super organizer daughter, this past Sunday, we enjoyed a very fun 40 mile RT ride on the Verde Canyon Railroad, located about 15 or 20 miles west of Sedona, in Northern Arizona. The line is a 110 yr old 38 mile privately owned ROW carved into the remote, twisting, Verde Canyon in the Northern Arizona mountains from Cottonwood, Az north up to the BUrlington Northern and Santa Fe mainline route. The central part of route runs through the remote, Verde River Canyon, providing daily bulk goods train north from the Cottonwood Az Cement plant to the BNSF interchange. Apparently, abundant quantities of limestone are available in the Verde Valley, adjacent to Sedona, and have been mined and shipped by rail throughout the United States for over a hundred years, over this original, standard gauge ROW.
The current owner of the RR bought the Canyon ROW and freight train assets in the late 1990’s and was so initially impressed with the dramatic, remote, Arizona wilderness scenery, that he immediately purchased and rehabilitated two of the remaining F7’s in the United States, and a dozen or so 1930’s era Pullman transcontinental passenger cars to create the Verde Canyon Tourist Train. The Rr says there are now only 10 remaining F7’s in active service. So quite a great to see these pulling the consist. The RR has been operating a daily 4 hour round trip passenger service to an 1880’s remote working cattle ranch Railway Station, on the north end of the Verde Canyon, and back, ever since.
Fun ride, and the old time, early 1930 era passengers cars are a treat to ride. Each coach car has its own open air flat car, coupled behind, so decent opportunity to social distance, and observe close up and out in the open, the passing scenery of the steep walls, and narrow winding canyon through the mountainous Northern Arizona forest landscape.
Here’s a few pics...
The current owner of the RR bought the Canyon ROW and freight train assets in the late 1990’s and was so initially impressed with the dramatic, remote, Arizona wilderness scenery, that he immediately purchased and rehabilitated two of the remaining F7’s in the United States, and a dozen or so 1930’s era Pullman transcontinental passenger cars to create the Verde Canyon Tourist Train. The Rr says there are now only 10 remaining F7’s in active service. So quite a great to see these pulling the consist. The RR has been operating a daily 4 hour round trip passenger service to an 1880’s remote working cattle ranch Railway Station, on the north end of the Verde Canyon, and back, ever since.
Fun ride, and the old time, early 1930 era passengers cars are a treat to ride. Each coach car has its own open air flat car, coupled behind, so decent opportunity to social distance, and observe close up and out in the open, the passing scenery of the steep walls, and narrow winding canyon through the mountainous Northern Arizona forest landscape.
Here’s a few pics...