On Saturday, May 16, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Bruce, Dannis, Nick, Gabriel, Reilly, Angelo and Paul got busy replacing ties on our main running track. The crew replaced three more ties that will help keep our track stable and in gauge. The work was straightforward with only a minor issue with some tie plates under a joint. We finished this work before the heat set in, and took a lunch break.

After lunch, we cleaned up some debris from around the shop, and then headed out to clean up a pair of old tracks that lead into the old freight house dock.

I have included a few photos of the work done today.

– Paul

In honor of our nation’s 250th birthday in 2026, the Pueblo Railway Museum will soon be adding a special touch to the red, white and blue Patriot engine that we are using for our train rides this summer. A local company will be creating a special “America 250” decal to add a fresh layer of detail to what is already an impressive and beautiful engine. This custom vinyl decal will enhance the train ride experience for our riders, helping visitors connect visually with the history in front of them, while still maintaining a seamless, authentic appearance, reflecting the care and effort taken by the Pueblo Railway Foundation and Museum to preserve Southern Colorado rail history.

Projects like this highlight the value of collaborating with experienced local providers like SoCo Signs Embroidery and Print in Colorado Springs, the creator of the decal, who understand both design and durability. Businesses throughout the region work with SoCo Signs to create signage, design equipment graphics, and distribute promotional materials. These solutions help create a consistent, professional appearance in a wide range of environments, from job sites to storefronts to museums.

The new graphics on our Museum’s Patriot engine are a great example of how small upgrades can make a big impact. Adding this visual detail will enhance the experience for our train ride visitors while continuing to preserve an important piece of local history.

On Saturday, May 9, volunteers Dwight, Bruce, Colin, Reid, Chris, Kendall, Jerod, Dannis, Nick #1, Nick #2, John, Mike, Ron, Kim, Dianne and Paul brought the Patriot and our caboose consist out for National Train Day. The weather was perfect, and the guests were plentiful (well over 200), to make a day of enjoying a simple train ride. The crew was hopping to keep up with the flow of folks waiting to jump on board as the waiting lines got pretty long!

Our recent maintenance work paid off, as we were incident free and had no delays. Credit goes to our dedicated volunteers who are always working to improve the Pueblo Railway Museum.

I have included a few pictures I was able to capture, including a group shot of a worn out but happy crew!

– Paul

On Saturday, May 2, volunteers Dwight, Kendall, Reid, Jerod, Dannis, Nick, and Paul worked to swap out two more ties and adjust some hardware on our main running track, and enjoy a bit of train watching, all before lunch. After the lunch break, the group rounded up some equipment, and rolled out to clean out our grade crossings and some of the platform area by the ticket office, to be ready for next week’s event for National Train Day on Saturday May 9.

I have included a few pictures of the action today.

– Paul

Join the Pueblo Railway Museum for National Train Day on Saturday, May 9! Train rides will be available from 10AM to 2PM behind the Depot. Train ride tickets are $15 for a ride in the engine, and $10 for a ride in one of our three cabooses. Children under 3 ride the train free! Cash or check preferred, but credit cards accepted. Train ride tickets can only be purchased during the event. Purchase your tickets at our Gift Shop, a converted caboose behind the Depot, near the passenger boarding area. Trains depart every 20 minutes, so there will be multiple opportunities during the event to ride the train.

Our special Veterans-themed mini-train will be on display, in cooperation with the Pueblo Downtown Association. There is no admission fee to attend the event itself. The charge is only for the train ride.

If you have unused tickets purchased during our Easter event (when we had our little track issue), they will be honored at this event.

Our train ride event schedule for 2026 can be found on our Events Page. We will be adding more events as the year progresses. To receive updates about our upcoming events, follow our blog. Enter your email address on the bottom of this web page and click the “follow” button.

On Saturday, April 25, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Kendall, Chris, Bruce, Jerod, Nick, Dannis, Abel, Doug and Paul jumped into the work of replacing 5 more ties in our main running track. After rounding up the tools and a stack of ties, we headed out to the work area and were promptly greeted by a passing BNSF train. Some train watching to start the day! Work went smoothly and we had 4 ties all spiked in before lunch.

After a lunch break, with a taco bar provided by Doug, the crew resumed work with some tie plate placement and sinking some spikes back in. We checked another area of track and decided to replace one more tie to support a track joint. It really needed to be done because the tie came out in about six pieces!! After a quick clean up of tools, we did some planning for next weeks work, yep some more ties to replace.

I have included some photos of today’s “track gang” in action.

– Paul

Photos by Paul and Kendall

On Saturday, April 18, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Bruce, Kendall, Ben, Jerod, Dannis, Nick and Paul got down to business doing tie replacement on our main running track in the area where we had our minor derailment a couple weeks back. The old ties had done their duty and gave up, so we had to get some solid wood back under the rails. Once all the tools were rounded up, we headed out to the mainline where picks and shovels started flying! Three ties were replaced before lunch.

After the lunch break, the gang threw some ballast in place, and worked on getting tie plates secured on some of the remaining ties. We then surveyed the track to plan for next week’s work day, when we are planning to replace 4 more ties. During the day, we were able to see a few trains roll by on the BNSF main, and even caught a couple pieces of track repair equipment that the gang would have loved to have borrowed for the day! You never know what you might see while working hard at the Pueblo Railway Museum!

I have included a few pictures showing the work being done.

– Paul

Photos by Paul and Bruce

On Saturday, April 4, volunteers Ron, Teia, Dianne, Michael, John, Dwight, Reid, Kendall, Bruce, Nick (#1), Ben, Nick (#2), Colin, Jared, Sandra, Gabriel, Dannis and Paul gathered to get our trains out and operate some rides for our guests for Easter. Everyone worked hard to get the train ready to roll, and we boarded our first guests and headed out of the Depot to the end of the line. On the return leg, Engine 102 and our track had a disagreement, and a slight derailment was the result of some track with too-wide gauge. This mishap abruptly ended our rides in the first half hour. After a quick look at the situation, it was determined that we could get the wheels back on the track with a little help from some tie plates. The unknown was whether we could prop up the track well enough to keep operating. Reid, Bruce, both Nicks, Ben, Colin, Jared, Dannis and Paul jumped in and gathered the tools needed to make the repair. We borrowed a couple of gauge rods from another area of our track, and reset some spikes to set the correct gauge, and after two hours we ran over the track for a quick test.

With everything back on the track, the crew got back to the Depot platforms and loaded up some passengers for a ride. Some guests had waited until the repairs were done to get their ride, and we had a decent turnout of about 110 riders for the last couple of hours, including an extra hour we worked to make up for some of the time lost earlier.

Today was a great example of what our team of volunteers does at the Museum regularly to keep the operation going. Now we have to plan the next round of tie replacement on our track!

Nearly all of the pictures this time feature the track repair action. In addition to my pictures, Bruce and Ben pitched in with some of their own.

– Paul

Photos by Paul, Bruce and Ben

On Saturday, March 28, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Bruce, Jerod, Nick, Reid, Gabriel, Sandra and Paul enjoyed the excellent early Spring weather by doing the MOST IMPORTANT work we do at the Museum, cleaning up blown-in tumbleweeds from around our equipment. Today’s crop was rather light, with only two pickup bed fulls to mash into the dumpster. While over at the collection area, we were able to install some wash out plugs back into the 2912’s boiler. Upon returning to the shop yard and dealing with a few more weeds and filling our dumpster, the crew did a thorough cleaning of our cabooses to be ready for next week’s event. Then it was lunch time.

After lunch, the group split up with some of the group jumping into reinstalling a pin in the lift mast of the Massey Ferguson, which after some effort we were able to get installed. Dwight did some work to change out a power supply for the radio on Engine 102, and then we checked the batteries on the engine and plugged in the charger to top off the charge and check the battery health. We did some other minor work around the shop before finishing up with a sense of accomplishment.

I have included a few pictures of today’s activities.

– Paul

On Saturday March 21, volunteers Dwight, Kendall, Jerod, Ben, Dannis, Bryan, Nick, Nick (yes two separate Nick’s!), Bruce, Colin, and Paul got busy early, on what promised to be a hot and very busy day. The main goal of the day was to get Engine 102 ready for use over the next six months. We started out by getting Engine 104 started and ready to move. Then we added coolant and changed fuel filters on Engine 102. We had got the track connections done earlier, so it was time to pull 102 out and give her the annual wash job. A rotating group worked on washing the locomotive, while another group cleaned the shop floor where 102 had sat during the winter. This work got us up to lunch time and we took a quick break.

After lunch, it was time to get Engine 102 started and checked out. While she was warming up, the windows were cleaned and the wash equipment was put away. We also added lube oil to the engine after it warmed up. It only took 40 gallons to top her off! Then we backed Engine 104 and the three cabooses out around our sharp curve, to check out the track work we did there last week. Everything looked good, so it was time to park 104 out of the way and get 102 hooked up to the cabooses to be ready for the upcoming events. Things were going very well, so we decided to do some more work, which included adding an accessory to Engine 102, and working to repair a problem that was spotted on our Massey Ferguson Forklift. We finally wrapped up around 6:00pm, a rather long day for the Museum volunteers.

I have included some photos that Bruce and I were able to catch of the work being done.

– Paul

Photos by Paul and Bruce