On Saturday, August 8, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Bruce, Kendall, Ben, Ron, Dianne, Teia, Michael, John, Jerod, Dannis, Abel and Paul got things rolling to host our guests for some train rides before heading into the new school year. We had quite a few people coming out to ride despite the high temps, and they were having fun! Everything was going smoothly until around 12:30 when on one of our trips we suffered a minor derailment when Engine 102 dropped a couple of wheels off the track.

Now we had our work cut out for us at the hottest part of the day! So out comes the tools and the sweat and a little effort to get the engine back on the rails and the track fixed enough to be able to operate over it to get the train back to our shop yard. Now we get to look forward to more track repair work!

I have included a few pictures of the fun part of the day, and one by Bruce showing the 102 back up on the rails and the intrepid crew making some track repairs.

– Paul

Photos by Paul and Bruce

On Saturday, August 1, volunteers Dwight, Jarod, Ben, Dannis, Nick, Jasper and Paul worked in what may have been the hottest, humid conditions we have had all summer to replace four more ties on our main running track. After dealing with some minor equipment issues first thing, the gang headed out and jumped into the task. The ties that were removed were in very well-used condition and the new ties should keep our track stable for many years.

Lunch came a little late, but everyone was ready to cool off and relax a bit. After lunch, the crew cleaned up the equipment and got things stored back where they belong. There was some minor clean up work that got done, and the high rail equipment truck got a bit of attention before we tied up.

I have included a few photos of the morning tie replacement work.

– Paul

Join the Pueblo Railway Museum for our Back To School Train Rides on Saturday, August 8. Train rides will be available from 10AM to 2PM behind the Pueblo Union 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.

Bring your used train ride tickets to the Pueblo Heritage Museum, across the street from the Pueblo Union Depot, for half-price admission!

Our circus-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.

Our train ride event schedule for 2026 can be found on our Events Page. 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, July 25, volunteers Dwight, Bruce, Chris, Ben, Jerod, Dannis, Nick, Jasper, and Paul braved very warm and humid conditions and decided to replace four cross ties in our main running track. Both pairs of ties were in an area that had previously been covered with asphalt and gravel which caused the ties we pulled out to be very decomposed! The entire morning was spent working on these ties and dealing with some stubborn equipment before breaking for lunch.

After cooling off a bit in the break room during lunch, the crew split in two with half working on some brake rigging on our very old C&W flatcar A-1, and the other half working to install our flange greaser on engine 104. After a couple of hours in the afternoon heat, everyone was ready to call it a day and retreat to the break room to cool off again and then head home. It doesn’t matter what the conditions are, we always get some constructive work done at the Museum!

I have included some pictures from the tie replacement in the morning.

– Paul

The Pueblo Railway Museum is hosting its summer Railfan Day on Saturday, August 22, from 8am to 5pm. This event is different from our usual public train ride events, and is tailored specifically for our “hardcore railfans” who are interested in photographing our trains in operation. To get a better idea of what this event is all about, click here to see a video posted by one of the friendly folks who attended our Railfan event last summer.

Visitors to this event should arrive at our maintenance shop at 330 West D Street, about two blocks north of the Pueblo Union Depot. From the Pueblo Union Depot, take Victoria Avenue northeast to D Street, turn left, then two blocks northwest on the left. Click here for a map. Click here for Google Maps directions. And be sure to wear closed-toed shoes!

The cost for the event is $40 per person, regardless of age, which includes limited locomotive rides, lots of photo ops, lunch and refreshments provided by some of our museum volunteers, and places to sit down and take a break from the Pueblo heat.

Click here to pre-register for this event. All ticket sales are by credit/debit card. If you pre-register, you can pay for the event in advance. Or you can pay by credit/debit card when you arrive. Pre-registration is highly encouraged so we know how many people to expect.

Our 2026 public train ride event schedule can be found on our Events Page. 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, July 18, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Justin, Nick, Bruce, Reid, Jerod, Ben, Dannis, Abel, Doug, Scott, Jasper, Reilly and Paul participated in a basic training course that helped the volunteer crew understand a bit more about the equipment they work with, including the basic components of the air brake system, the hand brakes, how to lace up air hoses and cut in the air for the brakes. The group also worked on learning basic hand signals that effect train operations, and practiced radio calls.

The group took a nice lunch break and enjoyed some pizza before heading out in the hot afternoon sun to learn and practice the proper way to board and alight from steps and ladders on the freight cars and cabooses. Everyone got to practice throwing a track switch and learning how not to throw out your back while doing that! Lastly we switched a couple of pieces of equipment to help tie all of the training together. The volunteers said they all enjoyed learning this information and they said they had fun even though the heat was quite an issue by the end of the day.

I have included a few pictures that were all taken by Ben when he could sneak a minute away from the training!

– Paul

On Saturday, July 11, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Bruce, Reid, Jared, Dannis, Jasper, Kyle, Doug and Paul braved some very warm conditions to do some more work on our track by replacing two worn out old ties and tamping up some other ties in an area we had worked on a couple weeks back. The crew cleaned out some dirt and unneeded material along the track, while planning where the next tie replacement will happen in the coming weeks. This work burned up our morning and we headed into the D Street shop to cool off and grab some lunch which was provided by member Doug.

After lunch, the crew checked on some equipment in the yard, and then tackled a project to smooth out a slight kink we had in one of our yard spurs. This required the crew to completely disassemble a rail joint, clean out rust and dirt, and then align the rails to provide a smoother track line. We re-bolted the rail joint and pounded some spikes in new locations to provide a stable line on the rails. The heat was really turning up by the time we finished, so we all retreated to the cool break room!

I have included some photos taken by myself and Bruce during the work.

– Paul

On Saturday, July 4th, volunteers Dwight, Bruce, Chris, Reid, Colin, Kendall, Jared, Ron, Dianne, John, Michael, Nick, Dannis, Gabriel, Jasper, Reilly and Paul worked hard in bright sunny, very warm conditions to give our visitors a little something different to enjoy their Fourth of July! A short train ride is certainly the way to take the edge off from the heat of the day, and you might even learn a bit about railroads and the City of Pueblo history! There was concern that a nearby forest fire might make conditions too smokey, but the light winds kept most of the smoke moving away from the downtown area.

While not a blockbuster event, after a slow start we did have quite a few visitors and at least one group celebrating a family reunion to include about 25 members that filled two of our cabooses on one ride! The refreshment stand sure looked like they stayed busy with snacks and cold drinks. As always we are happy to see our visitors learning about railroads and enjoying themselves riding on the locomotive or cabooses.

I have included a few photos of the crowds and our crew. One of our newest volunteers, Jasper, was able to capture a nice portrait of our train with no crowds around.

– Paul

On Saturday, June 27, volunteers Dwight, Colin, Reid, Bruce, Jerod, Dannis, Nick, Reilly, Jasper, and Paul braved very warm temperatures to replace some more ties under our main running track by the depot platforms. After identifying which ties we were going to replace, the crew excavated the ballasted areas between the ties to remove two for replacement, and straightened some other ties that had skewed under the rails. The crew moved down the track a bit to replace the third tie. After securing the spikes, we dressed the roadbed, and headed in for lunch and a chance to cool down.

After lunch, the crew worked on various clean up work in the shop yard and along the depot platforms. We also did some checks on Engine 102, The Patriot, and then planned for some future work and for the upcoming 4th of July event coming next Saturday.

I have included a few photos taken during the morning work.

– Paul

Join the Pueblo Railway Museum for America’s 250th Birthday on Saturday, July 4. Train rides will be available from 10AM to 2PM behind the Pueblo Union 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 Veteran-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.

Our train ride event schedule for 2026 can be found on our Events Page. We will be announcing our summer train ride event schedule soon! 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.