May 2014

Castlemaine and Maldon Railway Preservation

Society Branchline The Members Newsletter of the

Castlemaine and Maldon Railway

Preservation Society

Thank You to the Victorian State Government

The Victorian Goldfields Railway in Maldon will upgrade its track-layer and sleeper-replacement machine with the help of $50,400 from the

Victorian Coalition Government’s $1 billion Regional Growth Fund.

Member for Northern Victoria, Damian Drum MLC, pictured above with a group of VGR volunteers, said the machine would be able to operate

on all railway gauges currently in use in Australia.

“The Victorian Goldfields Railway has identified an opportunity to create a unique work team to operate the only Takeuchi Hi -Rail track machine

in Victoria,” Mr Drum said.

“The VGR is experiencing an ageing volunteer workforce and the acquisition of specialist machinery will remove some of the burden from the

volunteers.

“As well as maintaining the VGR’s rail system into the future, the project will maintain two full-time jobs and generate income for the VGR

through contract work at various tourist railways, including the Maldon Castlemaine tourist railway and tracks like Puffing B illy, Mornington

Railway and Southern Shorthaul Railroad.

“The machine will be designed and built in Bendigo by engineering company McCullochs.”

Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional and Rural Development Peter Ryan said the Coalition Government funding towards the $67,200 project

to upgrade the Takeuchi Track Layer would be provided through the Regional Growth Fund to the Victorian Goldfields Railway, which will

contribute $16,800.

“The Regional Growth Fund is investing in community-led projects to strategically drive jobs, investment and innovation in rural and regional

Victoria,” Mr Ryan said. “Since it was established in early 2011, the Regional Growth Fund has invested more than $394 million to support almost

1,400 projects across regional and rural Victoria, leveraging over $1.57 billion in total investment .” Mr Ryan said.

In Mount Alexander Shire, the Regional Growth Fund has provided $2.94 million to 16 projects, leveraging $4.55 million in total investment. Those

projects include:

$822,000 towards the Walking & Cycling Strategy Implementation (Castlemaine to Newstead Trail)

$250,000 towards the $1,457,000 Newstead Multipurpose Sports and Recreation Pavilion; and

$30,000 towards the $60,000 Enhancing Community Awareness for Bushfires Project

The upgraded track layer is expected to be operating by August 2014.

The Hon. Damian Drum MP enjoys the company of VGR volunteers and staff at the announcement of the grant for the Takeuchi hi-rail gear.

Page 2 May 2014

President’s Column

It will be seen elsewhere in this newsletter

that we have achieved our goal in regard to

the excavator. We launched the appeal to

our membership to raise funds in November

of last year and I want to thank all members

that contributed which has seen a bit over

$25,000 raised to date. The balance of funds

needed to fit out the excavator has come

from a grant from Regional Development

Victoria which was announced at Maldon on

the 13th of April 2014. As previously advised

the excavator has been to McCulloch’s in

Bendigo for preliminary measurements in

readiness for the fit out which will now

proceed. It will be apparent that next to the

grant funds the amount that came in from our

membership was more than the contribution

we were required to make so the balance has

gone to meeting the ongoing lease payments

for the excavator as required. I am very

pleased that this project has moved so

speedily because it sits very squarely in the

forefront of our plans to generate extra

income for the railway as previously advised.

We are now turning our minds to the grant

funding needed for the next stage of

infrastructure projects for the railway. It has

been determined that this should be the

completion of the carriage shed at

Castlemaine and the construction of

locomotive servicing facilities there as well. I

have talked about this previously but the

reasoning behind pushing to achieve both is,

firstly, because of our stated resolve to

operate the branch line from Castlemaine

rather than Maldon. There are a number of

advantages that will flow from this but

particularly that we will be operating from a

major regional town with a mainline

economic benefit to the town.

Since the last newsletter we have been in

discussion with the South Gippsland Railway

about return of our railmotor, RM61. Nearly

5 years ago the railmotor went to the SGR

on a plan that intended that we would receive

the DRC railmotor from Seymour. This never

eventuated for various reasons so in many

ways we ended up being a benefactor for

South Gippsland without getting anything in

return. As a result of recent discussions a

plan has been put in place that will see the

railmotor returned to us by the 1st of

December this year. Unfortunately the

railmotor has been inoperable at South

Gippsland for sometime so the initial steps of

the plan will be to assess the work required

to return it to an operating state. The

railmotor will then be moved to Newport for

the work to be undertaken and then it is

hoped that it will return to our railway via

the mainline. All of this I should emphasize

will happen at no cost to ourselves so I

regard this as an extremely good outcome. It

became apparent in the discussions that took

place that the rail motor was really, in many

ways, in a fairly poor state when it left our

railway about 5 years ago. It seems to me that

the outcome of this process will be to have it

back to us in very good condition and it will

be particularly useful to us in the summer

season with the capacity for it also to haul a

passenger carriage as the did on branch lines

in the past. I want to thank the Registrar of

Heritage and Tourist Railways, Adrian

Ponton, for his assistance in reaching this

outcome.

(Continued on page 3)

connection.

Secondly are our plans to operate heritage

trains from Southern Cross to Castlemaine

with our joint venture partner, Steamrail. The

tourist potential for the goldfields region for

this is clearly there and in pushing our cause

with the government this aspect will be

highlighted. I should also say that we will have

significant timetable advantages in operating

the branch line from Castlemaine which

would give passengers more time to spend at

Maldon between morning and afternoon

trains and so more time to enjoy the shops,

eateries, hotels and tourism benefits that

exist there and therefore provide a greater

by Michael Vines

The Victorian Goldfields Railway is supported by some fine businesses. If your company would

like to benefit from a sponsorship, please contact our Sponsorship Manager, Rob Fletcher via

our marketing office on (03) 5470 6658

Page 3 May 2014

Finally as I indicated in the last newsletter I

was up in Maldon over the Easter period. It

was very pleasing to see the level of

patronage on our trains and so it was

apparent that, as expected, Easter was a very

busy period for us. Again this is important for

the railway because we have moved to a new

fare structure since the April 1st and so the

revenue stream now coming in from our

passengers will be significantly greater. Again

this is part of our strategic plan to restore

the railway’s finances in the wake of the El

Zorro problems of last year. In the last

month or so there has been a significant

turnaround in our finances but we still have a

long way to go and I assure all members that

the Board is working very hard to achieve

our stated goals. As I said at a recent Board

meeting it will be very interesting to see how

the railway stands financially in about twelve

months time when all of the measures we

have put into place should have had their flow

through effect by then.

Anyway that is pretty much it in regard to

matters that I want to bring to members

attention for this newsletter and I hope it will

indicate to members that there is plenty that

is being planned at the moment and needs to

be done.

Michael Vines

President

well, helping to fire up the farm forge and

helping with the working Clydesdale horses.

John’s interest in the railways, led him to

contemplate taking up an apprenticeship at

Newport, which would have trained him to

be an Engineman. Whilst his parents

recognized his interest in the railway world,

they insisted that he complete his formal

school based education.

His continuing formal education led the young

John McEwen on a different path, but never

extinguished his other interests, which simply

lay dormant for a while until re-emerging

after several years as an art teacher in various

Victorian schools .

John attended Box Hill Technical School –

then Swinburne, where he became engrossed

(Continued on page 4)

John McEwen, a long serving volunteer for

the Victorian Goldfields Railway has put his

flags in the safeworking box, hung up his

guard’s hat and handed in his keys to the

signal box. From now on, John will enjoy

riding the rails as a passenger, after many

years of working on our railway in a variety

of voluntary roles.

John’s association with the railway world

began to evolve from an early age, when his

family took him regularly on the steam train

to visit farming friends in the Yarrawonga

district. His father also took John on a variety

of other steam train journey in his younger

days – trips which helped to firmly establish a

love of the sights and sounds of

railway travel in the genuine steam era.

The farm visits also formed the catalyst for

John’s other abiding interests in heritage

horses and blacksmithing. He remembers

A Railway Gentleman

Takeuchi Appeal As mentioned, we have now raised all the

funds required to fit the Takeuchi with Hi-Rail

gear. A number of donations have been

received after the target was met. These

donations will go towards paying off the

principal owing to the bank for the purchase

of the machine.

Sincere thanks go to the many members who

donated varying amounts. Each contributor

has been a part of making this project a

reality. Whenever you travel over our track,

or see the machine out working at another

railway, you will know that you have

contributed to this machine being able to

assist our railway to remain viable.

Page 4 May 2014

in Art Metal studies. He then completed a

Diploma in Gold Silversmithing and Sculpture

at RMIT prior to commencing a career with

the Education Department.

After many years teaching, John’s earlier

interests in blacksmithing were reignited to

the point of making a life changing decision to

change careers. He enrolled in the Oklahoma

Farrier Course and completed this with

distinction. On returning to Australia, John

set up his own Farrier business, servicing a

broad area in Central Victoria.

This dramatic change in John’s working life

should not have been be all that surprising

considering his long held passion for horses

and blacksmithing so fondly embraced in

those early farm visits as a youngster.

John also revived his interest in steam

railways by joining Puffing Billy as a volunteer

and completed the Safeworking Course so

that he could participate in the operational

aspects of a steam railway.

He then realized there was an opportunity to

become involved in heritage railway work

much closer to home as he actually lived in

the area where the Victorian Goldfields

Railway was beginning to show signs of

becoming an important heritage tourist

railway – What a find !

Joining the Victorian Goldfields Railway as a

regular rostered volunteer brought great

satisfaction to John – as here, so close to his

home base, was the marvellous opportunity

to indulge in the very essence of the steam

era that he remembered so vividly from his

early years. Just a few minutes drive in his

beloved Morris Minor took John right back

into the wonderful world of steam.

(Continued from page 3) The heritage operational manoeuvres and

signals - both hand and mechanical - the

opportunity to be so closely associated with

the locos and rolling stock of yesteryear

and the many good times spent with other

volunteers of like mind will be cherished by

this great railway volunteer friend.

The Victorian Goldfields Railway, in turn, was

the beneficiary of John’s endeavours, as he

became involved in a variety of railway tasks,

including Guard, Conductor, Signalman,

Shunter, Track and Fire Patrols, and

mentoring and training three recruits in

Safeworking. John was also involved in the

operation of Special Event Days such as

Mucklefest, where he demonstrated his

blacksmithing skills in an enclosure donated

by him and which is a permanent structure at

Muckleford.

He was often rostered as Guard on our

Driver Experience Days and acted on many

occasions as Trolley Driver on our Steam

Trains For Kids weekends.

We now have a permanent legacy of John’s

metal working skills which he has donated to

the Victorian Goldfields Railway. Both his love

of railways and artistic skills are combined in

this large, striking work. When next you visit

the Castlemaine Station Refreshment Rooms,

take some time to study the wonderful

copper railway mural at the southern end of

the room. John originally crafted this work for

the Conference Room of the Bendigo Railway

Workshop.

Years later, this work was re-discovered in a

store room in Melbourne. John spent

considerable time re-instating the somewhat

neglected art work, which now hangs proudly

in our rooms. The mural depicts the

evolution of locomotive power on the

Victorian Railways, from the very first

mainline loco to the train of the future.

There are numerous words which could be

applied when attempting to encapsulate

the sort of volunteer John has been for the

Victorian Goldfields Railway. Such terms as

earnest, interested, helpful, reliable,

enthusiastic and diligent are a few that come

to mind, but one term that seems to be a

unanimous choice among the many volunteers

that know him is ‘ a gentleman’.

John has rightfully earned the highest respect

for all the years of his great volunteer work

and the Victorian Goldfields Railway extend

the very best wishes to him in his post

volunteering days. We look forward to seeing

John around the track and taking a leisurely

ride on the branchline.

Thank You John for your friendship, your advice and encouragement in your role as a volunteer over the years

Page 5 May 2014

Our Proud Sponsors

From the Loco Crew

Roster Officer April was a particularly busy month for the

Victorian Goldfields Railway. On the

footplate, there were twenty days of train

operations out of thirty in total. In total, 23

drivers and 25 firemen were required, along

with eight trainees also rostered. Longer

serving members might like to remember if

there has been a busier month of operations

in the history of the VGR?

Thank you to all the loco crews for your

efforts in this particularly busy period –

particularly those who answered the call to

cover a vacancy at short notice. It seems to

me, from the perspective of the loco crew

roster – there are a healthy number of crews

to cover future operations.

Rodney Reed

Loco Crew Roster Officer

Page 6 May 2014

A Heartfelt Plea For

Help For quite a few years now we have been

relying on the usual volunteers to work on

these particular weekends. They have all

shown up happily, but the ones that work all

weekend go home extremely tired.

If you can spare some time on these days it

would be most appreciated - even if it’s just

for one hour, so our volunteers can have a

lunchbreak or coffee break. Our next Steam

Trains for Kids weekend is on Saturday 12th

and Sunday 13th July. A valid working With

Children Check is required. However this can

be obtained at no cost to you as a volunteer

at the railway.

Also a call goes out for anyone interested in

volunteering in our shops. You get to meet a

lot of the passengers and also other

volunteers working on the day.

If you are interested, l look forward to

hearing from you.

Please contact me on 0428 810 633 or via

email at volunteers@vgr.com.au

Christine Gibb - Volunteer Co-ordinator

Brian Frewin - Gone but Never Forgotten A special train was run on Friday 11th April with Brian’s family and friends to scatter his ashes.

As mentioned earlier in the year, life member, Brian Frewin passed away after a battle with

cancer. A large number of members attended Brian’s funeral at Eaglehawk and this trip was a

chance to say a final farewell to Brian.

The whole railway family expresses its sympathies to Shirley and the rest of the Frewin family as

they remember a very special railway person who will never be forgotten.

Civil Branch News Our Civil Branch has been busy as always with a significant amount of work having been completed between Maldon and Muckleford. This work

has included:

replacing 75 sleepers in this area and re-gauging a further 180 by cross-boring;

replacing a further twelve sleepers in Maldon yard;

Completing replacement of eleven sleepers between Maldon and the Bendigo Road which had been installed some months ago but never

fastened; and

aligning the track in areas where distinct kinks had formed.

Hopefully by the time the next newsletter is published, our Civil Branch will have completed accreditation work for the Takeuchi hi-rail and it

will be operating as it has been intended, with the generous support of members and the Victorian State Government.

Page 7 May 2014

A very successful Garage Sale was held on the

Maldon Station Platform, on Saturday 29th

March. Seventy-seven houses around Maldon

were involved on the day which saw a lot of

people pass through our wonderful town and

visit our grand station.

A very big thankyou must be passed onto the

volunteers of the carriage restoration crew

and their partners, who planned and collected

for this occasion and a big thank you to the

members who kindly donated their wares,

making the day so successful. A big thank you

also goes to Deb McDonald for supplying

those ever famous cupcakes along with

sausage rolls for the guys (& gals) lunches.

The funds raised are being used to restore

80BW carriage back on the tracks.

When visiting Maldon Station next, drop in

and see the wonderful work that is being

carried out on 80BW carriage and other

works. The boys would love to show off their

hard work!

Owing to the success of this sale, we are

asking members if you could save and donate

your unwanted goods for the next sale to be

held sometime in Spring to help raise funds

for items needed for Maldon Station kitchen

to help with Catering. Members are asked to

drop off items on their day of volunteering in

the Station Masters Office at Maldon where

they will be put into storage for the big day,

so do those cupboards out now!

Victorian Goldfields Railway Garage Sale on the Maldon Platform

The Victorian based Association of Railway

Enthusiasts publishes a quarterly magazine

(Australian Railway Enthusiast) featuring

interesting railway and tramway topics. It is

probably the most interesting and diverse

railway publication in Australia. Articles cover

an extremely wide range of contemporary

and historical railway interests and often

feature more off-beat aspects to the hobby.

For instance the latest issue features railway

spirals, then and now photos of Chapel St

Melbourne, a day spent line siding in South

Africa with some splendid photos, a brief

history of a Queensland branch line, book

reviews as well as the Pullman article

reviewed below. Articles are written in a very

readable style and the magazine is profusely

illustrated in colour.

The last issue features an article about the

controversial procurement of the three

heavyweight Pullman cars (including our

Macedon) from Chicago in 1928. The then

commissioner for railways was Harold Clapp,

the most influential public servant of the day,

who was locked in a very public battle with a

tenuous coalition government. One of the

main disputes was his “illegal” purchase of the

Pullmans without government approval. To

try to curb him the government called a Royal

Commission. Soon after, the government fell

and Clapp retained his job continuing for

many years as probably the most able railway

administrator ever in Victoria. The story of

blatant government interference in the

running of the railways is one familiar to us

today. Based on newspaper articles of the day

the story is a fascinating one of government

mismanagement and finishes with the thought

that if the government had survived a little

longer and had been able to sack Clapp we

would never have seen the iconic Spirit of

Progress or the streamlined S-class locos. The

article is accompanied by some splendid

photos including one of the Pullmans being

unloaded at the docks in Adelaide and a rare

shot of two Pullmans hauled by a brand new

unstreamlined S-class taken at Seymour a few

weeks after delivery.

A great read for those interested in social as

well as railway history and a little background

to Macedon.

Edited by past President and volunteer Alan

Williams, “Australian Railway Enthusiast” has

developed into a very well-produced and

informative journal. It is now being stocked in

our shops and is well worth the $7.95 cover

price. Overall the magazine is thoroughly

recommended.

Now In Stock in Our Shops

Special Presentation - “Who was Eric Harrison?”

Saturday 31st May at 7pm at Castlemaine Refreshment Rooms All Members and friends are invited to hear a most interesting talk and visual presentation about a great historical Castlemaine resident who is

often referred to as one of the early pioneers of the Royal Australian Air Force. This year celebrates the centenary of military aviation in

Australia and Eric Harrison’s role in the early years of military aviation, through his role in the Central Flying School at Point Cook is a great

story which will be presented by three expert gentlemen. Come along and enjoy the presentation and good company.

Please indicate your attendance by contacting Christine Gibb on 0428 810 633 or via email at volunteers@vgr.com.au

In 1949, Twentieth Century Fox produced

the color film A Ticket to Tomahawk. If the

movie is remembered today, it is for the

presence of a blonde actress performing in a

small chorus line. Even though she was not

listed in the cast, her brief appearance

indicated that Marilyn Monroe had an

indefinable “star” quality. However, in an age

when few movies were made on location, the

film received considerable attention because,

as one review put it, many of its action scenes

were “played out against some of the most

gorgeous Colorado scenery ever captured on

Technicolor.”

For the struggling Denver and Rio Grande

Western Railroad, A Ticket to Tomahawk was a

timely lifeline. Though the company had

already been trying to promote tourism, the

film triggered an influx of visitors who came

to enjoy the stunning scenery of the narrow

gauge line that runs from Durango to

Silverton. Their interest was subsequently

reinforced by films like Across the Wide

Missouri, Viva Zapata! and especially the block-

buster Around the World in 80 Days, ensuring

the survival of a line that is surely one of the

great railway journeys of the world.

The line is a fragment of an ambitious but

unsuccessful project aimed at operating a 36-

inch narrow gauge railway from Denver to El

Paso, some 875 miles to the south. The

original plans were eventually amended to

include extensions throughout the booming

mining country of central and southwestern

Colorado. When the Denver and Rio Grande

Railway reached Durango in August 1881, the

town had a population of about 1000, as well

as 59 liquor outlets and one Episcopalian

church. Eleven months later, the track had

advanced 45 miles north to the boom town of

Silverton. In the decades that followed, this

branchline would carry at least $300 million in

precious metals from the mines.

Nevertheless, survival was an almost constant

struggle for the company that, after 1921, was

known as the Denver and Rio Grande

Western Railroad. It battled against annual

snowslides, several major floods and the

decline of the mining industry, as well as

insignificant passenger revenue and

competition from trucking. Consequently, it

was primarily the influx of tourists after

World War II that shielded the Silverton

route from closure. Indeed, by 1963, so many

visitors were arriving that a second daily train

to Silverton was added. Even so, as freight

traffic continued to fall, the company sought

government approval to abandon the line,

only to have the Interstate Commerce

Commission refuse the request on account of

the growing tourist patronage. As the

Silverton branch neared its centenary in 1981,

Florida citrus grower Charles Bradshaw

purchased the right-of-way and its equipment

to establish the Durango and Silverton

Narrow Gauge Railroad.

Page 8 May 2014

The D&SNG now uses two classes of former

Rio Grande 2-8-2 Mikado locomotives on its

tourist services. On both types, the chassis is

of outside-frame design with the drive wheels

placed between the main frames, and the

running gear to the outside. Weighing more

than 250,000 pounds when loaded with coal

and water, these engines are among the most

powerful narrow-gauge locomotives to be

used in the United States. Under Rio Grande

ownership, the railroad’s three K-28 engines,

built by the American Locomotive Company

in 1923, had long been familiar sights on the

run to Silverton, but the four K-36 locos,

made by Baldwin in 1925, had previously been

operated by Rio Grande only between

Durango and Antonito. (The K-37 locomotive

497 was used on the Silverton route for seven

years, but was traded to the Cumbres and

Toltec Scenic Railroad in 1991.) The Durango

and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, which

is now owned by American Heritage Railways,

operates throughout the year, sometimes

making as many as five trips a day, and has

museums in Durango and Silverton.

The nine-hour round trip between the two

(Continued on page 9)

A Ticket to Silverton by Alf Batchelder

K-28 476 prepares to leave Durango with a mighty column of steam and smoke

towns attracts about 200,000 patrons

annually. Return fares range from $85 to $189

for travel in the Presidential Class luxury of

Cinco Animas, where “the Victorian splendor

of a bygone era awaits you onboard one of

the most legendary and historic private cars

to ever grace the narrow gauge rails.” The

Tuscan red carriage, built in 1883 as a very

basic immigrant sleeper, allows passengers “to

relax in built-in Pullman berth seating, or

enjoy the views out the rear from the

Observation Parlor Room.” In addition, “a

large outdoor viewing platform is exclusively

available to those who choose this car.” For

the really big spenders, a 3½-hour one-way

cabride is available for $1000.

Since Durango is 6512 feet above sea level,

the railroad offers the following advice to

intending travellers:

To help thwart altitude sickness (headache

and nausea) guests are encouraged to get

plenty of rest, drink lots of water and avoid

alcohol and caffeine. Whenever possible, try to

acclimate to the altitude by arriving a day

early.

The station is located at the southern end of

town, just a few blocks from the residential

area. As a result of complaints from the locals

about the large amounts of smoke produced

by the coal-fired locomotives, the D&SNG

uses wood pellets for overnight fuel and relies

on diesels to move rolling stock. With the

line crossing several of Durango’s main

thoroughfares, traffic police are on duty near

the station when trains are departing and

returning.

On June 3, 1991, my train left at 8.30 sharp,

hauled by K-36 engine 481. Like all of the

locos that I saw in Durango, 481 produced an

incredible display of smoke and steam as it

moved through the town and out into a wide

valley, where high mountains with rich rust-

coloured strata rose in the east. For the first

ten or twelve miles, there was nothing

remarkable about the trip, but, after about

forty minutes, that started to change as the

train approached Hermosa, which was once

the site of a construction camp described in

the April 1882 issue of Harpers Magazine:

Presently we came upon one of Mr.

Wigglesworth’s construction camps – long, low

buildings of logs with dirt roofs, where grasses

and sunflowers and purple asters make haste

to sprout, are grouped without order …

Beside the larger houses, inhabited by the

engineers, foremen, etc., you will see numbers

of little huts about three logs high, roofed flatly

with poles, brush and mud, and having only a

window-like hole to creep in and out through;

or into a sidehill will be pushed small caves

with a front wall of stones or mud and a bit of

canvas for a door – in these kennels the

laboring men find shelter.

Between Hermosa and Rockwood Cut, 481

started to work harder – and ever harder.

For half an hour, the loco battled a 1:40 grade

(Continued from page 8)

Page 9 May 2014

as it moved through increasingly spectacular

scenery, where, in some places, the engine

and its yellow carriages snaked around

frequent 24-degree curves. The most

memorable moment came as the train wound

its way on to “The Highline”, where the most

unforgettable scene in Around the World in 80

Days was filmed: 400 feet above the Rio de las

Animas de Perdidas, “the River of Lost Souls”,

the narrow track has near-vertical red granite

walls on its left – and a very precipitous drop

on the right. When the line was built,

workers were paid $2.25 a day to dangle on

ropes down the thousand-foot rock face to

drill, blast and chip out a shelf for the track.

The project was so risky that the Denver and

Rio Grande president, General William

Palmer, constructed the route in secret,

fearing that his fellow directors would veto

the plan before he could safely complete it.

The general was probably also nervous about

the finances involved – construction of the

Highline is reputed to have cost about

$100,000 per mile. This precarious ledge was

widened when heavier rails and new sleepers

were installed to accommodate the K-36 class

after 1981. Looking down at the river far

below, I fervently hoped that there would not

be a derailment. (About two miles to the

north, where the track is much lower, a

double-headed mixed, bound for Durango,

left the tracks in 1919, killing fireman John

Conner. Incredibly, the two locos were

repaired and returned to service.)

For the remainder of the journey, the Animas

River was our trackside companion, no longer

a distant sight, but close alongside, and always

fast-flowing and white. The surrounding

mountains, sparsely covered with pine trees,

towered above the line, with Mt. Garfield and

other peaks reaching more than 13,000 feet

as they rose steeply from the river’s banks. It

is in this area that snowfalls prevent trains

from reaching Silverton – in 1993, at Elk Park

Siding, 120 feet of snow covered the track. (In

the winter months, the D&SNG travels only

as far as Cascade Canyon, 26 miles from

Durango.)

Just before noon, the country became more

open, and we were in a wide valley, with

Silverton visible in the distance. Located 9288

feet above sea level, with high mountains all

around, the town seems to have changed little

from the days in the late nineteenth century

when a miner reputedly coined its name,

saying “We may not have any gold, but we

have silver by the ton.” Literally miles from

anywhere, parts of Silverton resemble the set

of a western movie, and it didn’t take much

imagination to envisage the sheriff and a posse

riding down the street. Places like the Shady

Lady Saloon (a former brothel) and the Bent

Elbow Restaurant (once a bordello with

fourteen beds upstairs) add to that

atmosphere. Since 1963, the train has not

stopped at the “dee-po”, as the locals call the

station, but travels on to East 12th Street, so

that passengers don’t lose time walking into

town. While visitors enjoy the sights, the rail

yards become a hive of activity, as there can

be three trains waiting to be turned on the

wye.

Despite the chilly weather, the return journey

to Durango was as enjoyable and spectacular

as the morning’s ride, but I couldn’t help

thinking that it was quite amazing that the line

was even operating. On the morning of

February 10, 1989, a spectacular fire had

destroyed the Durango roundhouse, with

temperatures near the roof reaching 2500° to

3000°C. Since all six of the D&SNG’s

serviceable engines were inside at the time,

the future had looked incredibly bleak but,

working largely in the open, the roundhouse

crew were able to have locomotives ready to

start the summer season in May. In February

1990, a new roundhouse was brought into

service, at a cost of more than $2,000,000. It

(Continued on page 10)

The Animas River is a 204 kilometer long river which is part of the Colorado River system.

Page 10 May 2014

was another extraordinary achievement in the

history of this remarkable railway.

References:

Personal Diary

Osterwald, Doris B.: Cinders and Smoke,

Lakewood, Colorado, 1990 edition.

(Continued from page 9)

Queens Birthday

Long Weekend We’ll be operating on Sunday 8th June as well

as Monday 9th June. Long weekends are

always popular times to visit the railway, so

why not bring your family, bring your friends

and enjoy a relaxing trip between Maldon and

Castlemaine.

A new steel gate has been erected on the Maryborough line, just to the west of Maldon Junction,

Here, Tony “Ashcat” Marsden captures a picture of the gate from the cab of K190. Several level crossings on the line between Maldon Junction and Maryborough have also been removed, to

prevent further road damage.

Booking Officers - Your Help is Important! We are working hard to promote Driver Experience packages and your assistance in getting the message out there is invaluable.

Why? Driver Experience packages are one of the most profitable products that we offer. They’re also one of the packages we can offer with only 3

volunteers—A Driver, Fireman and Guard—so they aren’t as taxing on our volunteers as a regular running day.

How we’re promoting Driver Experience packages? Over the past two years, we’ve used a number of methods to promote these packages, including:

A radio campaign on 1116 SEN in Melbourne

Three Facebook advertising campaigns, directed at motoring enthusiasts, women around Valentines Day as a gift for their partner and

around Christmas as a gift idea.

Setting up two new websites being:

www.driveatrain.com.au

www.driveasteamtrain.com.au

Designing, producing and distributing promotional postcards and business cards

Having a staffed stand at the Steamrail Open Day

How you can help? We’re hoping that every

person who purchases a

ticket leaves with one of our

business cards (as shown,

right). The thought is that

they will put it in their purse

or wallet with their credit

card and then find it later

on—probably when they’re

at home. Hopefully they’ll

then remember the

enjoyable trip they had with

us and be curious enough to

jump on the website where

all the details are located..

Our target We know that if one in

every thousand passengers were to book a Driver Experience package, that would be an extra

17 packages per year and hence a really significant source of revenue that can be allocated

towards restoration and refurbishment of our equipment, rolling stock and infrastructure. We

have just received over 7,500 business cards, so there is no shortage of them and no restriction

on who we give them to.

Thanks for your assistance as ambassadors of the railway!

Victorian Goldfields Railway General Office and Marketing

P.O. Box 51, CASTLEMAINE VIC 3450

Phone: (03) 5470 6658

Facsimile: (03) 5470 6272

Email: marketing@vgr.com.au for bookings,

Train Times & Fares information or

cmr@vgr.com.au for all other enquiries

Castlemaine Railway Station

Kennedy Street, Castlemaine

Phone: (03) 5470 6658

Facsimile: (03) 5470 6272

Maldon Railway Station

Hornsby Street, Maldon

Telephone: (03) 5475 1451

www.vgr.com.au

newsletter@vgr.com.au