Mesa Verde National Park is approached by rail both from the north and
from the south: From the north via the Denver & Rio Grande Western
Railroad main transcontinental line through Grand Junction, and branch
lines through Montrose and Durango; from the south via the main
transcontinental line of the Santa Fe Railroad through Gallup, N. Mex.
The lines of the Denver & Rio Grande Western System traverse some of the
most magnificent scenery of the Rocky Mountain region, a fact which gives
the journey to Mesa Verde zestful travel flavor. Two main-line routes are
provided to the Grand Junction gateway.
The Royal Gorge Route goes through the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas, now
spanned by an all-steel suspension bridge, 1,053 feet above the tracks in
the Royal Gorge. This route crosses Tennessee Pass (altitude, 10,240
feet) and follows the Eagle River to its junction with the Colorado River
at Dotsero, thence to Grand Junction.
Service was inaugurated in June 1934 via the new James Peak Route of the
D. & R. G. W., utilizing the Moffat Tunnel (altitude at apex, 9,239
feet), 6.2-mile bore which pierces the Continental Divide, 50 miles west
of Denver. This route follows the Colorado River from Fraser, high on the
west slope of the continent, through Byers Canyon, Red Gorge, Gore
Canyon, and Red Canyon, thence over the Dotsero Cut-off to Dotsero, where
it joins the Royal Gorge Route. The new line saves 175 miles in the
distance from Denver to Grand Junction.