The Royal Gorge Route Railroad is featured in Travel + Leisure’s “The Essential Guide to the Royal Gorge Route Railroad,” by Bailey Berg.
Berg rode the train on a clear fall afternoon and spent much of the trip in the open-air observation car, watching the Arkansas River churn just below the tracks as the Royal Gorge Bridge came into view high above. The article notes that while the route is only about 12 miles each way, the roughly two-hour round trip packs in an astonishing amount of scenery, with granite walls rising more than 1,000 feet overhead. It also recalls Theodore Roosevelt’s 1905 trip through the gorge, which he reportedly called “the trip that bankrupts the English language.”
The guide covers the route’s history, from the 1870s rivalry between railroads competing for the narrow path toward Colorado’s mining country to the Hanging Bridge, which carries the tracks along the canyon wall above the river. It also walks readers through each season on the rails: fall color along the cottonwoods, summer rafters on the rapids below, a quieter snow-dusted gorge in winter, and the Santa Express and Holiday Train in November and December. For evening riders, Berg points to the laser-light show projected onto the canyon walls.
Travel + Leisure also breaks down the three classes of service, Coach, Deluxe, and Vista Dome, and highlights that every passenger can step out onto the open-air observation car regardless of ticket class. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are available on board depending on departure, with meals served at your seat in Deluxe and Vista Dome. The guide rounds out the trip with nearby stops, including Royal Gorge Bridge & Park, whitewater rafting, Skyline Drive, and dinner at Antithesis in the historic Robison Mansion, steps from the depot.
Read the full story:https://www.travelandleisure.com/royal-gorge-route-railroad-guide-12186824
