Trains - America by Rail: The Heartland

A coast-to-coast trip from Washington, DC, to San Francisco aboard Amtrak's Capitol Limited and California Zephyr. See the nation's capitol, lush Ohio Amish farmlands, the Great Plains, the Rockies and Sierras, before skirting along side San Pablo Bay and on into Oakland and San Francisco.

Rocky Mountain Snowplow is a fascinating look at what is perhaps the rarest event in all of railroading . . . the operation of a steam-powered Rotary Snowplow to open a snowbound railroad.



It's early May, and Colorado and New Mexico's famous Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad is still closed with huge drifts of snow blocking the tracks for several miles! Rotary snowplow OY, along with K-36 class 2-8-2 steam locomotives 487, 488, and 484 are dispatched to clear the line of the blockage.



Witness some of the finest plowing ever, as the rotary digs through the deep snow under a clear blue sky! This video won a Silver Telly Award, the highest possible in 1998.



Thrill to the action as the snowplow train assaults 10,015 foot Cumbres Pass, on the former Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad as some locomotives even sported the famed flying Rio Grande lettering on their tenders. Enjoy a tour of the interior of the rotary, and see all the gears and rods in motion. You're also treated to scenes from the cab of engines 484 and 487, as well as many exclusive photo locations that could only be reached by snowmobile. This is no museum demonstration run. The assault on Windy Point is incredible with the snow drift higher than the hood of the Rotary Plow. This event took parts of 4 days, and culminated with the rotary train stopping because a huge boulder blocked the line. An awesome video that all will enjoy.