Durango

This week I've been blogging about the short trip that Pat and I made to the Four Corners region in mid-September. It's a long drive from Colorado Springs to Kayenta, Arizona (475 miles, to be exact), and Durango is a good place to stop for a breather in between -- it's the "almost there" point when you really need to stretch your legs and grab a cup of coffee before that last leg of the trip. And on the way home, Durango is the last glimmer of "civilization" (i.e., there's a Starbucks) before the 314 miles of largely mountain driving and tiny towns between it and Colorado Springs. So we made it a point to stop there on both stages of our trip. I've been to Durango before but I don't really remember much about it. What a cute town! It definitely has that "old west" look to it that so many Colorado towns have (including Colorado Springs). Durango is really booming now, very trendy and popular. It's also a tourist destination, in large part thanks to the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, the authentic steam locomotives that have been in operation since the 1880s. You can ride a frontier train -- it's the real deal! I have heard that it's a particularly beautiful journey. This part of Colorado is indeed spectacular, especially in September. I really want to go back there and take the train someday!

Durango's hip downtown is centered around the railway. The trains even have loud whistles, just like the old days (and I do mean loud). I think it would be extremely nice to live in beautiful Durango, but those railroad sounds would take some getting used to! I apologize for the haphazard quality of these photos. The first three were taken on the way to Arizona, and the last photo was taken on our way home, and in both cases we were really just desperate for a bathroom, a bite to eat, and some coffee!

I found this very intriguing! If you live in Colorado Springs or are a regular follower of this blog, you know that General Palmer was the founder of this city. Why is his name emblazoned on a hotel in a town over 300 miles away, on the other side of the state? I was so curious, I called the hotel and asked. They told me that General Palmer brought the railroad to Durango (as he did here in the Springs), and he opened the hotel there that bears his name.

I confess that we were waiting in line in the McDonald's drive-through when I took this picture out the car window! Ha ha! (For the record, I had french fries for dinner. Very nutritious.) How could I possibly resist grabbing a snapshot as the train slowly cruised  by? This guy has definitely been working on the railroad all the live-long day, and he has the grimy coveralls to prove it.