In the town of Wickenburg, Arizona a nice Santa Fe 2-8-0 is on display which we had seen before. This time, however, the cab was open to the public and has evidently been recently restored. It seems that all the hardware is in place, and they don't appear to have had any problems with theft or vandalism, so that's good. A clipboard left in the cab tells you everything you might want to know.
In Arizona you generally have a loooong distance to drive from one item of railroad interest to the next, so that's about it for this trip. But since I have a daughter who lives there, we plan to keep going back every year. Railfanning suggestions are welcome.
Perhaps search steamlocomotive.info for nearby park and rail displays. The Grand Canyon Railway and the growing Arizona State Railway Museum are up on the list, whatever is left of the ancient shortline Magma Arizona, the little railways at Scottsdale, and the scattered 20" gauge copper mining equipment are all particularly interesting. The entire Grand Canyon south rim compound and trails have the historic connection of the Santa Fe and Fred Harvey, so it is an interesting mix of experiences, beyond the phenominal scenery. For more of that, you could check out the remaining Harvey Houses across the state. Enjoy your trips!
ReplyDeleteThanks. I'm familiar with most of these, except for the Magma Arizona. How much is left? That's actually not far from where my daughter lives.
ReplyDeleteA good summary of what might be seen of the curvy line can be found here:
ReplyDeletehttp://davesriogrande.net/GradePhotos/MagmaArizona/Magma_Arizona_Railroad.html
Looking at Google Earth it seems a lot of the old facilities in Superior are all removed. The old wood boxcars that I knew were on the line 15 years ago must be long gone.
here is the route:
http://www.abandonedrails.com/Magma_Arizona_Railroad
Thanks, that's quite helpful.
ReplyDelete