I was just on Google Earth checking out Jacumba, California after talking with Chad on Deluz John’s thread on the Commuter service in TJ, and I decited to follow the tracks as far as I could to the East. Before when I tried this they didn’t have a good picture from the satellite so I wasn’t able to go far. Well, they must have taken a new picture because I was able to follow the tracks all the way out to El Centro. I was amazed at all of the trestles and tunnels that were in the canyon. I knew that it was some canyon from San Diego Model Railroad layout but I had no idea it was the way it is. I recommend to everyone to go on Google Earth, type in Campo California and follow the tracks to El Centro. That would be some ride to take that trip. I hope that they open it back up for at least tourism.
I don’t think they will run passenger trains in the canyon anytime soon. Something about liability and saftey concerns. Aside from the risk of injury & death from a tunnel colapse or derailment what if something did happen to strand the train. Could you imagine a trainload of tourists walking out of there.
This is one of the lines I have on my MSTS and it’s a real challange to run. Do you have MSTS Zak?
Carrizo Gorge, yeah thats a huge trestle, largest wooden one in the world if I remember right. you can hike out to it, if you in great shape, can carry enough water, and arent afraid of snakes…
Chad, are they running freight trains thru the gorge again? I heard they rebuilt the collapsed tunnel and had run some test trains thru but I havent heard of anything regular going thru it. Kinda wondered what that would do to the Campo tourist trains.
I don’t know for sure but I believe they have been sience oct-nov ish last year. The last time I went through Campo (june) there was a train load of sand and a few tank cars parked there. I also stopped by where the tracks go under I-8 and the rails looked used.
Chad, I don’t have a MSTS. I don’t even know what that is. Please inform me. I also noticed some long tunnels. I would like to know how long the longest one is.
I know that this would be trustpassing but I would live to take my truck, put rail wheels on it and power that line. Except I’m sure then it came time to travel over those old trestles I would probably piss my pants, for I’m sure that they aren’t in the best of shape. Heck, I wouldn’t want to be on the crew of any test train on the side of those cliffs.
Chad, I also saw this place and thought to myself that those sand cars that you talk about might have been heading:
It’s down just as you come out into the valley off of the I-8 heading east.
MSTS is the Microsoft Train Simulator. The stock version comes with Marias pass, Northeast corridor and a couple forign routes, a C44-9 and GP38 and a handfull of cars. But you can get add on routes and rolling stock. I have downloaded and bought so much stuff that I can fill a CD just with my locos and cars. I also have Tehachapi,Cajon pass, Carrizo george, and the Northwestern Pacific.
As far as hikeing (or driveing if your that bold) goes it is definately tresspassing and virtualy impossible to do from the east as the tracks go through private property and the old man turn you back or call the law if you try it. People have hiked
As for sand loading, I have driven by and seen a skip loader putting sand into gons out west of Ocotillo, at least last year. They were cleaning up a lot of sand that had blown onto the right-of-way and bringing it up to Campo, where it is trucked to cement plants closer to the coast. Apparently, the number of sand trucks driving on Buckman Springs Road from Campo to I-8 had gotten a lot of local underwear in a twist. I think that the reason for off-loading the sand in Campo had to do with continuing interruptions in the line south of the border.
The US Gyp wallboard plant at Plaster City is the western end of UP trackage (they kept the line from El Centro to Plaster City when they sold or gave away the rest of the SD&AE back in 1979). In the picture, you can see where the three-foot line comes in from the north and curves around to the unloader. It looks like they took out the track that crossed old Highway 80 (now the Evan Hewes Highway) and went to an engine house at the east end of the plant. US Gyp is doubling the capacity of the plant and modernizing the older part, spending a lot of cash doing so. In the sixties, they were as tight with a dime as any company, but then again, they weren’t turning much of a profit, if any. You can pick out (barely) where the workers’ housing was that was closed and demolished in the seventies sometime. Also, the big white blob at the bottom of the narrow-gauge loop is a huge pile of mined gypsum. Originally, the SD&AE went straight along the south edge of the plant complex, but you can see that the expansion has caused the rail to zig south around the plant.
I guess the expansion means that wall board has won out over lath and plaster.[:)]
As an editing afterthought, the NG line running to the Fish Creek Mountains gypsum quarry is not quite 26 miles in length, and the ruling grade for loads back to the plant is less than 0.4 percent…
Okay guys, here is what I’ve found out. Check out these links for info on the line. Things are looking good. And yes, Chad you are right about trustpassing because they are using the whole line again.
That would be sweet if they did. I would do almost anything to be aboard that train. I know that they have a train ride from Campo to Tecate, in which I will be doing that one some day.
When I was in Campo last I asked about the brewery tour trains. They were only doing that 3 trips (or mabee 3 weekends) this year and way back then they were close to already being booked up. So make your reservations well in advance.
I was looking for pictures on RRarchivepictures.net, but I only found puctures of San Diego and Imperial Valley RR. Do you know if they run the Carrizo Gorge Route too?
You see this is where I’m lost: It used to be the San Diego & Arizona RR. Then was it San Diego & Imperial Valley RR. Now I see this website saying it’s the Corrizo Gorge Railway. Do they all exist or is it now just Corrizo Gorge Railway? Personally, I don’t care as long as they have a tourist excurion once in a while.
