It's the 60's again and railfan Jim Marcus is filming in 16mm color some of the last trains over the Rio Grande Narrow Gauge. Lots of steam, smoke and spectacular scenery await you in this nostalgic and historic program. Follow doubleheader #498 and #487 from Alamosa to Chama. Next day #498 picks up 3 loads of lumber and loads sheep into double deck stock cars. You follow the train up Cumbres Pass. You're trackside as the last Rocky Mountain Railroad Club's Fall "Kolor Karavan" steams from Alamosa over Cumbres Pass to Durango and Silverton.
K37 #493 leaves Alamosa down the 3-rail for Chama with many unique shots along the line. Then follow a lumber train Cumbres Turn. The now abandoned Durango, Chama line is documented on a 2 day round trip with K37 #497 hauling drop bottom gons, box cars and flats of lumber and pipe. On the Farmington Branch #497 makes a round drip from Durango. #493 takes a lumber train up to Cumbres in a light snow cover. Today, the railroad is gone forever from many of the locations documented in this program.
This program features an informative narrative and a musical background has been added to the original 16mm silent film. Filmed in 1966 and 1967 by Jim Marcus.
90 minutes
K37 #493 leaves Alamosa down the 3-rail for Chama with many unique shots along the line. Then follow a lumber train Cumbres Turn. The now abandoned Durango, Chama line is documented on a 2 day round trip with K37 #497 hauling drop bottom gons, box cars and flats of lumber and pipe. On the Farmington Branch #497 makes a round drip from Durango. #493 takes a lumber train up to Cumbres in a light snow cover. Today, the railroad is gone forever from many of the locations documented in this program.
This program features an informative narrative and a musical background has been added to the original 16mm silent film. Filmed in 1966 and 1967 by Jim Marcus.
90 minutes
Customer Reviews
👍 2 found this helpful
- 4 of 5
The video is filled with spectacular images of narrow gauge in their final year of operation. There is spectacular scenery and images that can never be duplicated. The scenes of trains running between Durango and Farmington or Durango and Chama exist now only in the fading memories of those that witnessed the twilight of narrow gauge operation.
What ruins this video is the God-awful musical background. I own other W.B. videos and the sound dubbing has been impeccable. But to replace the beautiful music made by steam locomotives with this inane and repetitive "musical background" is unconscionable! What makes this a more unpardonable sin is that most of these same locomotives are still running on the "tourist" remnants of the narrow gauge. Their sounds are still available to be recorded. The awful "musical background" will make this my least watched video in my narrow gauge collection, regardless of the beauty of the scenery or rarity of the film footage.
What ruins this video is the God-awful musical background. I own other W.B. videos and the sound dubbing has been impeccable. But to replace the beautiful music made by steam locomotives with this inane and repetitive "musical background" is unconscionable! What makes this a more unpardonable sin is that most of these same locomotives are still running on the "tourist" remnants of the narrow gauge. Their sounds are still available to be recorded. The awful "musical background" will make this my least watched video in my narrow gauge collection, regardless of the beauty of the scenery or rarity of the film footage.
Additional comments:
Narration: Could have used more.
Would kids enjoy this? I doubt it.
Image quality: Excellent!
Value: Overpriced.
Recommend? Only if really interested.
Was this review helpful?
- 3 of 5
Absolutely one of the best Cumbres Pass videos during the Rio Grande era! Even though filmed in 66 and 67 the 16mm footage is very good. What I cannot stand or Hate is the horrible Music score that WB Video uses for their videos. You have to turn the sound down to watch it. It would be much better with dubbed in real sounds. Jim Marcus should have never given WB Video the footage to use as they are worthless editors and ruined the excellent film. Still buy it for the video but not the audio! All other WB videos have the same horrendus soundtracks from this time period. It needs to be redone completely!
Additional comments:
Narration: Way too much!
Would kids enjoy this? I doubt it.
Image quality: Good.
Value: Good value.
Recommend? Only if really interested.
Was this review helpful?