River routes use gravity and follow the topography of the landscape they go through, and are rarely ever in a straight line. In some ways, to get through rugged land, railroad’s right-of-ways are quite the same, and nowhere is this more apparent than on the surviving segments of the Denver and Rio Grande Western’s San Juan Extension in southwest Colorado/northern New Mexico. In this view, a Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad photo freight snakes along the hillside along the meandering Los Pinos River between Osier and Los Pinos. It almost appears that the alignment of the 3-foot gauge railroad is mimicking the river, only further up on the hillside! This westbound Rio Grande-lettered freight train is pulled by 2-8-2 K-36 No. 487 on October 25, 2008, during annual post-season freight trains operated for photographers.
