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Help Save the Buckskin Joe Trains

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Help us save the historic miniature Royal Gorge Scenic Railway trains (aka Buckskin Joe trains), the Scenic Eagle, the Scenic Chief, the Scenic Arrow, & the Scenic Star! Your generous donations will help us relocate them to our northern Colorado location for restoration. The Royal Gorge Scenic Railway was part of the Buckskin Joe's western town in Canon City, Colorado which was built in 1958. The town was a popular tourist destination as it was on the way to the Royal Gorge Bridge. The railway was a 30 minute ride and was known for it's million dollar view of the Royal gorge and bridge. As tourism declined in Canon City the Buckskin Joe property was sold. We now have the opportunity to relocate and restore this historic railway at a new location. Your donations will help us with transportation costs, labor (as we are on a deadline to have all 26 cars, 4 locomotives, and roughly 3 miles of track pulled and hauled), and the restoration of the locomotives and cars themselves.

Curious about what is happening with the former Buckskin Joe property? Click the link to read the news article: https://www.chieftain.com/news/tiny-homes-and-trails-to-be-established-at-former-buckskin/article_4549582e-d418-11e8-ab39-eb72a334caea.html

You can follow our progress on Facebook at this link > https://www.facebook.com/OwlCanyonRailway/ 

**Special Update: 
We will be taking the Scenic Chief to the Rocky Mountain Train Show at the Loveland Events Center on November 24th and 25th. Be sure to bring your friends and family, the event is free to the public. ***

Below, you can read a little about the ordinary people behind this extraordinary project.

Kody Milewski has had a passion for miniature railroads since he was a boy. His mother and grandparents took him to visit Tiny Town and Railroad  and the Royal Gorge Scenic Railway which carried his enthusiasm for trains into adulthood. Kody was able to become more involved within the railroad community when he worked for Wasatch Railroad Contractors (also associated with Cheyenne Steamers). The opportunity enabled him to help with the restoration of the steam locomotives the Prairie Valley #11 and the Klondike Kate #4 as well as the narrow gauge caboose #0577 out of Cimarron, Colorado. Kody started volunteering at Tiny Town and Railroad in 2016 which quickly turned into the position of the lead mechanic where he continues to work to this day. He came across our first fifteen inch gauge locomotive, a C.P. Huntington from the Desert Breeze Park  in Chandler, Arizona while on vacation in 2016. It wasn't long till we found our rail and had wooden gondola's and a caboose built. Thus our private railroad got named the Owl Canyon Railway located on our ranch in northern Colorado. Kody's passion for railroads and their history is what led us to pursue the relocation and restoration of the historic Royal Gorge Scenic Railway.

Kody met Kate a little over six years ago, and they began dating soon thereafter. Kate grew up with a strong love of horses. Her passion for horses was started when her father took her every summer to ride the ponies at a local farm. Little did he know how involved she would become in the equine world as an adult! Now she owns her own equine business, On Track Horsemanship, (formerly known as Owl Canyon Horse Services) where she instructs riding lessons and trains horses. While vacationing in Arizona with Kody six years ago, she was introduced to Maricopa Live Steamers (MLS)  which is a 7 ½ inch gauge railroad and McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park  which is a 15 inch gauge scale. This little railroad club sparked her enthusiasm for all scales of miniature trains. Kate eagerly supports Kody's passion for trains and she is just as excited for the opportunity to save a little piece of Colorado history.

Kate's mother and father, Deb and Dave Thomas, have been instrumental with this opportunity to relocate and restore the Royal Gorge Scenic Railway. Without their support and investment this opportunity wouldn't exist! Our sincerest gratitude goes to the Thomas Family.

A huge thank you also goes to Kate and Kody's friends who have offered their help in any way they can with this project. It takes a village to move the longest miniature railroad in Colorado.

Thank you to everyone who has helped by donating or spreading the word to help us raise the funds to complete the relocation and restoration process.

Organizer

Kate Thomas
Organizer
Wellington, CO

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