Friends of the Cumbres & Toltec - FriendsOfCumbresToltec.org

Any guesses?

It appears to me that they are pulling spikes right now. I know that section up there has been in rough shape for quite some time, so maybe they are going to replace ties and get it back in shape?? I personally hope they are not permanently removing it.

Could it be they might make that area the oil refueling station. It would certainly give gravity flow to do the refueling. The tank car could then be moved to another place to be reloaded with fuel.

I hope they don't pull it out too.

While I have no idea what is going on, I believe the tipple siding is a historic artifact.
as to an oil tank to service engines, where it is mow is far better for deliveries and the tank car doesn't detract

With all the rails and ties now completely removed, perhaps they are going to stabilize / rebuild the base and put the track back in place. It looks like a stack of new(er) ties over by the old K-37 and when they moved the rail away, they placed it on the other side of the coal dock lead, straight across from the sand pit, so I would guess they are keeping it close to put back. Guess only time will tell since it appears the crew is done for today.

In the north tower shot you can see that the lead track is still in place so maybe they are going to stabilize and rebuild the part on the incline.

Strange that nothing about this was mentioned in the last commission meeting. Time will tell.

Craig Kumler wrote:Strange that nothing about this was mentioned in the last commission meeting. Time will tell.

It is 'strange', on the other hand restoration and repair of historic structures usually is done by, or with input from, the Friends.

Per a post on FB by Scott Gibbs, the mystery is solved:

"This is the beginig of a project to restore the retaining wall then fix the rear wall of the sand house where the embankment has fallen in against the building. It is a multi year project by the FOTCTSRR."

Thank you for the update. Any idea of the timeline?

The track was removed to allow for earth removal in preparation for building a retaining wall to keep the earth from laying against the back wall of the sand house and sand holding bin. The earth is currently against the back wall and is causing wood rot to the sand house structure. The retaining wall will be built next summer and the track will be replaced after this phase of the project is complete. Once the retaining wall is complete and back-filled, the Friends of the C&TSRR will repair the sand house per National Park Service historic standards and with the approval of the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office. This will be a multi-year project and this is the first step.

Don Atkinson
Team Leader Coordinator
Friends of the C&TSRR, Inc.

Thanks Don for the explanation. So glad this siding will be upgraded and retained.