earlier this week on the mainline to the Pacific

[Matt Hutson]

Hi guys,
I noticed this tangent during one of my regular trips across South Park last month. This is north of Antero Reservoir. It looked like a good spot for some unusual pics, so I figured out the limits of Denver Water's land ownership and set out.

I took my "good" camera since it has a decent zoom lens. After about an hour of walking and wading (there's a bunch of marsh/swamp between the northern edge of the reservoir and the grade) I arrived.

I sat down on the grade and turned on my camera. My camera promptly turned itself off and the screen displayed "Low Battery". You have GOT to be kidding me! I just put new batteries in it last summer! I muttered and stomped around a bit, then thought maybe the batteries were just cold as it was about 50 degrees when I began the hike. I took out the batteries and put two in each hand and walked down to the site of the nearest trestle, then back to where I had left the camera. I put the batteries back in and I was in business!

Here's a shot looking southwest toward the crossing of the South Fork of the South Platte River. The post on the right is a trestle piling; I guess the scrapping contractor yanked it to about there and said, "Th' hell with it!". You can just barely see the top of Mount Princeton in the middle of the pic:


Here's a shot looking northeast in the opposite direction. Garo is seven or eight miles away:

I got eaten alive by mosquitos and my boots are pretty muddy, but it seems a worthy mission.

Cheers,
Matt

[Jimmy Blouch]

Matt

In the area where you took the southwest view with the trestle piling. is there a fair sized stream cutting the grade?

I walked that grade several years ago, looking for possible remnants of a wye,  My search stopped when I reached a stream I couldn't cross without getting wet.  

I had been viewing a Google earth map of that location and there appeared to have been a wye somewhere at that location.
It would have left the main on the north side.
I have not seen any documentation of a wye and was trying to verify the possibility.

Jimmy

[Southpark]

Matt,
Beyond the stream that stopped you, you would fined the base  the the Platte River water tank and location of the section house.  One can find the location of the wye that shows on google  maps.  You will find coke on the tail of the wye.  Iron fixtures are encrusted due to the high salt content of the marsh water.  Time of the year to visit is  before the spring runoff or late fall.  A fall visit will let you dodge those hungry bugs! Bridge pilings have been pushed up due to the winter freeze.  Current photos of the area are included in our new Memories book, C&Sng RAILROADERS' PHOTOS,  MEMORIES & then some ALONG THE OLD SOUTH PARK LINE due out in July.  Who has a photo of a train taking water at South Plate tank?  Tom Klinger

[Kurt Maechner]

Great photos, Matt!  Thanks for sharing.

[Robert McFarland]

I've seen  the wye on Google maps before.It appears to be large enough to turn a large train.Turning a Rotary?Theres also a wye at Weston.Between the ranch NE of Weston and Cohen Spur there are  two pieces of grade that appear to be  filled in trestle.There is mention of them that would indicate they were.

[Robert McFarland]

There are two photos of the dismantling train in the DSP&P Pictorial.Could there be others that were not used?