Colorado Railroad Museum and Train Ride - Golden, CO

Colorado Railroad Museum is a non-profit museum dedicated to acquiring, preserving, and exhibiting railroad artifacts. It has everything from rare documents and photographs to actual train cars.

It’s located on fifteen acres in Golden, directly in front of Table Mountain. Established in 1959, the museum has a large collection of narrow gauge rolling stock.

Narrow gauge railroads were popular in Colorado because of narrow canyons and other confining conditions of the Rocky Mountains. On certain days, known as “Steam Up Days”, the museum provides narrow gauge train rides. On Saturdays, they also run one of three Geese motor cars.

Colorado Railroad Museum Rio Grande F9A 5771 — Rio Grande F9A 5771.

The museum building houses old photographs, historical documents, and a mini-replica railroad. The lower level is an exhibition hall, which changes seasonally. The building itself is a replica of an 1880s-style depot.

Aside from the museum depot, there’s a gift shop full of memorabilia, and a library. The library has a collection of over 10,000 books specific to railroads. The gift shop is modeled like a general store from another era. There’s also a shaded picnic area on site.