by Justin Franz/photos as noted
If any railroad was going to exploit the scenic splendor of Moab, Utah, it would have been Denver & Rio Grande Western. After all, it was the Rio Grande that brought us icons like the Silverton, the Ski Train, and the Zephyr. But despite the awe-inspiring arches, deep canyons, and red rock spires it winds through, the Cane Creek Subdivision had never once seen a regularly scheduled passenger train.
That is, until now, thanks to a Canadian company that over the past 35 years has ricocheted from the edge of bankruptcy to the top of the pack, becoming one of the most successful luxury railroad tour operators in North American history.
While some in the railroad world might dismiss it as “just another tour train,” the numbers prove that to be a mistaken view. After all, any railroad operating in two countries with more than 100 pieces of rolling stock, 1,000 employees, more than 2,000 route miles, and nearly 2.4 million satisfied passengers since its first season in 1990 is not just another tour train. In short, Rocky Mountaineer is in a league of its own. Which is why I find myself in Moab on a scorching August day. Inside the modern Hoodoo Hotel, a few blocks off Moab’s main drag, Rocky Mountaineer employees help check in last-minute arrivals. Before long, we’re gathered up to board a motorcoach for the short ride north of town to catch our train, the Rockies to the Red Rocks, which will take us east across the former Rio Grande to Denver — though, because we’re going from west to east, “Red Rocks to the Rockies” might be a more accurate moniker.
ABOVE: Sometimes, host railroads Canadian Pacific and Canadian National would have to lend a hand to the upstart Rocky Mountaineer. On September 17, 1995, the westbound First Passage to the West is seen with an RMRX B36-7 and a borrowed CP Rail GP38-2 at Ottertail, B.C., on CP’s Mountain Subdivision. —Steven J. Brown photo
Cruising through town along U.S. Route 191, our host (a Moab-based employee who will not be joining us on the rail portion of the journey) provides insightful commentary about the landscape and its cultural history. It’s a glimpse of the next 27 hours in the care of Rocky Mountaineer.
A few minutes later, a thin blue and white line appears against the red landscape. After arriving from Glenwood Springs, where the train had overnighted, the appropriately named Rockies to the Red Rocks discharged its passengers before its two GP40-3 locomotives (of Baltimore & Ohio and Seaboard Air Line heritage) ran around the consist in preparation for its eastbound trip. Our motorcoach pulls right up to the train, and we’re greeted as we walk across a red carpet embroidered with the name “Rocky Mountaineer” and onto the waiting train.
As I settle into seat 44 — checking out the food and drink menu and a newspaper that describes the journey ahead — a glass of champagne is placed on the seatback tray in front of me. After more than a decade in railroad journalism, having crawled around oily diesel shops and ridden filthy freight locomotives, I can safely say this is a first. With boarding complete, the train starts to roll north for the 21.3-mile trip to Brendel, where we’ll join the former Rio Grande (now Union Pacific) main line. As we depart, we’re introduced to the onboard crew — Train Manager Zach, Car Hosts Joey and Paul, Bartender Leigh, and Chef Carol — who lead us in a toast to the journey ahead. It’s a near-flawless introduction to how Rocky Mountaineer does business.
ABOVE: On August 29, 2024, Rocky Mountaineer’s Rainforest to Gold Rush exits a tunnel and crosses a bridge deep within in the Cheakamus Canyon at mile 55.70 on Canadian National’s Squamish Subdivision. The section of railroad was once operated by BC Rail. With CN planning to cease operations on this scenic part of its railroad in the coming years, the future of the train between Vancouver and Jasper via Prince George is uncertain. —Julien Boily photo
Big Scenery, Bigger Bet
But it wasn’t always this flawless. Rocky Mountaineer’s early years were marked by mismatched equipment, unpaid bills, and a hope that it would all work out. Luckily for the company and its backers, they had access to one of the most scenic pieces of railroad on earth.
Not long after completing the first transcontinental railroad across Canada, Canadian Pacific Railway realized it had more than just a connection to the West in its main line across the mountains of Alberta and British Columbia; it also had a way to bring people into the breathtaking beauty of the Canadian Rockies. The railroad quickly sought to exploit the scenery through which it traveled, building various amenities for tourists, most notably, the Banff Springs Hotel in 1888. In later years, the government-backed Canadian National Railway also contributed to the development of areas farther north near Jasper. Both railroads promoted their transcontinental trains as the best way to access the mountains. On CP, the most popular train was the Mountaineer, which traversed the most scenic parts of the railroad in daylight.
However, by the 1960s, as CP and CN started cutting back on their passenger services, the railroad’s remaining transcontinental trains traveled through the mountains of Alberta and British Columbia at night. This practice continued after VIA Rail took over passenger train services north of the border. In an effort to attract some of the passengers who had turned to scenic motorcoach tours, VIA launched a new train in 1988 called Canadian Rockies by Daylight. The train would depart from Vancouver in the morning and spend the night in Kamloops, where passengers would stay in a local hotel before continuing to either Banff on CP or Jasper on CN. The first train left Vancouver on June 5, 1988. Among the guests on that inaugural run was a young businessman named Peter Armstrong, who had the contract to bus passengers to and from their Vancouver hotels. No one knew then that it wouldn’t be the last time Armstrong would ride the train. In fact, as former Rocky Mountaineer executive and author Rick Antonson later wrote in his book Train Beyond the Mountain, “VIA’s management may have soon regretted the invitation.”
ABOVE: RMRX GP40-3s 8021 and 8020 lead the eastbound Rockies to the Red Rocks out of Tunnel 29 just east of Pinecliffe, Colo., on May 2, 2025. On this portion of the former Rio Grande, the train will pass through two dozen tunnels in just 13 miles. —Joe McMillan photo
The train usually consisted of an F40PH-2 and ex-CN coaches, running from June through October. In 1989, it was rebranded as Rocky Mountaineer, a tribute to the former CP train that was discontinued in the 1960s. While the weekly service did bring some passengers back to the rails, it couldn’t withstand the changing political landscape in Ottawa. In 1990, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney’s Conservative government cut VIA’s subsidies in half, resulting in the elimination of several trains, including the famous Canadian. The name of the former CP train would live on, running on the more northern CN route, but destinations like Banff and Lake Louise no longer had regular passenger service. Another casualty was the Rocky Mountaineer. However, instead of simply discontinuing the train, which had found a small but viable market, VIA chose to sell it.
Among the bidders was the Vancouver businessman who had taken the inaugural run a few years earlier. Armstrong told friends that he enjoyed the ride but saw many ways to improve the service. He also had experience running former government-operated services, having previously privatized a public bus system. In early 1990, Armstrong left the bus company and founded Mountain Vistas Railtour Services to bid on the train route. While multiple bidders threw their hats into the ring, Armstrong’s team emerged victorious. In April of that year, he acquired the rights to operate the train, the Rocky Mountaineer brand, two baggage cars, and a dozen ex-CN/VIA coaches. The new railroad, soon renamed Great Canadian Railtour Company, was just getting its feet under itself when it had to operate a previously scheduled media train in late April. The company had hardly any employees or motive power, but the train operated as planned, using borrowed VIA F40PH-2s, and Armstrong and his friends dressed in rented tuxedos as car hosts. They also supplied a well-stocked bar to compensate for any shortcomings of the hastily organized trip.
On May 27 and 28, 1990, Rocky Mountaineer launched its inaugural season with weekly trips from Vancouver to Calgary through Banff, called First Passage to the West, and Jasper, named Journey Through the Clouds. Similar to the VIA era, the train operated as one from Vancouver to the overnight stop in Kamloops, then split into two to continue to their respective destinations. For the first few years, the motive power consisted of a pair of leased ex-Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe B23-7 locomotives. During the initial season, the two locomotives (numbers 7488 and 7498) kept their previous owner’s “bluebonnet” livery before being repainted into a blue and white scheme with Rocky Mountaineer’s goat logo prominently displayed on the nose.
ABOVE: Host Joey Torres gives commentary about the history, geography, and geology of eastern Utah and western Colorado as the eastbound Rockies to the Red Rocks rolls through Ruby Canyon on the former Rio Grande Fifth Subdivision. Today, it’s Union Pacific’s Green River Subdivision. —Justin Franz photo
That first season was widely praised as a success, which was enough for the company to announce plans to expand its service for the 1991 season. However, inside Rocky Mountaineer, things were not going smoothly. When Armstrong bid on the train, VIA had claimed it already had advance bookings for 17,000 passengers during the 1990 season. But when Armstrong and his team actually got their hands on the books, it turned out to be only 7,500 passengers. Although Rocky Mountaineer was able to sell additional tickets, the numbers were still far below the company’s initial estimates. The company lost $1 million in its first year. Its troubles worsened when a two-part documentary series titled Last Train Across Canada aired on PBS in late 1990, highlighting the cuts to VIA Rail service, including the transcontinental Canadian. Suddenly, Rocky Mountaineer representatives had to reassure American travel agents that, despite the documentary’s title, passenger trains still operated in Canada.
The following year, the company lost $2.9 million, and by the end of its third season in 1992, the railroad was more than $7 million in the red. Hotels and other contractors were demanding full payment, and the outlook was bleak. “We’d leave the office wondering if creditors would have the doors locked up when we came to work the next morning,” an employee later said…
