Entry No. 6 — the Durango file — filed under: offbeat-museum
Rio Grande Southern Railroad Museum (Galloping Goose No. 5)
“The telegraph still clacks. Admission is free.”
The broke Rio Grande Southern built seven Galloping Geese — half bus, half locomotive — because running a real train for the mail cost too much. No. 5, assembled in 1933 from a 1928 Pierce-Arrow limousine, got a war-surplus GMC engine and a Wayne school-bus body in 1946. When the railroad died, the Dolores Rotary Club bought it for $250. Volunteers rebuilt it in 1998 and it still runs the Cumbres & Toltec; between trips it roosts at a replica depot where admission is free and the telegraph still clacks.
The story
When the Rio Grande Southern went broke during the Great Depression, running a full steam locomotive just to deliver a bag of mail and three passengers was pure financial suicide. So the railroad improvised. Between 1931 and 1936, mechanics in Ridgway built seven Frankenstein railcars known as Galloping Geese. Goose No. 5 was slapped together in 1933 using the body of a 1928 Pierce-Arrow limousine. In 1946, they chopped off the back, bolted on a Wayne school-bus body, and swapped in a war-surplus GMC engine. It wasn't pretty, but it kept the mail moving on narrow-gauge tracks for pennies on the dollar.
When the Rio Grande Southern finally folded in 1952, the Dolores Rotary Club stepped in and bought No. 5 for $250 to keep it from the scrap heap. It spent decades sitting outdoors as a park monument until 1998, when local volunteers spent thousands of hours restoring it to operating condition. Unlike most museum relics permanently welded to display tracks, No. 5 still breathes—it routinely gets trailered out to run historic passenger excursions along the Cumbres & Toltec and Durango & Silverton lines.
When it isn't out on the rails, Goose No. 5 roosts in Dolores at an exact replica of the town's original 1890s Rio Grande Southern depot. You won't find corporate gloss or slick velvet ropes here; the place is run by folks who know every weld on the Goose and keep an operational depot telegraph clacking away inside.
What it's like
Roll into Dolores along Railroad Avenue and you'll see the yellow timber depot sitting right in the middle of town. Admission is completely free, and if No. 5 isn't away on an excursion, it sits right outside where you can walk up and inspect the odd seam where Pierce-Arrow metal meets school-bus tin. Inside the replica depot, you can wander past authentic RGS artifacts and take turns tapping messages on the working telegraph. The only real trap is timing: if you make the one-hour drive from Durango without checking their schedule, you might find No. 5 away on track duty or the depot locked down for the winter.
The move: Check the society excursion calendar first — if Goose No. 5 is running, book two seats and ride the thing; if it is home, take turns tapping messages on the depot telegraph.
📍 Before you go The museum occupies an exact replica of the original Dolores depot on Railroad Avenue in the center of town, with easy street parking and free admission. Goose No. 5 sometimes leaves to run excursions on the Cumbres & Toltec or Durango & Silverton, so check the events calendar before making the drive from Durango (about an hour). The season runs warm months only, with winter visits generally by appointment. Pair it with the Canyons of the Ancients museum just west of town or Mesa Verde on the way back.
- 📍 Dolores
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 421 Railroad Ave, Dolores, CO 81323
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Creations from Mufflers — Pair the Depression-era automotive rail hack with Floyd's roadside graveyard of muffler-crafted metal folk art down the road in Cortez.
- Notah-Dineh Trading Company & Museum — Follow up the free railroad depot with another quiet, zero-pretense basement collection of Four Corners history.
- Mancos Common Press — Keep the industrial preservation theme going by visiting an 1890 print shop frozen in time in neighboring Mancos.
- Columbine Bar & Grill — Finish the outing with a drink at a turn-of-the-century Mancos bar that operated during the same railroad boom.
Good to know
How much does it cost to visit the museum?
Admission to the museum depot and outdoor grounds is free, though donations to the volunteer society are welcomed.
Is Galloping Goose No. 5 always on site?
No. Goose No. 5 is fully functional and leaves for scheduled excursion runs on the Cumbres & Toltec or Durango & Silverton narrow-gauge railroads. Check the Galloping Goose Historical Society calendar before driving out.
When is the museum open?
The museum operates during the warmer months of the year. During the winter season, visits are generally by appointment only.
What exactly went into making Galloping Goose No. 5?
It was originally built in 1933 from a 1928 Pierce-Arrow limousine, then rebuilt in 1946 with a war-surplus GMC engine and a Wayne school-bus body.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · colorado.com · hawkinsrails.net
last checked: 2026-06-11