Durango, Colorado.

It’s about time I got around to sharing my images from our visit to Durango in July 2021. In October 2021, I shared photos of the journey on the narrow-gauge railroad excursion from Durango to Silverton here.

A couple of days after our excursion, we visited downtown Durango and stopped at the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad (D&SNG) Museum. Crossing the tracks to the museum entrance, Engine 481 was just begging to be my opening image. In 2023, there’s just one coal-burning train left at D&SNG, which is number 481. The other trains have either switched to using oil or have been taken out of service. Engine 481 will keep using coal until its current period for using its flue (exhaust pipe) time expires. After that, it will eventually be changed to use oil instead of coal. More details about the 481 can be found here.

Probably the oldest engine on display at the museum is Engine 42. Previously numbered 420, the engine weighs in at 35 tons. It was one of only six of its class manufactured by Baldwin Locomotive Works. Baldwin was the world’s largest producer of steam locomotives and operated from 1825 to 1951 when it was merged with the Lima Locomotive Works.

Many families and old railroad workers have donated or provided artifacts that tell the history of railroading, especially on the Denver and Rio Grande Western (D&RGW) line. The 12,000-square-foot (1114 sq m) museum is the final result of a devastating fire that destroyed the D&SNG roundhouse in 1989. That roundhouse, constructed in 1881, was replaced by a 15-stall roundhouse that holds the distinction of being the only narrow gauge roundhouse built in the 20th century. The museum occupies eight of the stalls in the rebuilt facility.

So, I’m not good at taking notes, and I am not positive that this is the engineer’s view of Engine 42 when it is in operation. There are other engines on display at the museum, but these two images were captured within a few minutes of each other. Next time, I’ll take better notes. (Probably not! >grin<

In the museum, an 800-square-foot (74 sq m) area was reserved in 1998 to create a model railroad. The space for the model railroad was donated as a shell in 1998 and brought to life by thousands of volunteer hours. The model depicts the 1950s operations of the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW), which was a major railroad in the American West.

The model railroad is operated by a team of volunteers who use a variety of techniques to create a realistic setting. The trains are powered by a computer-controlled system that allows them to run on a variety of tracks and through a variety of scenery. The model also includes a variety of sound effects, such as the sound of trains whistling and the sound of steam locomotives chugging.

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum is a great place to learn about the history of the D&RGW and to experience the excitement of narrow gauge railroading. If you plan to take one of Colorado’s most popular train excursions between Durango and Silverton, be sure to leave some time in your schedule to visit the museum. Admission is free. More details about the museum can be found here. You can pixel-peep at the images in my gallery by visiting my Flickr album here.

John Steiner

Yes, I know… some people find museums boring. However, if you are like me, you’ll find plenty to see with over 10,000 works of art, 27,000 historical objects and over a hundred thousand photographs in their archives. Art and artifacts from the area’s early history are always on view. And the museum has contemporary exhibits as well. Like I said, you will have plenty to see and enjoy if museums are your “thing.”

One of my favorite contemporary works is by John Fincher. Dated 1979, this oil and canvas is called The Burning of Albuquerque. The description by the painting reads in part, “Demonstrating the influence of Pop Art, Fincher’s homage to Albuquerque is iconic and oversized, a slightly eerie certainly cheeky, absurdist postcard on steroids.”

Probably my favorite contemporary work is this representation of a dashboard with a view of a New Mexico highway. I imagine it to be Route 66. Unfortunately, I neglected to capture the information on the artist. You’ll have to stop by the museum yourself to see the details. The best part of the image in my mind is the cool sun visors.

When we visit a museum, we expect to see antiquities. During our visit there were historic artifacts on display that date back to the 15th century, for example this work by Miguel Alcañiz, circa 1422-30, is tempera on wood. The impact of this work is not lost by time. The tempera medium is a colorful pigment that has a long vibrant life with examples dating far earlier than this 15th century example.

This carving is not full scale, but is pretty close. I found myself examining it for quite some time just marveling at the fine detail carved into the medium. I got the chance to examine it closely again after capturing the image. It is housed in a protective plexiglass box and the reflections and lights in the museum ceiling were a major distraction to the image. I wasn’t able to get rid of all the reflections in post production, but I did remove the many distracting ceiling lights both reflecting and mounted above the work.

Another fascinating contemporary work is by Judy Chicago, a well known feminist. Her work Woe Man I. This work is a cast paper sculpture, an interesting medium. The work, an activist statement “combines the angst of modern life with outrage at the denigration of fundamental principles of equality, creativity, and emotional sensitivity.” Or so it says in part on the descriptive plaque. If you find yourself in Albuquerque looking for something interesting to see, be sure to check out the museum. Gallery tours are available Tuesdays through Sundays at 2 p.m. and you don’t even need a reservation. In addition the museum offers tours of their sculpture garden and even tours of Old Town during the summer months. Details are on the City of Albuquerque’s website here. Their hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday, closed Mondays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. I submit for your review a gallery of images I captured that afternoon. I hope they interest you enough to visit the museum where for $6 or less you can spend an enjoyable afternoon.

John Steiner

Since wintering in the southwest, I’ve become more interested in the history and culture of the Native Americans. Regular readers may have noticed a thread of travels in my journeys here that features events and places that focus on that part of the history not only of the United States, but of the North American continent and its earliest residents. This week we journey to the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, a museum focusing on the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico.

The museum has a continuously rotating exhibition, and a permanent exhibit called, “We Are of This Place: The Pueblo Story.” During our visit, the rotating exhibit, “Art Through Struggle: Ricardo Caté”.  Featuring the works of a member of the Santo Domingo Pueblo and an author and cartoonist who’s work called “Without Reservations” is published daily in the Santa Fe New Mexican and the Taos News. His art exhibits the poignant and ironic humor of one who lives in a subculture that is non-dominant. I enjoyed the exhibit of his work so much, I purchased his book, “Without Reservations” from the museum gift shop.

There are plenty of informative placards that explain the exhibits on display so if you, like us, decide to explore at your own pace, you won’t feel you don’t understand the significance of what you are viewing in each display.

Many people prefer a tour guide so someone with experience can reflect their personal experience or field questions from the guests. If that’s your preference, tours for small and large groups are offered on a complimentary basis. large groups can even get a reduced admission fee. Details on tours and their availability are on the museum’s website here.

An exhibit on the Indian Boarding Schools reminded me of a similar exhibit at the Heard Museum in Phoenix. I have learned much about these misguided attempts to erase Native American cultural history many at the hands of well-meaning Christian ministries. With the help of the United States Government, agents forcibly separated children from their families and placed them in boarding schools often hundreds of miles from their families. These schools became the norm from the 1860’s to the mid-20th century. By 1926, there were 357 U.S. Government funded boarding schools in 30 states housing over 80% of Indian school-age children.

In the large courtyard of the museum, Native American dancers shared some of their cultural costumes and dances. The large mural in the background is but one of many in and around the museum and a Mural Discovery Tour is complimentary and offered weekly.

A small garden area has several sculptures on display. The image above is but one example. The museum admission is a bargain at less than $10 for adults with discounts for New Mexico residents, seniors, students, military and groups. You can find out what’s doing at the museum and plan your visit by visiting their website here. I submit for your review, a small gallery of images captured that day on our visit. In most browsers you can click on an image to enlarge it and to scroll through the gallery.

John Steiner

I would call it misnamed. The Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. OK, so it’s in Arizona and it’s in the Sonoran Desert. That’s fine. It’s the word “Museum” that I think doesn’t fit. Botanical Garden? Arboretum? Zoo? Wildlife Park? Nature Conservancy? How about all of the above?

This year we discovered the Museum quite by accident. We planned a visit to Saguaro National Park, and we knew there would be more to do in the Tucson area than the National Park. The Interweb told me that just down the road from the Park are two popular attractions, the Old Tucson Studios Theme Park and the above mentioned Desert Museum. Drilling down on the museum’s website, I discover they also have an art gallery, natural history museum and aquarium. I will have to check them out on our next trip. The zoo and botanical gardens became the focus of our two visits there.

The opening image and the image above both feature views of the nearly 100-acre (40 ha) botanical garden with a myriad of interpreted walking paths through various desert habitats. The views of the surrounding desert were shrouded in clouds on our first visit there, giving respite from the normally strong desert sun. Slather on the sunscreen anyway, you can be burned through even these layers of cloud.

The museum hosts several Live Animal Presentations. Their website provides a schedule of activities. Plan your visit in the winter, October through March for one of the best, the Raptor Free Flight presentations. During each show, at least three varieties of raptors provide demonstrations of their flying and hunting skills. Twice a day, visitors are treated to close-up demonstrations of these beautiful birds. In the image above, one of the trainers provides a reward to a Harris Hawk while another hawk lands on a saguaro. Next week, my entire Travel Tuesday post features a large gallery of images from the Raptor Free Flight shows, and a couple of tips on how best to enjoy the presentation.

This post features a gallery of images captured in the natural habitat zoo. The view of most animals is unencumbered by the view of an enclosure. The animal living areas protect the animals from the viewers and vice versa. The coyote exhibit houses several specimens including this beautiful example in the image above.

Sometimes you have to look hard in the enclosure to find the resident at home. There are “private” areas and there are areas of shade that protect the residents from the hot Arizona sun. The mule deer was standing just behind a large planted area in the photo above.

The bobcat exhibit is tall and rocky. At first I thought the two bobcats were out of view in their private area. Then I noticed some of the other visitors pointing up along the high rock wall. Tucked into a crevice, a bobcat was resting in the shade of a giant boulder. The gallery of images included here feature only a small percentage of the animals in the museum’s zoo area. Click on an image to enlarge it and to scroll through the gallery.

John Steiner

Just east of Sky Harbor Airport, between Tempe and Scottsdale, a left turn would take you to the zoo or the botanical garden. If you turn right, however, into what looks like a rather industrial building area, you’ll find a museum dedicated to the fire fighter. The five exhibit areas includes the National Firefighting Hall of Heroes, a history of wildland firefighting in the U.S. and almost 100 restored fire fighting equipment. The hardware on display, though most are American, are from several countries around the world and date from 1725 to 1969. You can grab location information, hours of operation and other details including admission fees here.

In the opening photo, a memorial to the firefighters, Police and Port Authority officers killed in New York on 9/11/2001. The exhibit opened in December 2001, and on September 9, 2004, the full-size quarter horse memorial was added. The creation stands at five feet tall with a length of over seven feet. The horse carries riderless boots, backward in the stirrups. The beautifully finished equine sits atop a display of the headgear worn by the officers being honored. On the wall of the exhibit are the photos and names of those who gave their lives that fateful day.

The Hall of Heroes honors firefighters who have died in the line of duty and recognizes firefighters who have been decorated for heroism. Their database of heroes can be accessed by visitors and printouts can be made. The database holds nearly 9,000 firefighter honorees.

Much of the equipment on display predates engined vehicles. The  apparatus in the photo above was brought to Chicago and used to help extinguish the Great Chicago Fire.

One of the pieces of equipment may actually have a tie to my family. We have lost the details of the immigrants of my family who came from Europe in the mid-19th century. We know that they settled in New York State for a time before heading to the midwest.

Could this piece of equipment have been built and sold by my relatives? We will never know. There are no records of Steiner Manufacturing Company in Albany New York archives. Even Google, who appears to know just about everything doesn’t seem to know anything about the Steiner Manufacturing Company.

The equipment in the photo above is a shot of the apparatus manufactured in the late 1800s. Visitors to the museum are given a looseleaf notebook with each piece of equipment identified by a number. In the image below, you can see the first and second items on display. If you look up the number in the notebook, you can find out the details about that specific item. Or you can opt for a guided tour from a volunteer, if someone is available when you visit.

The gallery of images below features some of the equipment we saw on our afternoon visit to the museum. Allow yourself at least a couple of hours, more if you really like to study historical mechanical equipment. There are three large areas filled with examples from different time periods. Click on an image to enlarge it and to scroll through the gallery.

John Steiner

Washington D.C.

Yes, that unassuming piece of dog excrement could just be a radio transmitter. The photo above features one of the items espionage agencies really used in their daily lives, James Bond’s Q notwithstanding. This 1970s artifact is just one of many “spy tools” on display at the International Spy Museum.
 Your visit starts at the Adams Building, the small building’s appearance is its own “spy story”. The museum is much larger than the small building front would appear. Just around the block from Ford’s Theatre, I was sceptical that the museum might just be a way to separate a tourist from some travel funds. Though the privately owned museum isn’t inexpensive, a person could spend much more at a theater watching a spy thriller and munching on those expensive treats. So maybe you don’t get the expensive treats (or their unnecessary calories), you will see many exhibits featuring tools of real spies, view artifacts of movie spies and even participate in Spy Training School or go on a one-hour spy adventure. More information on the Spy Museum can be found here.

After purchasing our senior tickets ($16 each), my wife Lynn, and I rode an elevator to a small waiting area where we were given the opportunity to pick a secret identity. This activity is optional, but we decided to play along. I chose the identity of Antonio Silva, a 58 year-old carpenter from Brazil. It would be my job to learn and remember my itinerary details. After all, I would be interrogated. I grabbed a quick snapshot of the ID on my cell phone and hoped I wouldn’t be tortured to give up the phone where my secret would be easily discovered.

The first set of exhibits we viewed features a School for Spies. The school teaches some basic techniques of observation and behavior that all spies need to know. The interactive displays were at once interesting and informative. I found myself crawling through a ventilation duct being as quiet as possible. Noise picked up by security microphones would give my presence away. I successfully navigated the ductwork to find myself in the historical archives of espionage equipment. Or, you could simply walk over to the archives. No need to climb through ductwork.

There are many items on display in the archives. The tiny camera in the photo above is normally disguised inside a fancy cigarette case complete with fake cigarette top. More photos of the archive are included in the gallery of images that accompany this post.Along the way, interactive kiosks are available that “demand” your credentials. It’s time to put on your spy hat and adopt your secret identity. You will be quizzed as to the purpose of your visit and other details that you should have remembered in spy school. Again, participation is voluntary. In the photo above, Lynn is being interrogated.

In a dimly lit room dedicated entirely to the German World War II message coding device, the Enigma, visitors are given an interactive demonstration as to how messages were coded and decoded by the device. The Germans never knew that the allies had broken the code. Credit is given to Alan Turing and a team of British mathematicians for breaking the code, however in recent years, a trio of Polish cryptologists are being given credit for their work as well.

The museum isn’t all history and exhibits. The hands-on games are entertaining for young and old alike. The device in the photo above tests the would-be spy’s ability to “hang in there” holding onto a pipe as it moves upward. It takes a strong grip to make the trip all the way to the top. In the few minutes that Lynn and I watched, no one made it to the top before their hands gave up their grip and the fledgling spy would fall to a mat below.

As you can see in the photo above, we came within one-second of destroying the world. You can thank me. After pushing the red button on the top, the “bomb” is armed and the clock starts counting down to zero. I had but a few seconds to twist the handle on the fusing device and pull it out carefully so that the cylinder did not touch the housing. Failing to pull the fuse up straight and true in the allotted time would set off the bomb. This exhibit, and many others, were featured in a section of the museum dedicated to the movie spy. Clips from many spy thrillers are featured, along with artifacts from the movie productions. One bit of trivia I learned in this section is that Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond series, also wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

The last stop on the museum tour is another set of kiosks where you can be questioned as to your identity and the purpose of your trip. Don’t get it wrong. I was allowed to leave, however Lynn was detained, tripped up by a single wrong answer. Don’t let it happen to you! The gallery of images below features some of the exhibits we viewed at the museum. Click on an image to enlarge it and to scroll through the gallery.

John Steiner

West Fargo, North Dakota

Ah, Fargo. We are home again. The last four years, we spent at least part of the winter in the warmth of the Arizona sunshine. My blog features much of the natural beauty of that state. Like a man with a new love affair, it seems Arizona is all I have to write about and photograph.

For the most part, I’ve ignored the state of my birth and our home for the past 37 years. It’s about time that I focus my blog on North Dakota. I can’t promise that every Travel Tuesday post will be about North Dakota. We do have some travel plans to nearby states this summer, but I want to focus on North Dakota this summer and show my readers why I chose North Dakota as my home state… even though I’m not much for winters and run south with the first snow fall.

One of the stock jokes about the state is that the “Indian Wars” are still an issue and that the Wells Fargo stage stops daily to pick up its load of mail and passengers headed west. Obviously those days are gone, but if you come to the growing community of West Fargo, you can relive some of those days of yesteryear courtesy of the Cass County Historical Society. This week, Travel Tuesday visits Bonanzaville, a 12-acre (48562 sq. meter) pioneer village containing over 40 historic buildings and thousands of historical artifacts.

Bonanzaville takes its name from the bonanza farms that, between 1875 and 1890, were created from the sale of Northern Pacific Railroad land. The farms, located in eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota mostly along the Red River Valley, grew vast amounts of wheat. Investor run farms operated with local managers, cheap farm laborers and the latest in mechanized farming. By the 1920s, the over-taxed land all but lost production capacity and the bonanza farms faded into history.

Bonanzaville’s 12 acres are laid out into streets along which visitors can stroll and view the collection of buildings brought in from around the region. Many of the buildings are open and furnished with period museum pieces. In fact, the day we visited, a cool October afternoon, the buildings were closed. However the historical society held an auction. They sold excess antiques. In the gallery accompanying this post, I have photos of a few items being offered for sale that day. Small crowds called out bids enthusiastically on the available items offered in multiple locations by a small group of auctioneers..

The Cass County Historical Society has created several museums within the pioneer village. Inside some of the buildings a visitor can find the Eugene Dahl Car Museum, the Law Enforcement Museum, the Eagles Air Museum and several others. The Pioneer Village is open from May to October and the Cass County Museum building features displays of Native American and bonanza farm artifacts among its collection. Located just off I-94 in West Fargo, and a short detour off I-29, travelers through the state would find Bonanzaville a worthwhile stop on their travel. Plan to spend much of a day exploring the artifacts and visiting the pioneer village. You can read more about Bonanzaville and the Cass County Historical Society here.

John Steiner