Colorado’s Winter Park Express Takes Skiers From Union Station to the Chairlifts

In Colorado, one of the major industries is the ski industry. While some of the most famous ski towns include Vail, Aspen, and Telluride, skiers and snowboarders in the state’s capital of Denver often opt for a day on the slopes of the much closer ski resort of Winter Park.

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For these skiers, a unique option when it comes to transportation is available in the form of rail travel via the Winter Park Express.

History of Colorado’s Winter Park Express

The Winter Park Express was first introduced as the Ski Train in 1940 and transports passengers from Denver’s Union Station all the way to Winter Park, which, by car, is typically an over 60-mile trip that takes over an hour.

When it was introduced in 1940, the rail service was owned by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, but after nearly half a century, it was purchased by a company known as Ansco in 1988. However, the service was shut down in 2009 due to financial issues.

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Fortunately, roughly eight years later, the train service would be reopened in 2017 by Amtrak and rebranded as the Winter Park Express.

What’s it Like to Ride Colorado’s Winter Park Express?

The entire trip consists of 56 miles, a roughly 4,000-foot climb, and drops passengers off around 100 yards from Winter Park chairlifts. One of the most notable parts of this scenic train ride is the trip through the Moffat Tunnel, a 6.2-mile-long tunnel that passes underneath the Continental Divide.