Winter Park Express

Amtrak’s revived ski train climbs more than 1,100 m through 28 tunnels and spills skiers out steps from Winter Park’s lifts.

Denver’s ski train tradition began in 1940, and Amtrak revived it in 2017 with bi-level Superliners running straight to the snow. The route stair-steps up the Front Range through 28 tunnels and the S-curves above Boulder, then bursts from the 10 km Moffat Tunnel beneath the Continental Divide only steps from Winter Park’s lifts: the only ski-in rail arrival in the United States.

Along the way

• Big Ten Curve
• Flatiron foothills and 28 tunnels
• South Boulder Canyon
• Moffat Tunnel under James Peak
• Ski-in arrival at Winter Park base

How this line was checked

• Line drawn from OpenStreetMap relation 13938481 — the same nodes OpenStreetMap holds for this railway, thinned to within under 25 m of them
• Checked against OpenStreetMap: the whole line lies on real track, a median 4 m from it
• The operator publishes this line's timetable: Amtrak schedules — a place to look it up, not a check of our drawing
• Wikipedia has an article for this line
• See for yourself: open this line on the map with OpenStreetMap's own railway drawn underneath it

Questions and answers

How long is the Winter Park Express?

The Winter Park Express runs 90 km from Denver to Winter Park.

How long does the Winter Park Express take?

The fastest scheduled journey is 2 h 11 min for the 90 km. That is an average of 41 km/h end to end. The line's top service speed is 95 km/h.

Who runs the Winter Park Express?

Amtrak, with Superliner bi-level cars.

How old is the Winter Park Express?

The line has been in service since 2017. That is the year the atlas dates it from: for a modern brand running over an older railway, it is the railway's date, not the brand's.

How high does the Winter Park Express climb?

2,816 m above sea level at its highest point.

View on the world railway map →

Read more on Wikipedia ↗