Durango+Steam+4920 = Railfan Heaven

Immerse yourself in the operations and lore of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad while staying in a new and comfortable country home on 6 beautiful acres with an extensive view of the mainline. Enjoy the daily comings and goings of the trains making their way up and down the tracks between Durango and Silverton.

Facing the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Steam Train main line about 4 miles north of Durango Colorado, "4920" offers railfans private suites, a large 51" UltraVision TV to reply your own newly taken train videos, or watch any of our large library of train videos.

Free use of Train Scanners, and tips and maps on where the best places to take photos of the steam trains as they work their way up and down the mountains. If you make a reservation with us, we will also give you some advise on making your reservation on the Durango & Silverton to get the best seats.

Hosted by and for train fans, 4920 is the summer home of train "fan"atics Jim and Pat Conway, It is not a B&B, but a private home, whose owners want to share their passion for trains and the beauty of sothwestern Colorado.

Make reservations early for the busy summer season. Private Suites for 2 or 4. (A group of up to 6 can be accomodated if 2 are willing to sleep on large, very comfortable Tempurpedic futons in the recreation room. (Children are very welcome.)

Commonly Asked Questions:

Q:) Are you a Bed and Breakfast?

But we do provide guests with a refrigerator well stocked with breakfast foods, a micro wave/convection oven, and coffee /tea pot..so Guests are welcome to help themselves at any time.

Doing it this way, Guests to not have to adjust themselves to "our" Schedule. You can get up early ,make some coffee, go out and take photos of the trains as they work their way up the Animas Valley, then come back and make yourself a full breakfast, or whatever schdule you prefer. Or sleep in for a while and have breakfast when you get up...

My wife and I stayed at a few of the B&B's in area in the summer of 2003 and found that their normal breakfast schedule was in conflict with the time the Durango & Silverton trains left the station. If you wanted to hang around for the scheduled breakfast time, you would miss the train's scheduled departure time.

That being said, if you prefer a B&B atmosphere, there are some great ones in the Durango area. If you click on DurangoTrain.com you will find a list of B&B's in the area under "Lodging".

Q:)Do you have any restrictions on guests?

This is our family's summer home, and we do have dogs and horses on the property as pets..if you have alergies to dogs and /or horses and this poses a problem, we thank you for considering us, but "4920" would not be your best bet,but thanks for considering us!

We also have a minimum 3 night stay..(see next question).

Why do you have a Minimum 3 night Stay?

A typical 3 night stay would be..

First night (Check in between 4-7pm) Other times by special arrangement.

First full day In Durango..
-Morning, take photos of the Train leaving town and at Hermosa Hill ( 7 minutes north from "4920" and arriving in Rockwood (about 20 minutes north from "4920").
-Visit the Museum at the D&S Roundhouse in late morning. ( 20 minute drive south from "4920")
-PM visit Mesa Verde National Park in afternoon. (An hour drive away)
(But many people spend a whole day at Mesa Verde)
OR Take a White water raft trip on Animas River
OR visit Trimble Hot Springs for a few relaxing hours (only 1 mile away)
OR take a Glider Ride over the Animas Valley
OR...any one of many other exiting things you can do.

-Evening Dinner at Bar D Chuckwagon (about 2 miles from us on CR 250)

-Spend 2nd night at "4920"

2nd full day..
Ride Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Steam Train (all day trip).

Spend 3nd night at "4920"

3rd Day...Check Out by 11am, if you must.

The point is there are several dozen different Western Advertures you can do around Durango either as full day or 1/2 Adventures....a partial listing of Web Links can be found at the bottom of this Web Page. Dozens more can be found by just doing a Web Search on "Durango,Colorado".

Q:) What are you rates?

Extra nights are $109.00 per night. We have two suites available, the Silverton Suite (King Bed) and the Durango Suite (twin beds)..both are same price.

Call for rate if you want to bring a group of up to 6. (Children welcome). Rates are based on 2 people per suite, per night. If you wish to bring up to two Children and they will use the Temperpedic Futons in the recreation room. Charge is $25.00 extra per night per child.

We are accepting Guests from Thursday May 4th through Sunday Sept. 24th 2006. (Sorry the week of the 2006 Narrow Guage Convention in Durango we are already 100% booked. (August 21-26th 2006) (50% deposit required with Reservation, balance at check out.) Plus applicable Colorado Sales Tax.

We accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover Cards and American Express Credit Cards.

Q:) Where exactly is "4920"

Our address is 4920 No. CR 203, Durango Colorado 81301

We are about 5 miles north of Durango in the heart of the Animas Valley.

The east side of our property runs along U.S. Hwy 550 and the D&S Train runs alongside the Highway at this point, so you have a view of the train for almost a 1/3 of the mile as it passes by our house.

Your hosts are Pat and Jim Conway, owners of Con-Cor International,Ltd., manufacturers of HO and N Scale model trains (our office and factory are in Tucson Arizona) and we are lifetime train fans..(or maybe fan-actics). Anyway our goal is to give fellow railfans an enjoyable memory of Durango and the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway. ("4920" is our summer home. )

Q:) How do I get more Information or Make Reservations?

A:)You can call any day our toll free office number in Tucson between 10am and 3:00pm Monday through Friday Mountain Standard time:

1-888-255-7826
OR
Durango direct is 1-970-247-0916

But we are in and out a lot,so sometimes hard to catch at the Durango Direct number.

Or you can Email any inquiries or request for dates to the Email address shown below.

E-mail jconway@con-cor.com

Q:) What other Railfan activities are available in the area?

A:)For the real Railfans, this part of the Western USA offers many other Railfaning opportunities...

Denver is about 350 miles to the East, but in the Denver area you have the Colorado Railroad Museum (a MUST for railfans), Forney Transportation Museum, Georgetown Loop Railroad, and Cripple Creek Ry.

Albuquerque is 220 miles to the South East of Durango. Phoenix 460 miles to the Southwest of Durango.

Chama New Mexico is about 2-1/2 hours SouthEast of Durango and the home of the Cumbres and Toltec Railroad, another preserved section of the old Denver & Rio Grande Line which also runs steam trains during the summer. Chama is much more laid back than Durango, and has only about 25% of the numbers of riders on its trains, but for a Railfan it is must see as long as you have come this far.

If you place a reservation at "4920", we will also give you information on Chama and places to stay etc...you need to plan at least two days in Chama also.

Heading the other direction, the Grand Canyon Railway between Williams Arizona and the world famous Grand Canyon is about an 8 hour drive SouthWest of Durango.

Once again, if you are this close you may as well plan on riding the Grand Canyon Steam train as well, and why pass up a chance to View the Grand Canyon when you are this close.

A BONUS if you visit the Grand Canyon Ry, is to make a stop in Flagstaff Arizona, just to train watch...the old East West main line of the Santa Fe runs through Flagstaff and you can see upwards of 80 (that's right EIGHTY) trains a day on this high speed main line, now part of the BNSF (BurlingtonNorthern-Santa Fe) System. Brings LOTS of film, and lots of extra camera batteries...

Note: The BNSF built a cut-off around Williams to reduce a steep grade, so the best train watching is in Flagstaff, not Williams.

Popular Links for Durango Area

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad: DurangoTrain.com

Not only will you find the Railroad Schedule and how to make a Train Reservation on line here, but also you can link to dozens of other attractions in the area.

Durango Visitors Bureau: Durango Tourist Bureau

Go Durango.com: More Durango Business resources

Jeep Rentals:

Outlaw Tours

Silverton /Silver Summit Jeeps

White Water Rafting on the Animas River

Durango Rafting

Outlaw Tours

Durango River Trippers

Golf

Dalton Ranch Golf Course

Mesa Verde National Park

Tour of the "Old Hundred underground Gold Mine" near Silverton

Real 2+hour Stagecoach ride with Lunch or Dinner

Scenic Glider Rides over the valley

New Air Helicopter Rides.1-970-259-6247

We could go on and on..but you get the idea, Enjoy Durango !