The 9" gauge Mesa Grande Western Railroad was started by cabinet maker Harry S. Pulaski in 1956, and moved to the present location in the high desert of Southern California in the mid-1960s. Since then it has been kept alive by successive generations of live steamers including yours truly. Here is a full ride on the Mesa Grande Western behind our flagship locomotive #268, a 3" scale (1/4 full size) copy of Denver & Rio Grande locomotive #268. There is about 7,000 feet of mainline track, and at the time this video was made the steepest grade peaked at 6.5% in one spot. There are two trestles, two smaller bridges, a Tehachapi-style loop and tunnel as well as a full yard, two stations and sidings.

sadly, this railroad was caught in the Bobcat fire in 2020 and all of the bridges and trestles you see here were burned. As of 2022 we are in the process of rebuilding or bypassing them. Currently about 1/2 of the railroad is operable. This video was made before the fire.

The Mesa Grande Western is the only active 9" gauge railroad in the United States and one of only a handful existing world wide. The railroad is private and not open to the public.

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