Rio Grande spreader AX-41 pauses at the Highway 72 grade crossing at Pinecliffe, Colorado, on March 21, 2003, during snowplow service. Power for the spreader train was a fitting Rio Grande GP40-2 No. 3100 and Union Pacific GP60 No. 1900 (former D&RGW No. 3154). This major blizzard closed transportation through much of Colorado during the March 17-20 storm. Denver received 31.8 inches, while Coal Creek Canyon got 71.8 inches and Rollinsville 87.5. With Pinecliffe located between the two, it received a whopping 6 to 7 feet of heavy, wet snow! Just how deep was the snow they were plowing? CLICK HERE
