Located in the quiet but special city of Colorado Springs, (home of the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame and Cheyenne Mountain - where the Air Force and NORAD work literally inside a mountain), is one of the best hotels in the world, the 5-star/5-diamond Broadmoor Hotel which was built in 1918. The owner that built the Broadmoor hotel purchased the Manitou & Pikes Peak Railway in 1925 and made improvements to the railway and to the passenger cars that shuttled riders to the top of the Pikes Peak mountain. From the 1890s to the 1930s, the railway operated specially built steam engines from Baldwin Locomotive Works that could climb the steep grades (up to 25% in some places) using a cog gear arrangement. The engines would run at a slow but steady pace pushing a passenger car up to the 14,115 foot summit of Pikes Peak. Although the railway began experimenting with gasoline powered passenger cars in the 1930’s, the Baldwin locomotives (a total of six were built for the railway) were used as backup until 1964, when Swiss Locomotive Works engines replaced the hard working Baldwins. Engine #4 is still used for special occasions, and engine #1 is on display at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, Colorado. Manitou & Pikes Peak #5 used to be displayed at the base of the railway, but was recently restored and moved to the grounds of the Broadmoor Hotel. On a clear day you can see 5 different states from the top of the mountain.
