Snow commenced to fall shortly after midnight one chilly night in October 1891. It was one of those early winter storms, and it continued the rest of the night. The storm was heavy in the mountains, especially along the lines of the railroads toward Larkspur. The Rio Grande’s plush Pullman train arrived two hours late. It was first delayed at Castle Rock, and was stopped by a rock on the track which had to be pushed out of the way just a couple miles further on.

On this night, the Rio Grande train to Colorado Springs was packed. Long before the arrival time at Palmer Lake, the management reported that several people were waiting for the train. Normally in October, few got tickets here or at Monument going south. Considerable complaint had been made of the delay caused by the early storm. The railway authorities were probably not prepared for the serious nature of this disturbance. Their intention was to run an on-time train. Both the Santa

Fe and Rio Grande companies desire that their trains be operated in a timely nature, but the weather cannot always cooperate.

When agents for both lines were questioned about the problems with the trains during this particular season, they reported that they had not thus far been much of a problem. In the previous year, the trains ran without such delays, almost up until Christmas.

However, the railroads were (and are) not protected from weather. A gang of track workers could be heard singing loud songs at the crew quarters once the trains were running again. It is not likely these fellows ever let the winter get them behind in their work again. A few of the older men had been with the line since it opened in 1872.