RAILS OVER BAXTER PASS The railroad that did the impossible The
following is a brief account of a narrow gauge railroad, her
rare cargo, the courageous people who ran her and their
persistent struggle against the elements of Mother Nature and a
mountain. In the northeastern portion of Utah and extending
briefly into Colorado lies a great basin, walled in on the north
by the high Uinta Mountains and on the south by the vast
Bookcliff range. This large area is called the Uintah Basin,
very rich and abundant in natural resources. One of which is
found only within its confines, the rare mineral Gilsonite.
Gilsonite is a black, glossy, and quite brittle material. It is
almost one hundred percent pure hydrocarbon and is found in
vertical veins, varying from less than one inch to upwards of
twenty foot in width. The depth varies considerably, some
exceeding one thousand feet. These veins run for miles in an
east-west direction through Duchesne and Uintah counties,
usually ending near the Utah-Colorado line. Near the