A train graveyard lies along the bank of the Sevier River at the base of Utah’s Big Rock Candy Mountain.
A dozen brightly painted train cars sat in an otherwise vacant lot beside the Sevier River while clouds drifted lazily above, casting patches of shade on the mountains. It was so gorgeous, I felt like I had wandered into a Claritin commercial.
There were abandoned train boxcars,
abandoned train passenger cars,
and a caboose,
There were no signs to indicate why the train cars were there, but they were too freshly painted to be abandoned. The caboose had a little patio with a lawn chair and curtains in the window, so I kept a respectful distance in case someone was staying there.
The other train cars were open and didn’t appear inhabited, so I took a quick look inside.
They were mostly gutted.
Some were being used for storage.
A few had instructions stenciled on the walls, which reminded me of the stencils I had seen on the walls of the abandoned Titan Missile Silo launch complex and other military bases I’ve explored.
The warning in the below picture made me smile. And so did the spelling error.
I’d never heard of fusees before I saw this.
Big Rock Candy Mountain was named after a folk song written by Harry McClintock in 1928. It describes a hobo’s idea of paradise, with free lunches, cigarette trees, a lake of gin, and where people are tender-hearted and the concept of work is shunned.
The song also says “The boxcars all are empty and the sun shines every day,” which seemed perfectly appropriate. In recent years, “Big Rock Candy Mountain” has been remade as a children’s song, with the cigarettes and alcohol edited out. The actual mountain does look a bit like nougat with caramel ribbons running through it.
Candy Mountain is also referenced in a bizarre viral video with a surprisingly dark twist ending.
The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad’s Marysvale Line once passed along the eastern bank of the Sevier River, but was retired in 1976. After floods destroyed the rail line in 1983, the county transformed it into a 14-mile hiking and bike path called Candy Mountain Express.
I did a bit of research and found that the train cars were in the midst of being refurbished and turned into a group of lodging units called Caboose Village, part of the larger Candy Mountain Resort.
According to the resort website,
They offer accommodations for 2 up to 10 people in each train car, and all provide air conditioning, bathrooms, flat screen TVs, coffee pots, and microwaves. The California Zephyr is a true showpiece, with sleeping for up to 10 people and a full kitchen.
I sure wouldn’t mind spending a vacation there. The area is great for outdoor recreation. Many people come to ride the Paiute ATV trail or go tubing on the Sevier River. And Fishlake National Forest lies just to the south.
The stunning photos of Train Graveyard of Big Rock Candy Mountain were taken by Jim Sullivan. Jim Sullivan is a traveler, who shares his stories with followers If you’d like to see more abandoned places, then check out our articles on the Forgotten Zzyzx Road and Health Spa Ruins and the Abandoned Movie Ranch in Acton, California
