This legendary route passes through incredible scenery as the railroad makes its way from the high desert at Jacumba, down to the low desert of Imperial Valley. It was damaged by Tropical Storm Kathleen in 1976 and fell into disuse for many years. During this time I was able to explore the area and hiked the Gorge many times. It was a major source of inspiration for my large scale outdoor model railroad. Unfortunately there was also a lot of vandalism that took place in those days too.