Echo Canyon Trail
Charles Lawrence, official photographer for the Pacific Electric Railway, shot this image from far down in the canyon, just above Rubio Pavilion. From this vantage point it is obvious that construction of the railway required an extreme amount of excavation and trestlework. Even with the impressive expertise of engineer David J. Macpherson, it is perhaps no surprise that Thaddeus Lowe ended up in financial ruin over this enterprise.
Michael Patris Collection
Looks like there was a problem with trees dying even back then. What was the % grade at this point?
It started off at a gradient of 57% increasing to a peak of 62% then tapered to 52% and finally 39% near the very top.