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Rich Riddle
08-20-2016, 4:43 PM
I love to travel Amtrak when possible but am looking for some smaller lines to ride. I did the Whitewater rail excursion but it was only 15 miles. At Arnfest they say there is quite the railroad museum, so that will be nice. Any other train nuts like riding the rails? Please share your favorite lines/trains to ride.

Mike Null
08-20-2016, 5:12 PM
Nothing quite as special as you're talking about but the railroad is the only way to travel in Europe. It is easily the most comfortable mode of transportation and is usually quite scenic and unlike airports, the train stations are always in the heart of the city.

Art Mann
08-20-2016, 6:07 PM
It is a little bit far but the steam train ride from Silverton to Durango Colorado is one you will never forget.

http://www.durangotrain.com/ride-us/-route

Rich Riddle
08-20-2016, 6:09 PM
It is a little bit far but the steam train ride from Silverton to Durango Colorado is one you will never forget.

http://www.durangotrain.com/ride-us/-routeWe took the Amtrak from Denver to San Francisco last year, but that's when she swore off trains.

Ken Fitzgerald
08-20-2016, 7:06 PM
We did the Durango to Silverton ride backwards by taking a tour bus to Silverton and riding the railroad down. If you do this one, consider staying in Cortez, CO a few miles away. The rates were cheaper and in the evenings during the summer months you can attend the free shows at the Community Center. There we got these 3 photos:

342664 342665




342666

This 3rd one was pretty special. My now deceased FIL got to meet a Navajo code talker. In conversation they discovered during WWII, they fought on the same island in the South Pacific at the same time. The Navajo man was with the US Marines and my FIL with the US Army.

Sean Troy
08-20-2016, 7:41 PM
I really enjoy the Durango to Silverton train ride.

James Gunning
08-20-2016, 8:20 PM
Rich,

There are lots of tourist and museum lines you can ride. many are fairly short rides, but some longer. The Durango & Silverton has been mentioned, but in the same area, the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad running between Chama, NM and Antonito, CO is spectacular. The D&S runs mostly in a canyon. The C&TS climbs a 10,015 foot pass out of Chama and is mostly high out of the canyon bottoms. Both railroads are parts of the former Denver & Rio Grande narrow gauge lines and powered by steam locomotives original to the RR. Either is a very worthwhile ride.

Closer to home, the Potomac Eagle at Romney, WV: Cass Scenic Railroad at Cass, Durbin & Greenbrier Valley at Elkins, WV: Western Maryland Scenic RR at Cumberland, MD: Great Smoky Mountain RR in Bryson City, NC: Pennsylvania has dozens of tourist RR's.

Just Google tourist railroads, and you will find hits in most states. Lots of museums only, so you need to check websites to see which offer rides. Been photographing trains for 50 years.

Paul F Franklin
08-20-2016, 8:43 PM
Haven't yet done this trip, but it's on my list: http://www.agawatrain.com/

I think it would be spectacular in the fall color season.

Mac McQuinn
08-20-2016, 9:18 PM
Haven't yet done this trip, but it's on my list: http://www.agawatrain.com/

I think it would be spectacular in the fall color season.

My folks and brother took this trip years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. My brother is such a train enthusiast he now works for the railroad. Say's it's the best job he's ever had.
Mac

Maurice Hood
08-20-2016, 9:45 PM
Rich, are you familiar with these day trips?

http://www.nctrans.org/Events/Autumn-Rails-Excursions/Trip-Details---Information.aspx

Rich Riddle
08-20-2016, 10:33 PM
Rich, are you familiar with these day trips?

http://www.nctrans.org/Events/Autumn-Rails-Excursions/Trip-Details---Information.aspx
That Virginia one looks lovely; unfortunately it conflicts with the tool show, Arnfest, in Chicago at the Illinois Train Museum.

Bruce Wrenn
08-20-2016, 10:40 PM
611 has wrapped up her 2016 season. Contact Virginia Trans Museum for up coming trips. NS is getting back into steam excursions business. A fun trip would be to start at NC Trans Museum. A couple miles north on I-85 find Linwood yard on Southern main. Then on to Roanoke for Virginia Museum of Trans. and Scahffer's Crossing Yard (N&W.) Next off to Cass and Greenbrier and Durbin. Continuing north to Romney WV, then on to Western Maryland Scenic Railroad. A short distance away, visit Harper's Ferry, then I-81 north to Scranton PA for Steam Town National Historic site. Last year (2015) they had no steam running. Next travel south to Strausburg RR and Pennsylvania Railroad Museum (they are across the street from each other.) Continue south to Baltimore and B&O museum. Stop by DC and visit with Southern's Pacific at the Smithsonian. Ollies Outlet stores have a "coffee table book" titled "The Illustrated Directory of North American Locomotives" for $15 which is a great purchase, with lots of pictures of different engines. The reason it's so cheap is it was printed in China, and contains a lot of errors.

Kurt Kintner
08-21-2016, 8:46 AM
Rich,

There are lots of tourist and museum lines you can ride. many are fairly short rides, but some longer. The Durango & Silverton has been mentioned, but in the same area, the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad running between Chama, NM and Antonito, CO is spectacular. The D&S runs mostly in a canyon. The C&TS climbs a 10,015 foot pass out of Chama and is mostly high out of the canyon bottoms. Both railroads are parts of the former Denver & Rio Grande narrow gauge lines and powered by steam locomotives original to the RR. Either is a very worthwhile ride.

Closer to home, the Potomac Eagle at Romney, WV: Cass Scenic Railroad at Cass, Durbin & Greenbrier Valley at Elkins, WV: Western Maryland Scenic RR at Cumberland, MD: Great Smoky Mountain RR in Bryson City, NC: Pennsylvania has dozens of tourist RR's.

Just Google tourist railroads, and you will find hits in most states. Lots of museums only, so you need to check websites to see which offer rides. Been photographing trains for 50 years.

We travel out West a lot, and do the Cumbres & Toltec every time.... It can't be discribed or filmed to justify how great it is... Takes most of the day traveling at 10-12 mph.... And the free lunch at the pavilion is a nice bonus....
if you like the sound and smell is a steam engine, like we do, you'll love it.... We spend most of the time on the open air car ....

Howard Garner
08-21-2016, 9:40 AM
[QUOTE=Kurt Kintner;2595659]We travel out West a lot, and do the Cumbres & Toltec every time.... It can't be discribed or filmed to justify how great it is... Takes most of the day traveling at 10-12 mph.... And the free lunch at the pavilion is a nice bonus....
if you like the sound and smell is a steam engine, like we do, you'll love it.... We spend most of the time on the open air car ....[/QUOTE

Try to ride it from east to west (Antinito to Chama). That way you get to listen to the locomotive all the way to Cumbras Pass which is 3/4 of the trip. Yes you miss the assault of the 4%, but then the eastward trip would mostly coast for the rest of the day.

Jim Becker
08-21-2016, 9:50 AM
New Hope and Ivyland https://www.newhoperailroad.com/

You can even buy into riding in the engine cab. :) The extended runs actually pass my house. This is old Pennsylvania Railroad right-of-way and NH&IR does a very nice job with their business. While the "face" of the company is the tourist rides, they also haul some freight into places along their way that otherwise would have lost service decades ago.

There's another one across the river in NJ that's actually planning on building up and extending back into Lambertville NJ which is directly across the bridge from New Hope PA.

http://www.blackriverrailroad.com/

Stan Calow
08-21-2016, 10:20 AM
You can go coast to coast on Rail Canada. I've only done the Nova Scotia to Toronto segment, with a few stops in Quebec. Considering the western part now.

Kurt Kintner
08-21-2016, 3:51 PM
[QUOTE=Kurt Kintner;2595659]We travel out West a lot, and do the Cumbres & Toltec every time.... It can't be discribed or filmed to justify how great it is... Takes most of the day traveling at 10-12 mph.... And the free lunch at the pavilion is a nice bonus....
if you like the sound and smell is a steam engine, like we do, you'll love it.... We spend most of the time on the open air car ....[/QUOTE

Try to ride it from east to west (Antinito to Chama). That way you get to listen to the locomotive all the way to Cumbras Pass which is 3/4 of the trip. Yes you miss the assault of the 4%, but then the eastward trip would mostly coast for the rest of the day.

have done it both ways .... Both are great.....
Last year we had the pleasure if experiencing the engine losing traction on one of the grades....
the maintenance crew had forgotten to fill the sanders.... After sanding the track several times manually,
we were on our way.... I imagine heads rolled over that oops ....

Adam Herman
08-21-2016, 4:27 PM
http://georgetownlooprr.com/

this one is fun with a big round tressel to decrease elevation in a small area. you end up going under the track you were just on.

http://hebervalleyrr.org/

a fun one in utah. up to 3 hrs long.

http://winetrain.com/

this one is like traveling first class! wine and food are great (at least they were about 15 years ago)

Charles McKinley
09-01-2016, 9:22 PM
Oil City & Titusville Railroad
http://www.visitpa.com/pa-railroads/oil-creek-railway-historical-society

Strasburg Railroad
http://www.rrmuseumpa.org

Altoona, PA has Horseshoe Curve to watch lots of trains.

Carnegie Science Center, Pittsburgh, PA has the miniture railroad open most of the year now with special displays for Christmas time.

Bruce Page
09-01-2016, 9:59 PM
We've done the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge a few times. It's always great fun. Here's a pic from a few years ago of my two youngest grandkids on the Polar Express. Sierra's a big Santa fan now, not so much then..

Mike Henderson
09-01-2016, 10:17 PM
There are some "train across Canada" and "train across the US" tours that appear to be interesting. You get a sleeper berth (two kinds, low end with upper and lower beds with shower down the hall and deluxe with a shower in your cabin and a Murphy bed) and the train stops in various towns and you take a tour, similar to what you would do on a ship cruise (such as an Alaskan cruise). There are many different itineraries, different length trips and different cities. You can do just the western US (or Canada) or all the way across. For the US, you can do a southern route starting in LA, or a northern route starting in Seattle (if I remember correctly).

Mike

Lee Schierer
09-02-2016, 8:25 AM
My Grandfather was an Engineer in the Erie RR and there were several times when we were home visiting that he would arrange for us to ride in the engine cab with him. On the last trip we rode with him before he retired, when my mother and brother and sisters got off, my dad and my uncle got on and rode the train from Bradford, Pa to Brockway PA and filmed the ride. I have copies of the movies they took of the train crossing the Kinzua viaduct, which at one time was the highest and longest iron trestle bridge in the world. 343422

I've also taken trips on numerous old rail lines around the country and over seas.

Check out the Cass Scenic Railway (http://www.cassrailroad.com/locos.html) with their Shay locomotives. or the Potomac Eagle (http://www.potomaceagle.info/) scenic railway or the 1880 train (http://www.1880train.com/) there are also some really neat steam engines at Greenfield Village near Detroit.

Wayne Lomman
09-02-2016, 8:47 AM
Rich, 'The Ghan' which runs between Adelaide and Darwin. Cheers
http://www.greatsouthernrail.com.au/trains/the_ghan/

Garth Almgren
09-02-2016, 2:35 PM
I wouldn't consider myself an aficionado, but I am a fan of trains.

Closest to me, there is the Great Northern & Cascade Railway (http://greatnortherncascaderailway.com/) which is a ton of fun. :D

We also have the Northwest Railroad Museum (https://www.trainmuseum.org/) nearby and I've been meaning to visit for quite some time. They also offer train rides on their own 5.5 miles of track within the Mountains to Sound Greenway.

I've always wanted to take a ride down to Portland or Eugene on the Amtrack Cascades or head over to Montana on the Empire Builder, but never had a good reason to do so.

When my wife and I were in Australia for our honeymoon, we took an overnight train from Sydney to Melbourne. It was a very relaxing way to travel, however I wish we had been able to make the trip in daylight to be able to see more of the scenery.

Chris Padilla
09-02-2016, 2:49 PM
Darn...was hoping this was about the band, Train, from San Francisco. ;)

In March 2001, my wife and I boarded Amtrak in San Jose, CA bound for Eugene, OR. We were headed there to pick up a brand new 2001 BMW 530i that had arrived. (Long story why we bought the car in OR instead of CA).

Anyway, the train was supposed to pull into Eugene around 1 pm. We got there at 8 pm. While the train ride was nice WHEN IT WAS MOVING AND NOT STOPPED TO BE REPAIRED, we haven't been on Amtrak since. Going by Mt. Shasta was quite breath-taking and the overall scenery was just as nice but the delay was intolerable so we've never set foot on Amtrak since.