What do switch crews know? If you want to know how trains operate smoothly, ask the experts — the railroaders themselves. Things happen for a reason in the real world. Take switch-stand locations. Railroads hate to have brakemen crossing and recrossing tracks. It’s dangerous. It’s far safer to put all the switch stands on one […]
JIM THORPE, Pa. — Memorial Day weekend marks the 20th anniversary of the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway, the excursion operation of the Reading & Northern from Jim Thorpe to Lehigh Gorge State Park. Hour-long train rides from Jim Thorpe debuted on the holiday weekend in 2005, with three trips per day at 11 a.m., 1 […]
More than most machines, a steam locomotive’s design reflects its intended use. There are reasons why high-speed passenger locomotives have tall driving wheels and two-axle leading trucks while hard-slogging freight hogs tend to have shorter drivers and a single-axle leading truck. The differences between locomotive types are as apparent as night and day. Which is […]
BLISSFIELD, Mich. — Michigan’s Old Road Dinner Train, based in Blissfield, must find a new home and new host railroad to operate on. This comes after exhausting options for continuous operations on the Adrian & Blissfield Railroad in the wake of increased grain traffic to the short line, reports The Blade of Toledo, Ohio. “When […]
Train-watching basics: Among the ways in which people participate in the railroad hobby, the simple act of watching trains is the most popular. Some railfans thrill to the power of thousands of tons of steel rushing by. Others watch for new locomotive types, or old classics running out their last miles. Many focus on […]
CASS, W.Va — Cass Scenic Railroad and operator Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad has announced the return of Parade of Steam for 2025. The increasingly popular event, which began in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, is scheduled for June 14 at the Cass Depot. According to the railroad website, up to six […]
ELBE, Wash. — The last few weeks have been devastating for the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad. And yet, the heritage line about 45 miles south of Tacoma, Wash., is not only continuing to operate, but finding reasons to be positive. On the evening of April 30, the railroad’s largest wooden bridge — a 400-foot-long, 70-high […]
GENEVA, N.Y. — The Finger Lakes Railway will host a series of family-friendly excursions and adults-only wine-tasting trains this summer. The Finger Lakes Rail Experience is a new collaboration between the short line, FMW Solutions, United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey, Operation Toy Train, Seneca Lakes Wine Train, more than a dozen local wineries […]
When Trains Magazine author Lou Maxon was invited by the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad and Museum in Mineral, Wash. to experience steam railroading from the cab, he knew he was in for a special treat, a peek into a world few non-railroaders will see. He watched as the crew went through their pre-departure routine for […]
BREWSTER, Ohio — Following its two-week stay at the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, Nickel Plate Road steam locomotive No. 765 made a historic detour on its way back to the Indiana Northeastern Railroad. On May 5, the 2-8-4, owned and operated by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, departed the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic, heading southbound […]
GOWANDA, N.Y. — Montreal Locomotive Works M636 diesel No. 636 debuted May 17, 2025, in its new paint scheme for the New York & Lake Erie Railroad (NYLE). The 1970-built locomotive was acquired by the short line in 2024 from the Western New York & Pennsylvania Railroad. Initially debuting on the railroad’s Santa Express excursions […]
It’s 7:30 a.m. and our Trains crew has arrived at the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad and Museum in Mineral, Wash. for a steam engine cab ride. It’s about a two-hour plus drive from Carnation, Wash. where I run, own and operate my own short line electrified private railway. Today though, I’m a guest crew member […]
