The train was popular among railfans for its two repainted former Great Northern F7s, Nos. 1950 and 1951. The units sport the historic Wabash Railway paint scheme. The dinner train operated over a former Wabash Railroad line between Columbia and Centralia, Mo.
The equipment was previously used on the Grand Traverse Dinner Train in Northern Michigan.
Greg Vreeland, president and owner of the Wisconsin Great Northern, tells Trains News Wire that the equipment will help with the railroads growing dinner and bed and breakfast trains, with one F7, No. 1951, serving as back up power for former Chicago & North Western F7 No. 423. The other, 1950, will need some minor repairs, with plans to operate the locomotive on the railroads growing freight car storage business, and possibly on the contracted service the WGN operates over the Canadian National Railway’s Hayward Branch.
The train consists of a former Chicago Burlington & Quincy full-length kitchen car and two articulated two-unit coach sets of Southern Pacific heritage.
”Literally, the train is 100 percent serviceable. The train came to us completely supplied, parts of it will enter service immediately. We are very, very excited to have ready to run equipment that will help us meet expanding customer demand,” Vreeland adds.
Columbia Star owner Mark Vaughn could not be reached for comment.
Maybe I am too 'old-school' and also a senior citizen: However, I will only take 'dinner-in-the-diner' on REAL varnish. Maybe that is just me:)
Have had dinner several times on the Grand Traverse Dinner Train. Food was great along with a relaxing 18 mile through beautiful Boardman Valley. The train was the perfect setup with dining cars, a kitchen with locomotives on both ends.
Tim from Mich.,
A very enjoyable trip. You are correct, having the cars set up the they are was perfect. The not so good track actually made for a much more leisurely trip. Very enjoyable, sorry it's gone.
We had dinner on the train when it was the Traverse City Dinner Train in Michigan. Food was great, track was bad, cars were so-so.
I rode the Columbia Star on a dinner run. The interiors of the diners were redone with cheap materials and the construction workmanship looked shoddy. It was a let down. Maybe I expected too much. The condition of the track it ran on was Class 1, barely.
Great news – always good to have more Fs and nice equipment in the Northland!
So the Minnesota diner train went to Colorado and the Missouri diner train is going to Wisconsin. Okay.
Whats the route it will take up to Wisconsin?