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Ride a Steam Train in Chehalis, WA

By Franklyn Gallup of BibleFree.org

On May 29, 2010 my wife and I took a steam train ride in Chehalis, Washington. It was a slightly overcast Friday but not raining. Occasionally, some sun and blue sky came through. It was perfect for photography of this interesting piece of yesteryear that we got to experience.

In Chehalis, WA at exit 77 off I-5 they have a restored 1912 logging locomotive that offers weekend train rides every weekend from Memorial Day to September.

I took over 157 pictures and my wife took almost that many.

This train is operated by a group of people who formed the Chehalis - Centralia Railroad Association in 1986. It operates on a train bed that was once used by the Milwaukee Road, and later by the Chehalis Western Railroad.

We got to the station about 2:30 and I bought the tickets. They are $11 for adults for the 1PM and 3PM trains. The 5PM train is $14 dollars and it a longer ride.

Children's tickets are $8 and $11. Children under 3 are free.

They offer several murder mystery train rides where you as the passenger have to figure out whodunnit.

They also offer an Easter train, Kid's day, Senior's day, Western days, Pumpkin train and Several Santa trains in December.

We were two of the first on the train and I got to take a picture of the dining car without passengers. We decided to sit up in the open car to take pictures.

My wife writes Steam Punk so this was also a research trip for us. We loved the sounds of the train running and smell of the smoke. The train goes through farmland and some areas with trees.

We went seven miles and then returned to the station. The conductor sat next to us on the return run and he answered a lot of questions. He told me sometimes he is the engineer. There only a select few who are qualified to run the engine apparently.

When we got back to the station they have to unhook the engine and go up the track a ways and come back on a parallel track and reconnect to the front of the train. The conductor asked if I would like to ride in the locomotive when they did the turn around. Of course I said yes.

I have included a link to the Association's website, a link to some more of my pictures and a links to some videos.

I got to ride in the locomotive when it changed directions

Somethings never change. One of the engineers taking a coffee break

Smoke billows from the locomotive which runs on used crankcase oil

Locomotive passing the train to connect on what was the back of the train for the return trip.

valves everywhere inside the cab of this restored 1912 locomotive

The engineer is looking ahead while I am taking pictures

Restoring the engine was a lot of work. There is a museum there as well.

Some of the rail track that they laid for this train

PLEASE VISIT THE CONTRIBUTOR'S WEBSITE

Lewis County, WA Wordfind
Lewis County, WA Wordfind
woodfloorist.com/0000/Puzzle/Lewis.html

I couldn't add 157 pictures but the external link above has more of my pictures has some more. The videos are pretty good too.

That looks like a great day out. There really is a romance about steam, whether it be locomotives or simple beam engines.

My wife writes some of her books in the Steam punk romance genre so the steam train ride was also research and pictures for her as well.

Steam is a wonderful part of yesteryear. Nostalgia is kept alive by such projects, and I love them. Great when enthusiasts work hard to maintain these old engines.

We also have another steam train in operation here in Washington at Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad, Elbe, Washington USA. I have ridden that train as well. They have quite a large collection of old engines and cars. Some have become stationary dining restaurants.

We have something similar in the Cleveland Metroparks Ohio Canal area. Old-time passenger cars with a vintage locomotive. Very scenic, and a really good time.

I was finding a lot about model trains and miniature trains.

If you could get some pictures and information it would make for a good Intel.

We have quite a few steam trains in New England and riding one during fall colors is like no other experience. Thanks for sharing details of your ride.

webnh Jun 2, 2010 09:40

Your trip sounds wonderful. Vancouver (where I live) also has a steam train called the Royal Hudson. I don't think it is running now, which is a shame. It used to go from Vancouver to Squamish, I think, and included some sort of food service as part of the deal.

Pretty impressive. Royal Hudson 2839 going 70mph! and Royal Hudson White Rock 8 Feb 2010 Is this the train? Let me know if you find out more info.

An excellent intel on a steam train with fantastic photos which speak for themselves.

tozcal2008 Jun 2, 2010 16:20

You reminded me of how much I love to ride trains. Even when I lived in Chicago, the ride on the subway was an adventure. Your pictures really brought the experience to life. Thanks for sharing.

Larry Barkan Jun 3, 2010 18:38

I love trains. When we lived in Flin Flon, Manitoba my dad was one of the steam train engineers at the mine. We moved away from there when I was very young so I never had the pleasure of a ride on that train. Like June, I also rode on the Royal Hudson from Vancouver to Squamish. I'll look through our photos to see if I can find more about it.

It was the Royal Hudson 2860 that is in the White Rock website you mentioned. I found this website with really nice photos - you might like to have a look at it. http://www.wcra.org/royalhudsonwhiterock2010.pdf

Thank you. That was an awesome addition to my Intel. The picture with all the Olympics rings on the backs of the spectators was very nice.

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