When I tell Patty, "hey, I found another one", she usually knows what I'm talking about, and prepares herself for another ride on the rails. I know she doesn't hate trains, in fact, many of the rail excursions that I drag her on, are often quite scenic. However, her passion for trains is quite a few notches below mine, despite the scenery. Yesterday, we rode on yet another tourist train, here in central Washington. If there was a category for riding the most tourist railroads, I would have to be in the top 10% of that fantasy list. A 15-20 minute drive, is the distance between the Chehalis T.T., and the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad,
www.steamtrainride.com at the I-5, exit 77, in Chehalis, WA.
This tourist railroad is an all volunteer effort, operating on a branch line of the Burlington Northern Railroad, and our ride was about a 12 mile round trip. The steam engine was a Baldwin 2-8-2, built in 1916, and it pulled an enclosed coach, and an open air car. There's nothing quite like the sound of a steam engine, chugging up a hill, or the sound of the steam whistle as the engine approaches a vehicular crossing. We sat in the open car, and enjoyed the very nice day with about 100 other folks. The route itself wasn't all that spectacular, but considering the bright sunshine with the temps in the 70's, it was a nice ride through the countryside.
At the end of the line, the engine disengages from the cars, pulls forward, then backs around the cars on the adjacent track. This is called an engine run-around, and when it reconnects to what was the back of the coaches, it pulls the train in reverse back to the original starting point. There are very few excursion trains that have the ability to turn the engine around by way of a turntable, or a Y track. After the train ride, we picked up a prescription at Wal-Mart, and finished the day with some BBQ'd steaks, & fresh corn on the cob. Life is pretty darn good!
When I tell Patty, "hey, I found another one", she usually knows what I'm talking about, and prepares herself for another ride on the rails. I know she doesn't hate trains, in fact, many of the rail excursions that I drag her on, are often quite scenic. However, her passion for trains is quite a few notches below mine, despite the scenery. Yesterday, we rode on yet another tourist train, here in central Washington. If there was a category for riding the most tourist railroads, I would have to be in the top 10% of that fantasy list. A 15-20 minute drive, is the distance between the Chehalis T.T., and the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad, www.steamtrainride.com at the I-5, exit 77, in Chehalis, WA.
This tourist railroad is an all volunteer effort, operating on a branch line of the Burlington Northern Railroad, and our ride was about a 12 mile round trip. The steam engine was a Baldwin 2-8-2, built in 1916, and it pulled an enclosed coach, and an open air car. There's nothing quite like the sound of a steam engine, chugging up a hill, or the sound of the steam whistle as the engine approaches a vehicular crossing. We sat in the open car, and enjoyed the very nice day with about 100 other folks. The route itself wasn't all that spectacular, but considering the bright sunshine with the temps in the 70's, it was a nice ride through the countryside.
At the end of the line, the engine disengages from the cars, pulls forward, then backs around the cars on the adjacent track. This is called an engine run-around, and when it reconnects to what was the back of the coaches, it pulls the train in reverse back to the original starting point. There are very few excursion trains that have the ability to turn the engine around by way of a turntable, or a Y track. After the train ride, we picked up a prescription at Wal-Mart, and finished the day with some BBQ'd steaks, & fresh corn on the cob. Life is pretty darn good!
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