CASS RAILROAD TRAIN RIDE CASS, WV

Nestled in the Mountains of West Virginia, Cass Scenic Railroad State Park offers excursions that transport you back in time and let you relive an era when Steam-driven Locomotives were an essential part of everyday life. At this time of year the fall foliage should be at its peak.

We begin by visiting The National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia which operates a world premiere astronomical telescope. A lunch is provided at the Starlight Cafe.

Once you board the Train, the real excitement begins! The great pistons of the carefully restored Shay Locomotive will start pulsing, driven by hundreds of pounds of steam pressure. The shaft begins turning, the wheels find traction, and the Locomotive begins to move. The Train pulls away from the station, passing the old water tower from which the locomotive tanks are filled. As the pressure builds, the locomotive is driven at full steam and the laborious journey up the mountain toward the two switchbacks begins. The train soon passes through the first switchback, reverses up a steep grade, ascends to the second switchback where the process is repeated, and then finally into open fields and Whittaker Station.

*Times may vary according to train schedule*