NKP 765 to Appear at Mad River Museum

Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 will be in residence at the Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum in late September.

It will be reunited with another former NKP Berkshire steamer, No. 757, which is part of the museum’s collection.

No. 765 will be at the museum from Sept. 24 to Oct. 3 and will participate in a number of events, including caboose rides, hostler experiences and night photo sessions.

The event is being billed as “Berkshires in Bellevue.” The 765 will be appearing in Bellevue following a two-week stay on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad.

The 765 and 757 are among six surviving Berkshire type locomotives of a one-time fleet of 80.

Museum president Chris Beamer said it will be the first time since 2013 that the 765 has operated at the museum.

CVSR Sets Dates for Return of NKP 765

Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 will return to Northeast Ohio for a series of excursions in September the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad said today.

The Berkshire-type locomotive owned by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society will operate on Sept. 3, 10-12 and 17-19.

Tickets range from $25 to $65 depending on the fare class purchased.

Most excursions will last two and half hours and include photo runbys. On Saturdays the trains will leave Rockside Station in Independence at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

On Sundays trains will depart Akron Northside Station at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. A night trip will leave Rockside Station at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 11.

On Sept. 3 and 18 the 765 and its train will depart Rockside Station at 7:30 p.m. for a three-and-a-half-hour round trip. About halfway through the trip, a photo shoot with special lighting will be staged as the 765 sits on static display.

Tickets for CVSR members at the brakeman level and above will go on sale on July 16 at 9 a.m. and to the public on July 20 at 9 a.m.

A series of special events are also scheduled involving the 765 including dinner on the train aboard one of the California Zephyr dome cars.

Other alcohol related trips on tap include Gin and Jazz during which a local jazz musician will perform as passengers nibble on appetizers and drink gin; the Speakeasy with appetizers and Prohibition era cocktails; Lounge+ featuring an open bar; Bottlegger Brews featuring appetizers and beer; Morning Mixers with a bloody Mary and mimosa bar, along with a muffin; and Soiree, featuring heavy appetizers and an open bar.

One special trip will involve a murder mystery while another will feature trivia games while riding behind the 765.

More information is available at https://www.cvsr.org/steam/

NKP 765 to Run on CVSR Next 2 Weekends

Nickel Plate Road No. 765 will be back on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad this weekend, offering weekend excursions and a few extras.

New this year will be a Friday excursion for CVSR members and volunteers that will leave Rockside Road station at 5:30 p.m. It is scheduled to return at 8 p.m.

During the two-hour round trip, passengers will be treated to hors d’oeuvres, cash bar service, and live entertainment from the 1940s.

There will be a brief de-boarding for a sunset view and run-by of the locomotive.

Also new this year is a program that enables the public to buy throttle time or fireman time during a short run from Fitzwater Yard to Brecksville station. Those “tickets” are reportedly sold out.

Two-hour public excursions will be run on Sept. 16, 22 and 23 from Rockside Road station and on Sept. 17 and 24 from Akron.

Boarding times for trains departing from Rockside Road on Saturdays are at 9:30 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. On Sept. 22, the excursion will depart Rockside Road at 6 p.m.

Boarding times from Akron are 11:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. All excursions will feature a photo runby at Boston Mill station.

Ticket are $25 for coach seating, $30 for an open widow coach, $38 for deluxe (table car), $40 for the dome car lower level; and $50 for the upper dome car.

The CVSR website said that the railroad will not disclose the location of the steam train to any non-ticket holders.

Park rangers will be on patrol and the park has suggested that non ticket holders consider watching the train at Station Road Bridge or Botzum.

Those locations have probably been suggested because they offer expansive parking lots.

A review of the schedule for the CVSR’s National Park Scenic suggests that unlike in past years the steam train will not meet the Scenic in Peninsula.

This presumes that the excursions will be two hours in duration as advertised and that the steam train can operate behind or ahead of the Scenic.

NKP 765 To Operate Chicago Excursion in June

Chicago was the western terminus for Nickel Plate Road passenger service, but NKP steam locomotive 765 hasn’t been there for a while.

That will change on June 11-12 when the 2-8-4 Berkshire pulls its first public excursion in Chicagoland in more than 20 years.

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society announced on its website on Wednesday that the 765 will be on display between 19 a.m. and 3 p.m. on June 11 at the annual Railroad Day festival in suburban Franklin Park near Chicago O’Hare International Airport.

On June 12, the Berkshire will pull a public excursion between The Glen of North Glenview and Janesville, Wisconsin, using former Milwaukee Road tracks.

In honor of that, the excursion has been named The Varsity after a Milwaukee Road passenger train that operated between Chicago and Madison, Wisconsin, until the coming of Amtrak in 1971.

The Varsity will make an intermediate stop at the Metra station in Fox Lake.

Tickets are now on sale and range in price between $349 and $148, depending on the class of accommodation.

Tickets can be ordered by calling 888-718-4253 or at the FtWRHS website at

https://fortwaynerailroad.org/?event=the-varsity&event_date=2016-06-12

The train will depart from North Glenview at 7 a.m. and from Fox Lake at 8 a.m. Lunch will be served onboard. The price of lunch is included in the fare.

Equipment for the excursion will include  “The Varsity” will feature vintage passenger cars from the 1930s-1950s. Accommodations include standard coach, deluxe coach, and first class and dome car.

The trip will be the first steam motive power to user portions of the route to be traveled since 1953.

It will be the first excursion of 2016 for the NKP 765 and the locomotive’s owner said that details about additional excursions this year will be announced later.

Steam Returns to the CVSR This Weekend

Nickel Plate Road No. 765 will begin a three-weekend series of excursions on Saturday by pulling three excursions from the Brecksville station.

The two-hour trips will depart at 9:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. Photo runbys are expected to be conducted at Boston Mill as part of the excursions. The same schedule will be repeated on Sept. 20 and Oct. 4.

On Sept. 26 and Oct. 3, the 767 will pull two-hour excursions from Akron. Trips will depart at 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. on both days.

Tickets are $23 for enclosed coach seating, $25 for open window coaches, $36 for table seating in a dining car, $36 for lower level dome car seating and $50 for dome seating.

Half-hour rides will be offered on Sept. 27 from Boston Mill station, departing at 10:15 a.m., 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.

An added event is Steampunk Railroad. Passengers will board a train pulled by the NKP 765 and travel from Rockside Station to the Fitzwater yard and shops for a party. The event will be held on Sept. 26.

Patrons will be encouraged to dress in steam punk attire and there will be prizes for best dressed.

Lighting of the 765 will be provided along with a barbecue dinner, beverages and music. Tickets are $60 per person and includes three vouchers for drinks (beer, wine and soda). The train will depart Rockside station at 8 p.m.

NKP 765 To Visit CVSR in September, October

Nickel Plate Road No. 765 will be pulling trips on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad in September and early October.

Two-hour roundtrips will depart from Brecksville on Sept. 19, 20 and Oct. 4, and from Akron on Sept. 26 and Oct. 3. There will be half-hour trips on Sept. 27 from Boston Mills.

Tickets for all trips are $23 for an enclosed coach, $25 for an open-window coach, $36 for deluxe seating in a dining car, $36 for first class service in the dome car Emerson and $50 to ride in the dome section of the Emerson.

Passengers purchasing deluxe seating and both classes of service in the Emerson will receive a snack and beverage.

Photo runbys will be performed for all trips pulled by the 2-8-4 Berkshire, which ran on the CVSR last year.

Departure times for trips leaving from Brecksville are 9:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4:15 p.m.  Departure times from Akron are 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. Departure times from Boston Mills are 10:15 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.

All tickets are non-refundable and cannot be exchanged. Seating is assigned by car, but is not assigned inside the car. Trips will operate regardless of weather.

For more information or to order tickets, visit http://www.cvsr.com.

Dates Changed for NKP 765 Trips in Pennsylvania

New dates have been set for some excursions that will be pulled in Pennsylvania by Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765.

The trips between Allentown and Pittston that had been set for Aug. 8-9 have been rescheduled for Aug. 22-23.

Tickets for these trips as well as excursions out of Buffalo, New York, will go on sale on June 1 at 9 a.m.

The Buffalo trips are scheduled to run on Aug. 1 and 2. For more information, go to www.fortwaynerailroad.org.

New trips behind Southern Railway 2-8-2 No. 4501 have also been announced. The locomotive will pull a 220-mile round-trip excursion with diesel assistance from Bristol to Radford, Virginia, on June 26.

That trip will take the Radford Rambler over former Norfolk & Western tracks that are now part of the Virginia Division of Norfolk Southern.

No. 4501 is also set to pull excursions from Bristol to Bulls Gap, Virginia, on June 27 and another Bristol–Radford round trip on June 28. Tickets are available at tvrail.com.

NKP 765 Excursion Sked Formally Announced

The official schedule for the Nickel Plate Road No. 765 was released this week and it mirrors schedules reported earlier on various online sites.

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, which owns the Berkshire 2-8-4 steam locomotive, said that eight excursions will operate on Norfolk Southern tracks in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio in May and July.

The trips are being offered in conjunction with the NS 21st Century Steam program and have been named for passenger trains that once plied the same rails:

• May 3-4 The Commodore Vanderbilt (Employee-only) Elkhart, Ind.-Bryan, Ohio
• May 10-11 The Nickel Plate Limited (Employee-only) Chicago-Argos, Ind.
• July 5-6 The Mercury Express (Employee-only) Detroit-Toledo, Ohio
• July 12-13 Detroit Arrow (Public, tickets available April 16) Detroit-Fort Wayne, Ind.

The Fort Wayne group also said that additional trips are being planned for 2014. “We have trips in the works within a few hours of our home base in Fort Wayne,” said spokesman Kelly Lynch says. “No. 765 will come close to, if not exceed, 6,000 miles in operation this year.”

Among those will be trips operated as part of the Steam Railroading Institute’s “Train Expo 2014” in Owosso, Mich., June 20-22.

For more information, go to www.fortwaynerailroad.org.

Michigan Steam Trip Schedule Announced

The Michigan-based Steam Railroading Institute has announced that the Pere Marquette No. 1225 will pulled a series of half-day trips during Train Expo 2014.

The 2-8-4 Berkshire will head up trips from Owosso to Alma, Mich., departing on June 20 at 2 p.m., June 21 at 8 a.m., and June 22 at 2 p.m.

A sister locomotive, Nickel Plate Road No. 765, will head 8 a.m. departures on June 20 and 22, and a 2 p.m. departure on June 21. Each trip will last about 4 hours and include photo run-by opportunities for riders. The 765 is also a 2-8-4 Berkshire.

Ticket prices for the No. 1225 trips are: luxury class $250, first class $200, lounge $150, open window $125, and coach $90.

Train Expo 2014 will be held June 20-24 in Owosso and will feature trains, vintage aircraft and automobiles.

Visiting steam locomotives will include Gramling Locomotive Works’ 0-4-0Ts Flagg Coal No. 26 and Lehigh Valley Coal No. 126. Also visiting will be Michigan-based Little River Railroad 0-4-0T No. 1 and 4-6-2 No. 110, which will pull one-hour train rides.

Aviation displays will include vintage World War II aircraft, including B-17 and B-25 bombers, a C-47/DC-3 transport, and a P-51 Mustang fighter

For more information, go to michigansteamtrain.com.

NKP 765 Summer Sked Making Rounds

The summer operating schedule for Nickel Plate Road No. 765 has been making the rounds on various railfan oriented Internet sites. Aside from the TrainExpo festival in Michigan, none of these trips were listed yet on the website of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, the owner of the Berkshire locomotive.

Norfolk Southern employee trips:

May 3 & 4 – Elkhart, Ind. to Bryan, Ohio
May 10 & 11 — Chicago (Calumet) to Argos, Ind.
July 5 & 6 — Detroit to Toledo

Public Excursions:

June 20-24 — TrainExpo, Owosso, Mich.
July 12 & 13 — Detroit to Ft. Wayne
July 19 – Aug 9 Logansport, Ind., and Kokomo, Ind.