����������� After I got off the train ride, I decided to get a closer look at the GM Aerotrain and the equipment nearby. I photographed the Aerotrain.
����������� I photographed the Missouri Pacific railbus.
����������� I then photographed the Flexible fishbowl which is numbered 7063.
����������� I then photographed a Missouri Pacific caboose behind the railbus.
����������� I photographed some vintage steamrollers.
����������� I then photographed Georgia Railroad steam locomotive #724 whose right side is painted in many colours.
����������� I then photographed CTA #44 which was on another run.
����������� I then photographed other pieces of rail equipment.
����������� I then photographed former Union Pacific cutaway education locomotive #2804.
����������� I then photographed Missouri Pacific observation car �Harry S Truman�.
����������� I then
photographed former Gulf Mobile and
����������� I then photographed former CB&Q dining car �Silver Spoon�.
����������� I then photographed a former Northern Pacific sleeping car.
����������� I then photographed Frisco #1522 again as well as another steam locomotive.
����������� I then went for another ride on CTA #44. I got off and photographed it and Union Pacific Big Boy #4006.
����������� I photographed a former Union Pacific rotary snow plow.
����������� I took some more photos of CTA 44 and Union Pacific 4006.
����������� I then photographed New York Central #2933 and SD45 #3607 again.
����������� I photographed a former CTA flatcar and N&W 2156 again.
����������� I then photographed more pieced of rail equipment on display.
����������� I then went into the automotive building. I photographed a 1923 Stanley Steamer car and a solar car.
����������� I then photographed a turbine powered car.
����������� The turbine powered car was notable enough to attract celebrity Jay Leno to the museum. This was due to Jay Leno being a car fan and having a collection of vintage cars.
����������� I then photographed SP&S caboose #844 both inside and out.
����������� I then photographed the CTA flatcar again.
����������� I took more photos in and around the display barn.
����������� I then went to the other barn and photographed the equipment in it.
����������� I then saw the end of an RDC poking out. I couldn�t tell which railroad it had come from. I photographed it.
����������� I saw a Union Pacific freight train with five locomotives passed by the museum on the line next to the museum. I filmed the power of that freight train. I then photographed PRR electric locomotive #4700.
����������� I then took a few more photos around the museum.
����������� I photographed some of the models in the automotive building.
����������� I took a few more photos outside.
����������� I then took one last photograph of CTA #44.
����������� I then went to the gift shop. I took a few more photos there.
����������� I photographed a picture of SEPTA PCC #2740 which is in their collection but I didn�t see at all during the museum. It must have been undergoing maintenance in one of the barns.
����������� I took a few more photos in the gift shop building.
����������� I then took
some photos of
����������� I then photographed a vintage car in front of the museum.
����������� I was now done at the museum. I took a picture of my rental car.
Here�s my rental car on this trip, a Hyundai Elentra.
����������� I then got in my rental car and left the museum. I then headed out and found a gas station. This gas station was pre-pay and I found it harder than usual to get gas for the car but I eventually did. I then drove back to the car rental place and dropped it off where I had been instructed to.
����������� It was
shortly after
����������� I had missed the 4:30 departure. I asked if I could get on the next departure. However it was sold out. I did get on the third departure after though. I photographed the passenger cars on display that were not part of the Polar Express.
����������� I then headed to the LRT to go get dinner. I knew there was a Taco Bell nearby that if I was fast, I could make it there and back in time for my train.
����������� I got on the LRT and rode two stops. I then walked a few blocks to Taco Bell. Along the way, I had to walk under the main line. I saw the 4:30 Polar Express reversing back towards St. Louis. I filmed it.
����������� I then got to Taco Bell and bought dinner. After dinner I made my way back to the LRT stop. I got on the next train heading in the direction of Union Station.
����������� Along the way, we passed the second departure of the Polar Express which I attempted to film.
����������� I soon got back to Union station and headed back to where the Polar Express would depart from. My ticket assigned me to a specific car. My car was given the name �Silver Bells�.
����������� The Polar Express is based off a children�s book staring a child protagonist who was questioning the existence of Santa Claus takes a train trip to the North Pole on a train called the Polar Express. The story was made into a movie in 2004 with a video game tie in.
����������� I took some photos in the waiting area.
����������� There was an O-sale model of the Polar Express running around a tree. At one point, the train was derailed. Other visitors and I tried to fix it. I eventually did get it rerailed properly. I explained that I knew what I was doing as I had a model railway.
����������� After awhile the train backed in. I photographed it.
����������� My coach �Silver Bells� was a heritage coach that carried the number 1593. They had cookies on each seat for us. On the loudspeaker they played two songs from the Polar Express movie.
����������� We were served hot chocolate which the young passengers on the train in the movie were served with a song accompanying it.
����������� We passed St. Louis Gateway station. I filmed Amtrak�s southbound Texas Eagle. As previously stationed Amtrak stops at Gateway and not Union Station. They previously did but they stopped decades ago in favor of a temporary station that we stopped at on my Arizona Trip before the present station where I came through first on my 2009 Dallas trip.
����������� We branched off from where Amtrak uses and went north along a different line. We stopped by a light display which was supposed to be the �North Pole�. I took some photos from the train.
����������� At one point �Santa� came into the coach and passed out candy. Other passengers and I took photos.
����������� The train then reversed back into St. Louis Union Station. I got off and photographed the train.
These TRRA Geeps were what powered the Polar Express.
����������� I then photographed some Amtrak equipment parked outside Gateway station. One thing I saw was the coach I had come into St. Louis on.
����������� I then made my way to the LRT and rode one stop to Civic Center and got off. I then waited for a bus to take me to my hotel. I saw that route #74 was coming first. While waiting I photographed an electric Gillig bus.
����������� The route #74 came and I got on. This was the same route I had boarded when I arrived two days ago. This time I got off at the right stop. I then had to walk a few blocks to my hotel.
����������� I got to my hotel and went online and worked on this report some more. I set my alarm and called it a night.
Click to read about my trip back
to Chicago:��������� Trip to Chicago
