A drone shot of the Friends of the 261 excursion on Saturday, October 10, 2015
(Photo is Copyright 2015 Teddy Redeker; used with permission)
The APRHF Rail Rangers program kicked off its on-board narration activites in October 2015; here the logo is seen aboard private car "Cedar Rapids".
(Photo by Mike Pace)
The APRHF Rail Rangers presented
their first two on-board interpretive programs during private rail car
excursions earlier this month. On Sunday, October 4th, 2015, APRHF Rail
Rangers volunteers were onboard a trip organized by the “Zephyr Route”
group, using an ex-Great Northern full-length dome car to see the sites between St. Paul
Union Depot, Minnesota and Chicago Union Station, Illinois. On
Saturday, October 10th, 2015, APRHF Rail Rangers volunteers were also
onboard a trip organized by the “Friends of the 261” using an
ex-Milwaukee Road steam locomotive and a string of private rail cars
that operated between Minneapolis Junction, Minnesota and Boylston Wye,
Wisconsin (just south of the Twin Ports of Superior/Duluth).
Milwaukee Road steam locomotive #261 pulled the private rail car excursion on Saturday, October 10, 2015
(Photo by Mike Pace)
The APRHF Rail Rangers program was founded in July 2015, as a direct
affiliate of the American Passenger Rail Heritage Foundation in La
Plata, Missouri. The program is headed by Executive Director/Chicago
Coordinator Robert Tabern, La Plata Coordinator/APRHF President Bob
Cox, Chicago Assistant Coordinator Kandace Tabern, and La Plata
Assistant Coordinator Amy Cox. The goals of the APRHF Rail Rangers
program are to provide interpretive programs, narration, route guide
sheets or books, maps, and other service to passengers on private rail
excursions or charters. Whenever children are onboard an excursion,
APRHF Rail Rangers offers a brand new ‘Junior Rail Rangers’ program
where youngsters and teens can learn more about the route by partaking
in special activities geared toward their age levels. Those who
purchase and complete the corresponding activity book are eligible to
earn a Junior Rail Rangers patch, sticker, and custom-made gold
activity badge. The APRHF Rail Rangers also spread the mission of their
group, and the APRHF in general, by attending various rail-related
outreach events in the Midwestern United States.
APRHF Rail Rangers is managed by (left to right): Kandace Tabern, Robert Tabern, Bob Cox, and Amy Cox
(Photo by Karri Cox)
One of the private car owners/operators who agreed to work with the
APRHF Rail Rangers from the start of the program this summer is Mike
Abernethy of Saint Charles, Illinois. Abernethy formed a company called
“Zephyr Route”, which organizes rail excursions all across the country,
with a focus on the Midwest day and weekend trips. “Zephyr Route” has
done weekend trips from Chicago Union Station to such places as Saint
Louis, Denver, Galesburg, Quincy, Hannibal, and the Twin Cities.
Abernethy uses the all funds raised from such excursions to continue
restoration work on “Silver View”, an ex-CB&Q dome/round-end
observation car that he owns and is in the process of restoring at a
rail storage facility in Iowa. His car, “Silver View”, was built by the
Budd Company in 1947 for the Burlington Vista Dome Twin Cities Zephyr.
It provided first class parlor service, and was the signature car of
one of the most handsome trains ever built. Once Abernethy completes
the “Silver View”, he plans to offer excursions on his car, instead of
having to contract out trips with other car owners. The APRHF Rail
Rangers look forward to being a fixture on his trips, providing
passengers with the First Class service they expect.
Profits from "Zephyr Route" trips go toward the continued restoration of CB&Q "Silver View" (Photo courtesy: Mike Abernethy)
As part of the 2015 Fall Colors “Zephyr Route” Trip, passengers left
Chicago Union Station at 2:15pm on Friday, October 2nd, and headed up
to the Twin Cities on a full-length dome car that was positioned on the
back of the westbound Empire Builder, Amtrak Train #7. Passengers
had the entire day on Saturday, October 3rd, to check out whatever
sites in the Twin Cities that they wanted to see. Many chose to head
over to the Mall of America or walk around the downtown areas of Saint
Paul or Minneapolis. One popular location for tourists to visit is
Minnehaha Falls, located in Minneapolis. The Milwaukee Road would
actually use a glass bottle filled with water from Minnehaha Falls to
“christen” new railroad equipment before it was put in service. On
Sunday, October 4th, 2015, APRHF Rail Rangers joined up with the
passengers on the “Zephyr Route” excursion and provided an interpretive
program for 400 miles of the route between St. Paul Union Depot and
suburban Glenview, Illinois. The weather was perfect and the skies were
clear and blue, providing everyone beautiful views of the Mississippi
River, rolling hills of Western Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Dells, and the
urban corridor between Milwaukee and Chicago. Despite being a few
hours late due to a late departure of the Empire Builder from its
origin in Seattle, passengers had an excellent ride, combined with
excellent food and conversation. Passengers got to listen to the route
highlights provided by the APRHF Rail Rangers and had the chance to
purchase route guide books that explained the route highlights in more
detail than what was shared over the wireless speaker system.
APRHF Rail Rangers Assistant
Chicago Coordinator Kandace Tabern poses with staff from Iowa Pacific
to welcome "Zephyr Route" passengers in St. Paul, MN (Photo by Robert Tabern)
Beautiful view of the Mississippi River could be seen from the dome car between the Twin Cities and La Crosse, WI
(Photo by Robert Tabern)
APRHF Rail Rangers Executive Director Robert Tabern narrates for passengers about the Wisconsin Dells
(Photo by Kandace Tabern)
Passengers enjoy First Class service and food from Iowa Pacific and
First Class narration from APRHF Rail Rangers on "Zephyr Route" trips
(Photo by Robert Tabern)
The “Zephyr Route” trip took place using “Prairie View”, an ex-Great
Northern Dome Car that is currently owned and operated by Iowa Pacific
Holdings. The car was built in 1955 as #1394, and was used on the
Empire Builder between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest. It was
acquired by Amtrak when it took over passenger operations and ran on
various routes as Car #9364. As Superliner equipment became more
popular in the early 1980’s, the dome was used as a parts car by
Amtrak. By May 1993, it was sold as a shell (less trucks) to the
Burlington Northern. It was stored by the BN at a shop in Springfield,
Missouri for about a year before being sold to Holland America
Westours. After putting over $1,000,000 of work into the car, it was
re-named “Deshka” and put into service on the Alaska Railroad line in
1997. In 2003, Westours put all three of their Budd domes up for sale;
they kept this car because it required no couple pocket modifications
for the new Colorado Railcar domes and it has Budd braked trucks (from
under one of the two 1956 Budd built Santa Fe business cars that were
re-trucked with four wheel trucks in 1989). The car was transferred in
late 2004 to a new division called “Alaska Rail Tours” (which is now
out of business). In October 2009, it was sold to the Iowa Pacific and
renamed back to the original “Prairie View”; it is used in various
charters across the country. “Prairie View” was one of five Great Domes
constructed for the Great Northern. It is the sister-dome of “Ocean
View”, the last remaining dome car in Amtrak service; it has been used
in New York and around the Midwest during the fall season over the past
couple of years.
"Zephyr Route" owner Mike
Abernethy, in the vestibule, waves with Assistant Chicago Coordinator
Kandace Tabern on the platform at Glenview, Illinois
(Photo by Robert Tabern)
A view of Iowa Pacific dome car "Prairie View" on the platform of St. Paul Union Depot
(Photo by Kandace Tabern)
There was really no rest for the weary as APRHF Rail Rangers volunteers
headed back up to the Twin Cities the following weekend for a special
steam excursion train that was organized by the “Friends of the
261”. The “Friends of the 261” is also one of the original groups
that agreed to partner with the APRHF Rail Rangers when the group was
organized earlier this year. The trip that was held on Saturday,
October 10th, and ran for more than 100 miles between Minneapolis
Junction, Minnesota and Boylston, Wisconsin on the ex-Great Northern
Hinckley Subdivision.
APRHF Rail Rangers Executive
Director Robert Tabern (left) and Asst. Chicago Coordinator Kandace
Tabern (right) with Milwaukee Road #261 (Photo by Mike Pace)
Milwaukee Road Steam Locomotive #261 passes through Maple Plain, MN (Photo by Mike Pace)
Another drone shot of the Friends of the 261 excursion on Saturday, October 10, 2015
(Photo is Copyright 2015 Teddy Redeker; used with permission)
The focal point of the trip, was of course, Milwaukee Road Steam
Locomotive #261. It was built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO)
in Schenectady, New York in June 1944 in the 4-8-4 configuration. It
was originally operated by the Milwaukee Road when that rail company
was officially known as the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific.
The locomotive, which weighs in at 460,000 pounds, is rated at a
maximum horsepower of 4500 and maximum speed of 100 mph, is coal
fueled. It operated on the Milwaukee Road until retired in 1954, and
was donated to the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay. In
1991, the newly formed "North Star Rail" selected 261 for restoration
for mainline excursions. The 261 was moved from Green Bay to
Minneapolis to the GE shops at Humboldt Yard in September 1992. There,
a full-time staff rebuilt the engine. Work progressed quickly, allowing
for a hydrostatic test in June 1993, a test fire up in July, and the
eventual restoration completion in September. After passing the FRA
inspection on September 14, the engine deadheaded over Wisconsin
Central in time for its first public excursions on September 18–19,
1993. The engine later returned to its new home at the leased
Burlington Northern Minneapolis Junction. Between 1993 and 2008, the
261 went on various excursions across the Midwest and the country. In
May 2008, the engine was deadheaded to Chicago for filming in "Public
Enemies", a movie based on the life of John Dillinger and starring
Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. Though the 261 was built ten years
after Dillinger died, the engine did fit the bill for a steam engine
that could be filmed at Chicago Union Station. The engine's final
excursion before the required Federal Railway Administration's "15 year
inspection" for the 261 was a run in September 2008 on Canadian
Pacific's ex-Milwaukee Road line from Minneapolis to Winona with a
return on BNSF's ex-Burlington line from La Crosse to Minneapolis. The
Friends of the 261 finally were able to purchase the locomotive in May,
2010 for $225,000, keeping it in Minneapolis and returning it to
operation upon its rebuild. On September 29, 2012, 261 was test
fired and ran under her own power once again. In May 2013, 261 ran on
an overnight round trip to Duluth, where she met Soo Line 2719 for the
first time. October 2013 marked the 261’s return to Fall Color
Excursion service.
APRHF Rail Rangers Executive
Director Robert Tabern & Asst. Chicago Coordinator Kandace Tabern
pose in the cab of Milwaukee Road #261 (Photo by Mike Pace)
The fire burns well in the belly of the beast - Milwaukee Road #261 - at Minneapolis Junction, MN (Photo by Brandon Smith)
Travelers who rode on the excursion train between Minneapolis
Junction
and Boylston had their choice between Coach, First Class, and Premium
Class. Premium Class on this trip featured the “Friends of the 261”
Milwaukee Road heritage cars “Cedar Rapids” and “Super Dome #53”.
APRHF Rail Rangers Asst. Chicago
Coordinator Kandace Tabern (left) and Executive Director (right) with
the Milwaukee Road Skytop "Cedar Rapids"
(Photos by: Mike Pace)
From 1935 on, the name Hiawatha symbolized the fastest and best the
Milwaukee Road had to offer. As the original Chicago-Minneapolis
trains grew in popularity, Milwaukee Road built all-new Hiawatha
streamliners to serve Midwestern and Pacific NW destinations. One
of the additions was Skytop Lounges, including “Cedar Rapids”. Designed
by famed industrial designer Brook Stevens, “Cedar Rapids”, and the
nine other Skytop Lounges were built by the Milwaukee Road in 1948 at
their Milwaukee shops. Between 1948 and 1970, the “Cedar Rapids” saw
service on the Twin Cities Hiawatha trains which ran between
Minneapolis and Chicago. Many consider the Skytops to be the most
distinctive cars ever built. Milwaukee Road built the 4 parlor cars in
their own shops (1 drawing room and 24 parlor seats) and had Pullman
Standard build 6 sleepers, each with 8 bedrooms and a lounge. The
observation ends on the Milwaukee built cars are more of a bullet than
the Pullman built cars, with the rear couch about 4 inches
narrower. The “Cedar Rapids” was retired in 1970. It was rebuilt
in 1984 and operated until 1990 as a private passenger car. The car was
acquired by the "Friends of the 261" in 1998 and started service behind
the Milwaukee Road 261 in spring of 1999. It was upgraded and returned
to Amtrak service in 2004 by the crew of the 261. The "Cedar Rapids"
today has 24 rotating reclining chairs in the main section and seating
for an additional 12 in the solarium. It had spent much of late 2014
and early 2015 undergoing further renovations that put new covering on
the seats and new carpeting on the floor of the car.
Milwaukee Road Super Dome #53 (Courtesy: Friends of the 261)
APRHF Rail Rangers volunteers interact with passengers on Milwaukee Road Super Dome #53 (Photo by Mike Pace)
APRHF Rail Ranger volunteers were stationed in the Super Dome car and
provided narration and commentary for passengers on Saturday morning’s
northbound trip. There were 10 “Super Dome” cars built in 1952; they
were the first of the “full domes” and originally seated 68 passengers
upstairs and 28 in a cafe downstairs. Railfans will note that the Super
Domes were the first of the Pullman-Standard domes with curved glass.
Between 1952 and 1961, the Milwaukee Road assigned six of these cars to
the Olympian Hiawatha, which ran between Chicago and the West Coast.
Between 1961 and 1964, these cars ran on “City” trains in conjunction
with the Union Pacific; others saw service on Chicago-Madison, WI short
hauls. The other 4 Super Domes were assigned to the morning and
afternoon Hiawathas which ran between Chicago and the Twin Cities. As
more and more people chose to drive or fly in the 1960’s, railroads
looked at cutting trains and their reducing their fleet. Even though
dome cars provide the best views for passengers, they were very
expensive to operate and maintain. The Super Dome you are traveling in
today requires 16 tons of air conditioning to keep passengers cool. In
1965, the Milwaukee Road sold the dome car you are riding in today to
the Canadian National, which named it “Athabasca”. This car saw service
in Canada on the CN and later VIA until it was retired in 1982. In the
early 1980’s, this car was brought back to the U.S. and refurbished
under a few private owners; it was once again based in Milwaukee. It
was sold to the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad in 1985 and was
used as a business car. In 1995, the C&NW was bought by Union
Pacific who didn’t really want the Super Dome anymore. The following
year, it was bought by the North Carolina Department of Transportation
and was used as a lounge car on Amtrak’s “Piedmont” service. In January
2005, the Friends of the 261 purchased the car off eBay and moved in to
the Twin Cities to begin service on its trains.
Various photos of the APRHF Rail Rangers team on ex-Northern Pacific private car "Stampede Pass"
(Photos by Mike Pace)
A special private rail car that operated on the October 10th excursion
train was dome car “Stampede Pass”; it was purchased in January 2015 by
Paxrail, an organization owned and operated by James and Kim Evenson of
Glenview, Illinois. This dome-sleeper-lounge was built as a dome-coach
in 1954 for the Northern Pacific Railway, and operated on their
flagship train, the North Coast Limited between Chicago and Seattle,
Washington. Today the car has three deluxe bedrooms, a kitchen, lounge
space, and dome seating. Paxrail plans to make the car available for
charters out of Chicago for groups, after it undergoes a major
refurbishment over the next few months. Passengers in the “Stampede
Pass” also got to interact with APRHF Rail Rangers volunteers who roved
throughout the whole train in order to answer questions about the
rare-mileage route.
Various shots of the APRHF Rail Rangers team and Amtrak Engine #184, the Phase IV Heritage Engine
(Photo by Mike Pace)
Another interesting part of the October 10th excursion train was Amtrak
Locomotive #184.Even though the Milwaukee Road steam locomotive does
most of the pulling, an Amtrak engine is added in the consist in order
to provide extra head-end power to all of the private cars on the
train. Amtrak #184 was one of the six locomotives that received a
special paint job for the railroad’s 40th Anniversary celebrations in
2011. It was painted in grey to reflect the “Phase IV” paint job that
was common for Amtrak locomotives during the 1990’s. This engine
debuted on April 13, 2011 and has been seen on various routes all
across the country. It was nice that Amtrak would provide this special
engine for the “Friends of the 261” trip; previous excursions have seen
the Phase I (Engine #156) and Phase II (Engine #66) added to the
consists.
Established in July 2015, the APRHF Rail Rangers program has had a very successful beginning
(Photo by Mike Pace)
If you missed your opportunity to participate in one of these two
exciting excursions that featured APRHF Rail Rangers volunteers, you
still have several chances to interact with the group. On Saturday,
November 7th, 2015, APRHF Rail Ranger volunteers will be doing an
off-the-train outreach event at the Galesburg, Illinois Public Library
at 1:30PM CT. This event is free and open to the public and will
feature a 60-90 minute Power Point Presentation about the APRHF and
APRHF Rail Rangers, as well as some of the interesting landmarks that
you can see on the train between Chicago, Galesburg, and La Plata,
Missouri. The following weekend, on Saturday, November 14th, 2015
and Sunday, November 15th, 2015, APRHF Rail Rangers volunteers will be
staffing a booth at TrainFest 2015 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Make sure
you stop by between 9:00am and 5:00pm and meet some of the people on
the Rail Rangers team and buy some of the Outside the Rails Route
Guides which will be on sale. The APRHF Rail Rangers’ final event of
the year will take place with the “Friends of the 261” at Saint Paul
Union Depot on Saturday, December 12th, 2015. Volunteers will be
on-hand selling children’s activity books and staffing their
steam-powered “North Pole Express” train; there will be multiple
departures with times listed and tickets being sold at www.261.com.
APRHF Rail Rangers hopes to add more partnerships with private car owners in 2016
(Photo by Mike Pace)
Believe it or not, work is already underway when it comes to planning
for APRHF Rail Rangers’ 2016 activity schedule for both on-board
interpretive programs and off-the-train outreach events. Both “Zephyr
Route” and “Friends of the 261” plan to continue working with the
American Passenger Rail Heritage Foundation in 2016. Meanwhile, APRHF
Rail Rangers has meetings planned with other railcar owners during the
“off season” to possibly add them to the growing list of owners seeking
the unique service that APRHF Rail Rangers can provide. If you are a
private railcar owner or know someone who is, and would possibly like a
program to be put on for passengers by our group, you can contact
Executive Director Robert Tabern at robert@rtabern.com or APRHF
President Bob Cox at president@aprhf.org.
APRHF Rail Rangers is looking for possibly two more experienced
volunteers for its 2016 season; if you
or someone you know is interested, they can also be in touch with
either Robert Tabern or Bob Cox. The number of trips a volunteer
gets will depend on the number of trips scheduled with private car
owners.
