The first week of October 2022 found my wife and I heading north on
Amtrak train # 52, the AutoTrain, from Sanford, FL to Lorton, VA (see
earlier TrainWeb report at http://trainweb.org/vrt/Strasburg2022/).
We then spent several nights at the beautiful Amish View Inn in
Bird-in-Hand, PA and during this time rode the nearby Strasburg
Railroad and toured the Amish countryside via a minibus tour offered by
The Amish Village, a nicely recreated group of Amish houses and
buildings typically found in an Amish community. After that we
set our eyes on a longer steam trip over the Reading & Blue
Mountain Railroad from North Reading to Jim Thorpe, PA and return.
Reading 4-8-4 T-1 Northern locomotive 2102 backed down to
its 17 car consist at the Reading Outer Station on the north side of
Reading, PA and soon a trainload of passengers were on the way
northward at 9:00am. Christine and I were seated in car number 6,
former Santa Fe full dome # 511 now painted in the Illinois Central
chocolate and orange livery favored by its prior owner Iowa
Pacific. The dome car was well worth the extra fare as it
provided a great view of beautiful scenery during the 3 hour northbound
trip and 2 1/2 hour return. After its Santa Fe years this dome
car was sold to the Auto-Train Corporation and later operated for
Holland America-Westours in Alaska and later on the Rio Grande Scenic
in Colorado.
Reading 2102 prepares to lead the excursion train out of North Reading
Reading & Northern full dome "Scenic View" wears Illinois Central colors but originally served Santa Fe
The scenery featured woods, farms, and small communities with a couple
of mountains appearing as we neared Port Clinton. The beautiful
vistas hid the mechanical woes that were plaguing the 2102 and shortly
after departing Port Clinton the train backed up and cut off the ailing
steam engine. A pair of diesels were on standby and soon coupled
up to our train to continue the excursion. The autumn leaves,
rolling terrain, and flowing rivers made for a pleasant ride and by
12:07pm we reached Jim Thorpe, a charming little town whose streets
were filled with tourists attending a street festival. There were
ample food booths as well as arts and crafts to explore in the neat
little downtown area. The brick railway station, now a visitor
center, was attractive and contained numerous displays worth browsing.
Crossing the Schuylkill River
Inside full dome "Scenic View"
One of the scenic highlights of the trip is this lake south of Jim Thorpe
Part of our layover was filled with a ride on the hourly Valley Train
which ran about 7 miles north from Jim Thorpe into the Lehigh Gorge
State Park. SD40-2 # 3059 led the 11car train which had a caboose
and a GP40 engine on the rear. Upon departing from Jim Thorpe the
train turned northward at 1:08 at the junction where two legs of a
large wye crossed the Lehigh River. The train followed the river
and soon numerous whitewater rafters could be seen floating down the
sparkling river. Mountains framed the beautiful scene and
passengers were glued to the windows taking in the sights.
All too soon we reached the end of the short journey
at 1:21pm and 2 minutes later we reversed directions with the GP 40
leading. Seventeen minutes later we traversed the northern leg of
the wye and rejoined the line from North Reading one minute
later. Soon we passed parked rail diesel cars 9168 and 9160 which
occasionally handle RBM&N excursions. At 1:40 the Valley
Train pulled into Jim Thorpe and prepared for its next trip.
The classic depot at Jim Thorpe, PA offers a great place to wait before the return trip
The return trip to North Reading prepares for boarding at Jim Thorpe
The return trip to Reading Outer Station departed at 3:41pm and we met
an incoming Valley Train two minutes later. At 3:49 we passed Jim
Thorpe Jct where Valley Trains bear off to the north. Nice views
of mountains, lakes, and the river followed and we crossed Hometown
High Bridge at 4:19. The 981 foot long bridge, built in 1931, is
161 feet tall and offers a great view of the nearby mountains and the
valley below. The autumn leaves covering the mountains added to
the splendor of the crossing followed by passage through Tamaqua Tunnel.
A huge S-curve and passage by a Christmas tree farm
bracketed the community of New Ringgold. At 5:30pm our diesel-led
train stopped briefly at Port Clinton to discharge a few
passengers. After rolling through West Hamburg and West Leesport
the excursion reached the end of its run back at the Reading Outer
Station at 6:08pm. This was a very enjoyable excursion with
beautiful views of the mountains, lakes, and colorful autumn
leaves. The RBM&N (also referred to as Reading &
Northern) also offers trips between Pittston (near Wilkes-Barre) to Jim
Thorpe on select dates. Visit https://www.rbmnrr-passenger.com/ for information about these excursions or call the Reading, Blue Mountain & Northern passenger department at (610)562-2102.
