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Tourist
& Excursions
Cass
Scenic Railroad State Park
Cass Scenic Railroad is a state park operated by the Division
of Natural Resources. Excursions began running over this
former logging railroad in June 1963. Cass operates its
steam-powered excursion trains with their
collection of Shay locomotives. Thirteen original
“company” houses have been refurbished and are available
for reservation year-round. Trains operate from May through
October. For information and reservations, call 1-800-CALL-WVA.
The
Potomac Eagle
This train operates out of Romney on the South Branch Valley
Railroad. It passes historic farms that date to the early
1700s as it follows the South Branch of the Potomac River into
the narrow river valley known as “The Trough.” In this
very scenic section of the river, passengers are treated to
glimpses of American bald eagles. The train is pulled by
diesel locomotives and features open-window coaches,
air-conditioned first-class cars and open-air sightseer car.
Trains operate on weekends from May through September, with
daily operation during three weeks in October. For information
and reservations, call 1-800-642-1997 or
visit
www.potomaceagle.info.
West
Virginia Central Railroad
The state purchased this 132-mile rail line from CSXT in
September 1997. The Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad
(D&GV) is the operator. The D&GV has two excursion
operations on this line. The “New Tygart Flyer” is
an excursion train operating between Belington, Elkins, and
High Falls. It is pulled by
diesel locomotives and features climate-controlled streamlined passenger cars. The second excursion is a
self-propelled railcar known as the “Cheat Mountain Salamander.” It
passes through scenic mountain wilderness on its two-35-mile round
trips between Cheat Bridge, High Falls and the “Big Cut,” the highest
mainline railroad in the eastern United States. For
information and reservations, call 1-877-MTN-RAIL or
you may visit their web site at
http://www.mountainrail.com/
for additional information.
Durbin
& Greenbrier Valley Railroad
The "Durbin Rocket" is a steam-powered excursion train
that departs from the completely restored
former C&O depot in Durbin. It follows the Greenbrier
River on its 90-minute run. Passengers may choose an open
observation car or a wooden caboose for their trip. “The
Rocket” runs April through December. For information, call 1-877-MTN-RAIL
or you may visit their web site at
http://www.mountainrail.com/
for additional information.
New
River Excursions
In cooperation with Amtrak, the Collis P. Huntington Railroad
Historical Society operates a series of special fall foliage
trips through the scenic New River Gorge, “the Grand Canyon
of the East.” These trains feature a mix of Amtrak and
Amtrak-approved private equipment. The daylong trips operate
out of Huntington in October. Other excursions offered
throughout the year include trips to The Greenbrier, Lewisburg
and Pence Springs. For information and reservations, call 606-325-8800
or visit their web site at
http://www.newrivertrain.com/
for additional information..
Mountain
State "New River Gorge" Mystery Train Tours
Utilizing
Amtrak equipment and privately-owned passenger cars, these
tours provide year-round passenger train service to a wide
variety of events, activities and destinations within West
Virginia’s New River Gorge National River Recreation Area
and beyond. For information and reservations, call 304-529-6412
or 1-800-CALL-WVA or you may visit their web site at
http://www.themysterytrain.com/
for
additional information.
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