Redwood Valley Railway

At this time the Redwood Valley Railway would like to extend our concern and sympathy to those who are affected in the areas in which the fires are affecting homes and businesses. It is also with great sadness that we find that our dear friends at the Swanton Pacific Railroad in Davenport Ca. have lost structures to the fire. A few of us have volunteered there over the years and have had the pleasure of operating there. We can only hope that one day we will again see this wonderful place come back to its former glory.

AT THE BOTTOM OF THE HILL Our July 20, 2020, post about the train wreck in Back to the Future III shows a sequence of photos of the model of Sierra Railroad #...3 that was built for the movie. This photo shows what was left of the model after the plunge. Here’s the story of its creation: Ed Verreaux, an art director working on the film, contacted me for help finding plans for Sierra Railroad #3 to aid them in the construction of the models (yes, I briefly worked on BTTFIII). They were going to build scale models of #3 and the time machine version, plus a full-sized time machine version. At that time, there was also talk of building part of #3 on a sound stage for stunt work with the actors. Those scenes were actually done on location, using the real locomotive. The Rogers Locomotive Works erection drawings for #3 no longer existed. The only plans that were available in 1989 were ones Gary Caviglia drew for the Narrow Gauge and Short Line Gazette magazine, and a set of measurements done by Arbour Models for the HO-scale kit they made of the locomotive in the 1980s. Those measurements were provided to me by Master Creations, a company that bought the assets of Arbour Models when it went out of business. The starting point for the model locomotive was three pairs of existing 15-inch gauge driving wheels for a live steam locomotive. Sierra #3 has 56-inch drivers. So the diameter of the 15-inch gauge wheels, which is 14 inches, representing 56-inch drivers, established the scale of the locomotive. I'm a writer, not a mathematician, but 14 goes into 56 an even 4 times, so that would make the model 1/4 scale. Right? The model of the time machine version didn’t need to roll, so it didn’t need real wheels. Between the fireball and the fall, the three pairs of drivers from the wrecked version were the only things that were salvageable. They were later used to build 2-6-2 locomotive #7 at the Redwood Valley Railway live steam tourist line in Berkeley, California’s Tilden Park.

Good Morning! Today we would like to show a few more pictures updating the work we have done in our preparation for reopening. The retaining walls around the p...latform were over 40 years old and in need of repair. Here are some photos of the new openings to the platform. They are wider and more accessible, this will help us move families on and off the train. We hope to see you all soon and thank you for your patience. See more

Good Morning! Tilden Park Steam Train would like to wish all a happy Fathers Day. While we are still waiting for approval from the park to open we have been ha...rd at work improving the track and cleaning up the right of way. These pictures are from a track project we recently finished. We appreciated your patience and hope to see you soon! See more

Good Morning. Today would have been the Redwood Valley Railway’s 68th anniversary meet. While we will not be holding an event this year, here are some photos from years past. We hope to see you all soon!

Good Morning! Today’s video is a collection of images from Erich Thomsen’s 100th birthday celebration. We hope you enjoy!

Good Morning! Today’s video is a look at Mt. Rainier Railroad and Logging Museum. Unfortunately, due to the the shelter in place in Washington State, they have had to to suspend their operations. We hope this beautiful railroad resumes operations in the future and continues the rich history of steam in the Northwest.

Good Morning! Today we have a link to 13 virtual train rides from around the world. We hope you enjoy!

Happy Train Day!

Good Morning, today we bring you a look at the Nevada State Railroad museum. This video was taken at last years 4th of July celebration. We hope you enjoy. https://youtu.be/FSOV0SGyfHI

Good Morning! Today’s video is a look at The Lumberjack Steam Train in Wisconsin. We hope you enjoy.