If you listen close enough — and believe — you may hear the train whistle slowly grow louder and louder.
The Polar Express, a Lewis County attraction since 2012, returned to the tracks Saturday.
Chehalis-Centralia Railroad and Museum President Mary Kay Nelson said Thursday that 51 volunteers — including conductors, stewards and freighthoppers — spent 4,000 hours preparing for the upcoming Christmas season.
The approximately hour-long ride whisks passengers northward from Chehalis Station to the North Pole, where the train picks up a very special passenger. Along the route, riders are served hot cocoa and cookies, sing classic singalongs, and listen to the classic tale of a child’s adventure aboard the Polar Express.
Upon returning to the Chehalis Station, Santa Claus is on hand to take photos with passengers of all ages.
The Polar Express returns after a flood damaged the train tracks in January 2022 and the lapse of the insurance coverage needed to resume passenger excursions. Last year, the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad and Museum operated “Santa’s Grinchy Train.” The holiday event was held on a stationary train rather than a moving one.
While the Grinch is absent from this year’s train, there’s still bad news for hopeful passengers who haven’t gotten a ticket: The 6,000 available seats for the 2023 season are sold out.
The attraction brings riders from far and wide, with about 80% of passengers traveling 25 miles or further to the ride.
Nelson said the 2024 schedule for specialty train rides will be released in January.
Rides have resumed on the railroad thanks to a multi-year agreement between the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad and Museum and Goose Lake Railway. Goose Lake is a short-line railroad that runs 55 miles from Lakeview, Oregon, to Alturas, California, and then 50 miles from there to Perez, California. As part of the agreement, Goose Lake will assume responsibility for running tourist excursion trains and for training and hiring crew members, while the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad will continue to maintain the tracks, signals, rolling stock and engines. The Chehalis-Centralia Railroad will also continue managing the events, schedule, tickets, gift shop and activities.
Learn more at https://steamtrainride.com/.
