Page 78 - 2015 Travel Guide to California

CA.RAILWAY JOURNEYS
VINTAGE YOSEMITE RAILROAD
steam train, right.
Three other popular train routes are oper-
ated by Amtrak. The Capital Corridor runs
from San Jose to Sacramento, crossing the
state’s agricultural Central Valley. The Pacific
Surfliner, a six-hour run that skirts the
Pacific, joins San Luis Obispo and San Diego
(via Santa Barbara and Los Angeles). It offers
bicycle and surfboard racks, as well as free
Wi-Fi. Trips to Yosemite can be arranged via
the San Joaquin line to Merced, where a
waiting luxury bus takes visitors into the
national park.
Excursion Favorites
Until 1930, tourists visiting Mt. Tamal-
pais—the Bay Area’s signature 2,574-foot
peak—could board the Mt. Tamalpais &
Muir Woods Railway: “The Crookedest
Railroad in the World.” Though that line
was sadly dismantled, there are still plenty
of unusual excursions available to the 21st
-
century traveler. These include
Mendocino’s irresistible Skunk Train.
Starting at the coastal town of Fort Bragg,
the Skunk navigates some 30 bridges, tres-
tles and tunnels on its 40-mile journey
between Fort Bragg and Willits. Following
an old redwood delivery route, it’s said to
be one of the “Ten most scenic train rides”
in North America.
Book your tickets early for the popular
Napa Valley Wine Train, with three-hour
round trips in “meticulously restored rail
cars” between Napa and St. Helena in Cal-
ifornia’s wine country. Back on track after
the 2014 Napa Quake, proceeds from wine
sales benefit quake victims. Enjoy a la carte
or gourmet dining, depending on your
class of ticket. Lunch trains run daily, with
winery tours available. For the frequent
76 2015 T R AV E L G U I D E TO C A L I F O R N I A
dinner train schedule, please visit their
website (see sidebar).
Departing from Woodland, the Sacra-
mento RiverTrain features beer, wine, fine
food and live music as it follows the Sacra-
mento River on a three-hour, 32-mile trip.
There are several specialty rides, including
Sunset Dinners, Great Train Robberies (on
Saturdays) and Murder Mysteries. The
same railroad also offers the Zombie Train:
“One part passenger train, one part zombie
killing machine.” Just sayin’.
Another dinner option is the Sierra Rail-
road, one of several rail lines built in the late
19th century to link the Gold Country with the
Central Valley. Today, the excursion “pro-
vides visitors an opportunity to travel on the
historic Sierra Railroad while enjoying a deli-
cious meal, beautiful countryside and a wide
range of entertainment.” Passengers board in
Oakdale, 90 miles east of San Francisco (70
miles south of Sacramento).
Angels Flight Railway in downtown LA,
dating from 1901, is probably the most fun
(and definitely the most funicular) you can
have in Los Angeles for 50 cents.
Second Childhood
Speaking of super-short train rides, a peren-
nial favorite is the Redwood Valley Railway
in Tilden Park, Berkeley. The 12-minute
ride—with hand-built steam locomotives
pulling open-bed flatcars—chugs through
rustic tunnels and around wooded curves,
with (season permitting) panoramic views
of San Francisco Bay. Tickets are $3, a five-
ride ticket only $12. It’s a real family
experience—even dogs are welcome!
» CATCH
A TRAIN!
Historic Revivals
A variety of shorter train rides lace through
the California landscape, recreating (more
or less) a taste of what travel was like for
settlers of the 1800s. Santa Cruz’s Roaring
Camp Railroad offers a Beach Train from
Felton to the Santa Cruz beach, or a steam
train into the Bear Mountain redwood
Amtrak
amtrak.com
Skunk Train
skunktrain.com
Napa Valley Wine Train
winetrain.com
Sacramento RiverTrain
sacramentorivertrain.com
Sierra Railroad: Oakdale
sierrarailroad.com
forests. Departing at 11 every morning
(plus 12:30 on weekends), the Yosemite
Roaring Camp Railroad
roaringcamp.com
Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad boasts a
Angels Flight Railway
angelsflight.com
narrow-gauge reminder of the days when
logs harvested in the Sierras were deliv-
Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad
ered to the fast-growing settlements in the
ymsprr.com
Central Valley. And though it’s “The
Shortest Railway in the World” (just 298
Redwood Valley Railway
redwoodvalleyrailway.com
feet!), a ride up the incline served by the
MICHAEL WARWICK/SHUTTERSTOCK