In last week's travel post, I wrote about how my daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren and us went to Osceola Wisconsin for a fun time. After enjoying a picnic lunch and swimming at Cascade Falls, it was time to do what we came to Osceola for: go on a REAL TRAIN RIDE!
My grandsons are crazy about trains and have taken kiddie train rides, but they have never been on a real train before, so I knew they'd be pretty excited about this adventure!
The Osceola Railway has a historic train station. Here is part of the group waiting for me as I stand in line to get our boarding passes. Do they look excited or what?
There are several different train rides you can take: a pizza train, a dessert ice cream train, a fall colors train, and even a beer and wine train! We decided on the Marine Excursion because we just enjoyed a picnic lunch at the local park.
The kids were so excited to each get their own boarding pass!
You can sit in just about any car you want. There are many different styles and time periods of the cars, as you will see later. We chose an air-conditioned one, which was only air conditioned in the very beginning. It got VERY HOT. Thankfully, you are allowed to get up and walk around and even go outside and stand on the caboose so you can get some air.
There are all different styles of seats. We picked seats that faced each other and that could recline.
Once everyone is seated, a knowledgeable host shares stories of the trains, the railroad, and its history. He also lets you know all the rules of what you can and cannot do on the train.
The train has many different cars from different time periods.
It's fun to walk around the grounds either before or after your train ride to check out all the other old trains. There is also a small museum inside the station, but unfortunately with four little kids we didn't have time to look at it.
You can sit on either side of the train for both sides have great views of the St.Croix River, and one side gives you awesome views of the rock cliffs.
The baby seemed to handle the train ride very well.
The views of the St. Croix Valley were beautiful!
The view from the caboose. It was so refreshing to stand in the back of train and feel the wind.
The train ride is 90 minutes long. Halfway through they have to move the train engine to the other side to take you back. During this time they serve delicious brownies!
Shortly after the train started, we decided to check out the other cars. The kids had so much fun walking between the cars; it was just like in the movies! Even though I have ridden in modern trains, I never had to walk between cars where they joined together on the outside, so it was pretty exciting for me too.
The dining cars were all empty because we were on the Marine Excursion which didn't include dining. They do have a snack stand car where you can purchase drinks and food.
This car is the pizza train. The pizza actually looked pretty good too!
Look at these old train seats! I think we chose the most comfy seats on the train.
Once you reach the engine, there is a host there who explains how the train was used to get and deliver the mail. There are old photos, antiques, all showing how the mail was gathered and sorted.
Here is the host, ready and waiting to answer any questions about the train.
It was fascinating hearing about how the mail clerks caught the pouches hanging along the track.
Here's what they used to catch the mail pouch. It seems like it would be such a hard thing to do; I wonder if they ever missed?
While the train was still moving, the mail would be sorted and put in new pouches to be tossed out. I can't even imagine sorting mail on a train, it was hard enough to just stand up! But I suppose after a while one gets use to balancing on a moving train.
The kids really enjoyed being able to walk around and look out open cars.
If you missed any gorgeous views on the outgoing trip, you have a second chance to see them on the way back to the station!
For more information on the train ride visit the Osceola and St. Croix Valley Website.
Have A Great Day! Amy
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