A few weeks before Christmas it becomes the Polar Express.  A few weeks before Halloween it operates as a ghost train.  On some weekends, train robbers appear on board.  These are all some of the roles played by the train at the Nevada Northern Railway in Ely.  I had a wonderful time riding the train last week.  The trip took about two hours.  The air was dry and the breeze was cool and it was one of the most relaxed mornings I’ve had in years!

The train departs the station most mornings at 9:30 a.m., but the engineer waited on some stragglers to board before taking the ride up a mountainside (I was the last guy to buy a ticket that morning!)  I also got the senior discount, even though I explained I wasn’t quite yet a senior citizen.  Older folks pay 29 dollars for the ride.  Younger adults pay 35 dollars.

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When the train returns to the station, you can tour the shop.  It’s included in your ticket price and you can see the work going on to restore and repair old cars and engines.  Once done in the shop, you can walk back to the museum.  It’s also included in the original ticket price.  Half a block from visitor parking is a delightful restaurant with metal tiles for a ceiling.  I had my lunch there.

There are snacks and drinks available on the train.  You can ride inside an old passenger car or in an open observation car.

I also found the staff to be very friendly.  It appears it’s also a local trait.  Wherever I went in town I was greeted with smiles.

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