Rare mileage trip offered to Steamtown

Rare mileage trip offered to Steamtown

August 9, 2007
HARRISBURG, Pa. - A limited number of tickets aboard restored Juniata Terminal lounge car "Warrior Ridge" are available for a private car train that will operate from Philadelphia to Steamtown in Scranton, Pa., on Nov. 2, returning on Nov. 5. The Harrisburg Chapter NRHS is acting as ticket agent for the trip. Motive power for the train will be Juniata Terminal's ex-Pennsylvania Railroad E8s 5711 and 5809 in restored PRR livery.

The train will be a "rare mileage" trip, operating over freight-only lines. On Nov. 2 it will operate to Steamtown via the former Lehigh & Hudson River Railroad line through Martins Creek, Pa., on trackage that has never seen regular passenger service. On Nov. 3, the special will lay over at Steamtown.

On Nov. 4 the train will depart Scranton for Olean, N.Y., via Binghamton, N.Y. The train will use former Erie Lackawanna trackage across New York's Southern Tier, including a portion of the former Erie main line from Hornell, N.Y., to Olean that was reopened by Western New York & Pennsylvania in 2004-2005.

On Monday, Nov. 5, the train will depart Olean over all an all ex-Pennsylvania Railroad routing over 2.2 percent grade on Keating Summit, returning via Harrisburg to
Philadelphia.

Cost of the trip is $3,100 for seating aboard the Warrior Ridge. For details, send an email to [email protected] and a flyer will be emailed to you with details.

With permission from the post's author, Mr. Bennett Levin:

http://www.railroad.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=42503

Well this thread started with a hostile headline posted by an inexperienced wannabe who was less than successful in his "ticketmaster" caper, is far beyond what one could resonably expect from a serious railfan. Therefore let me set the record straight.

1. Space on the train is NOT being sold by me for $5000.00+!

2. I am only responsible for the sale of space on one car; the WARRIOR RIDGE. Space on that car is being sold for $3000.00 per seat and includes the following:

A. A donation to the Harrisburg NRHS chapter for their services in handling the reservations for me.

B. Admission to Steamtown

C. Admission to the Electric City Trolley Museum in Scranton

D. A Pass to ride the Laurel Line Trolley from Scranton to Montage as well as tour of the restoration facilities at Montage.

E. An almost 200 page illustrated Route Guide

F. An embroidered WARRIOR RIDGE CLUB denim shirt

G. An especially embroidered hat.

F. A geclee' fine art print of a specially commissioned painting by the noted railroad illustrator John Murphy.

G. A donation of one portable DVD player for each person onboard the Warrior Ridge made to the United States Army Hospital command in Iraq together with a library of DVD's for soldiers recovering in field hospitals in Iraq and have nothing to occupy their time except look at blank walls in their wards.

H. Three days travel over some of the most spectacular rare mileage in the East.

I. Meals onboard the Warrior Ridge for three days ,together with open beverage service from departure to arrival. Plenty of munchies between meals.

J. An off the train farewell dinner at a restaurant in Olean NY on Sunday night. (Not a burger at Checkers)

My son Eric and I do not operate these trip to "MAKE MONEY" or for the gratification of the "Rich and Famous". We do it because there are people who enjoy traveling and appreciate the journey and we do it because we believe that there are people who might not be able to afford the experience but still enjoy the chase and the photo opportunities and do so in a responsible manner.

On other trips we have attached a coach or two when it was a prudent decision to do so. That decision did not work in this case because of the overall economics. The finances of organizing these trips are very risky and the economic model does not leave margin for error.

Eric and I have also tried to tie every excursion with the E units tied to benefit some charity. In this case the Lackawanna Railfest is designed to extend the normal SNHS season by one week with the additional revenue from that weekend benefiting the site's interpretative efforts. On other trips Eric and I have carried families staying at Ronald McDonald houses for free as part of that effort as well as like ventures. The E units do not operate unless there is a public benefit that derives from their operation.

Other car owners are charging more, some are at the 5K level but they are providing sleeping space and additional meals. There are no Amtrak certified coaches just laying around and to operate this train cars must be positioned from all over the country with the resulrant costs to get those cars to and from Philadelphia.

You all are well aware of the dent in your pocket when you fill up you eco-friendly car.......just think of the cost to fuel our iron horses. Not only will the engines run for three days on the road crossing summits of 4 watersheds, but the engines will run on the day the train is parked in Steamtown to provide HEP for the cars carrying passengers who are sleeping onboard.

We try to be sensitive to all segments of the railfan community except the lunatic fringe which is well represented by the person who started this thread. We hope you enjoy the ride, but we also hope that the vast numbers of you who cannot make the trip enjoy watching and photographing the train. we both enjoy seeing the results of your efforts.

All we ask is that you act responsibly, stay off of railroad property, drive safely, and allow everyone the chance to get the one great Kodachome moment.

There are some like the initiator of this thread who would curse the darkness rather than light a candle and those same people should engaged their brain before they open their months or let their fingers "do the walking" and let the rest of us know how ill informed they really are.

Ask the wounded members of our Armed Forces (and their family members) who traveled for free from Washington, D.C to Philadelphia earlier this year to watch the Army-Navy Game what they think about the Levin family.

No press, no self important VIP's, just honored guests treated like the heroes they are.

Since DonPevsner thinks he has a better way and can do it better and for less money, I say he should put his money where his mouth is and go for it.

Let me know when I can pick up my $30 ticket.

Like i said in a another forum, I'd be willing to pay $3,000 dollars of money I DON"T have, but can get, to ride a rare mileage, once in a lifetime trip from Hoboken to Allentown using the Washington Secondary and Lehigh Lines..

Now, I don't know if Mr. Levin will ever pull something like that^^ off, but if he does I would ride it as money wouldn't be an issue for me in that case. Part of that trip I propose is also very rare trackage as well and I would hand him a check in a minute if i ever got the opportunity to ride it!!

Thanks for making these trips possible Bennett and i'm sorry that I won't be able to ride the Steamtown trip!!

Messers Levin, pleased be reassured that I like to get information about an operation (Juniata Terminal) based in Pennsylvania from a Pennsylvania forum, so I didn't even see the controversial post on some other forum.

Well in keeping with the Rare Mileage theme, my eye caught this just now..

http://www.nps.gov/ner/customcf/apps/ev ... 72421.html