Milwaukee Road #261 is leaving the Hinckley Sub at Boylston and will soon be in downtown Superior, Wisconsin, as it makes its way towards the Lake Superior Railroad Museum. Photo by Jeff Terry
“Friends of the 261,” in cooperation with Amtrak, BNSF Railway and Lake Superior Railroad Museum, will operate the Milwaukee Road 4-8-4 No. 261 pulling an excursion from Minneapolis to Duluth, Minnesota.
On Saturday, June 4th, the excursion train will depart Minneapolis Jct. at 9:00 a.m.* and travel BNSF Railway’s ex-Great Northern Hinckley Subdivision. Expected arrival in at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth is at 3:00 p.m.
* Minneapolis Jct is located at 401 Harrison St NE, Mpls, MN 55413, plenty of parking is available on site
On Sunday, June 5th, Milwaukee Road 261 will depart Duluth at 12:00 noon with arrival in Minneapolis at 5:00 p.m.
The trip will utilize BNSF’s ex-Great Northern Railway Hinckley Subdivision, which saw its last regular passenger service in 1985, when Amtrak’s “North Star” made its last run. The line boasts several large steel trestles, including the tall bridge over the Kettle River at Sandstone, Minn.
The destination for the trip will be the Duluth’s Lake Superior Railroad Museum, home of several locomotive displays, including Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway 2-8-8-4 “Yellowstone” No. 227. The huge locomotive once pulled trains of iron ore from the Mesabi and Vermilion Iron Ranges to the yards at Proctor and Two Harbors, Minn. Every 20 minutes the 227 “runs” as its massive wheels turn, the running lights switch on, and the sound of the engine in service is piped out through hidden speakers.
Have fun in the summer sun along the shores of Lake Superior, visit the popular Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center, adjacent to the famous Aerial Lift Bridge, which displays shipwreck relics, has full-sized replica pilothouse and ship cabins, hardhat diving gear, photographs, charts, marine engines, and numerous ship models. The lift bridge is raised to allow boats to enter and leave the Duluth harbor, and visitors can view the boats up close as the pass through the entryway.
Click here for ticket information.
