trains

Don’t be scared. I know you’re going to take one look at this list and get overwhelmed with all the things going on in the area. I’ve written an overview of some of the bigger things here, but take a look below for a complete list of everything that the Carson City area offers.

SATURDAY:

• California Free Fishing Day
• Revolution Dog Sports Rat-tacular Barn Hunt and BattleBorn Bonanza Jack Russell Trials at Fuji Park
• NAA Exhibit by artist Deborah Foster at the Carson Visitor Center (8am-5pm)
• Third and Curry Farmers Market; Live Music (8:30am-1pm)

Labor Day Weekend Highlights

Carson City:

• Treasure hunt on Saturday at the Carson City Historical Society Rummage and Yard Sale at the Forman-Roberts House Museum at 1207 N. Carson St. Free tours of the museum will also be available during the 9am-4pm event.
• Take a ride on the Virginia and Truckee #25 Steam Engine at the Nevada State Train Museum Friday through Monday.

Top experts in aquatic invasive species from throughout the West will be at Lake Tahoe this week attending the the Western Regional Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species conference.

Planes, trains, and automobiles await! The Nevada State Railroad Museum features rides on the McKeen Motor Car this weekend. Don’t miss out on a trip to Virginia City via the Virginia and Truckee Steam Train: locals get a discount on Sundays when they book online. Ormsby Post Acute Care is hosting a classic car show for their residents, so if you have an automobile that fits the bill, please head on over. The Minden-Tahoe Airport is the home to Aviation Roundup Air Show this weekend. You won’t want to miss the USAF Thunderbird Flight Team. Also on some fierce wheels this Sunday are the Carson Victory Rollers. Our roller derby team is hosting a scrimmage and collecting donations of school supplies at the Community Center.

SUNDAY: Last Day of Jazz and Beyond

• Back to School at Carson Hot Springs (Free 17 and younger admission per paid adult; outdoor pools only; 7am-10pm)
• Quicksilver Agility Club’s Dog Agility Trials at Fuji Park

Hold on to your hats, Carson City, summer isn’t ready to quit us just yet. An aviation air show at the Minden Airport, the coin show and fair at the Nevada State Museum, and a fishing derby for the kids at Little Washoe Lake are only the tip of the iceberg. The Pavilion at Mills Park is where you’ll find the annual Carson High Football Boosters Fundraising BBQ. The Quicksilver Dog Agility Trials are always fun to watch, and they’ll be at Fuji Park all weekend. Carson Lanes has family fun indoors and out all day long during their Bowling Blast-off.

Jimmie Ray’s Black Train – A Tribute to Johnny and June, Trains, America and some friends – A Musical Journey Back in Time – The Man, The Music, The Memories - Is coming to the Piper’s Opera House for the third year; this time as part of a fund raiser for the Kiwanis Club. Theater.

This show is designed to more than a concert but an experience. In 2003 the world has lost both American roots legends, Johnny Cash and the beloved June Carter Cash.

I apologize, Carson City. You have some decisions to make. There is quite a bit going on whether you want something family friendly, adults only, indoors, outdoors, or a combination of it all. The weekly Farmers Market at Third and Curry St. is always a good way to start the weekend. Yummy food, a bounce house for the kids, and beautiful flowers are hard to argue with. Keep reading for enough fun to make your head spin!

SATURDAY:

• Back to School at Carson Hot Springs (Free 17 and younger admission per paid adult; outdoor pools only; 7am-10pm)
• 21st Annual Silver Dollar Car Classic at Mills Park (8am-4pm show and shine, music, and vendors; Registration 8am-11am; Pancake Breakfast 8am-10:30am; Judging until 4pm)

The Carson and Mills Park Railroad is a two-foot (narrow gauge) railroad that the whole family will enjoy. Ride behind a replica of a diesel switcher engine and choose an open gondola or a covered passenger car. The 1-1/4 mile trip takes you through beautiful Mills Park and lasts approximately 15 minutes. Everyone is invited, especially children of all ages.

Northern Nevada’s new manufacturing growth requires employees with more skills in applied technologies. Western Nevada College offers a new credential this fall that will help area residents meet their job goals. Courses beginning Monday, August 31, can lead to a Manufacturing Technician 1 credential.

Plan a date night on a wine train or enjoy the steam-rolling melodrama “Run to the Roundhouse Nellie” with a barbecue this summer aboard the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad, Nevada’s window seat into the 1860s Comstock-era.

The weekend isn’t over yet. Enjoy breakfast at the Elk’s Club. They serve up pancakes and more every first Sunday. Genoa is a great place to spend a leisurely afternoon. Sweet Sippin Sunday is like a mini wine walk, only this month the small businesses are serving up rum-based cocktails. Help keep Tahoe blue: the annual beach clean-up after the Fourth of July needs all the help it can get.

SUNDAY:

• First Sunday Breakfast at the Elks Club: 515 N Nevada (bar opens 7am; 8:30am-11am, $7)
• Fourth of July Specials at Empire Ranch Golf Course ($34 includes 18 holes, cart, and lunch)

Happy birthday, America! Today we celebrate our independence, and what better way than with a carnival. You might as well stay at Mills Park all day, the fireworks display starts when it gets dark. Tune into Magic 95.5FM and you’ll hear the choreographed music to go along with the oohs and aaahs. Where ever you choose to watch fireworks, please be safe. There are thousands of visitors in the Northern Nevada area this weekend, and law enforcement will be out in full force.

SATURDAY: Independence Day

• Free Swim for Active and Retired Military at the Carson Hot Springs (7am-10pm; outdoor pools only)
• Freedom 5K Fun Run/Walk and Concert in the Park with the Carson Valley Pops Orchestra at Heritage Park, Gardnerville (5K, $20 per person and family rates, free for active/retired military; register 7am-7:45am; Run/Walk begins 8am, Patriotic costumes encouraged; 8am Carson Valley Lions Club Pancake Breakfast $7; Free Kids Obstacle Course 8am; Free Concert begins 11:30am)

Over the next few days you will be inundated with options: where to go, what to see. Fourth of July weekend in Northern Nevada is a great time. Kick it off today with the Nevada State Train Museum; a parade of trains and unlimited ride passes. The carnival at Mills Park opens every day at noon and has rides, games, funnel cake and cotton candy; you’ll find a $5 off coupon at the RSVP booth. Head up to Kings Beach tonight and catch an early-bird fireworks display. Go here for a list all of your Independence Day options.

FRIDAY:

• Fourth of July Specials at Empire Ranch Golf Course ($34 includes 18 holes, cart, and lunch)
• Fourth of July Weekend Celebration at the Nevada State Railroad Museum (Parade of trains 9am-10am; Train Rides 10am-4pm; Unlimited Ride wristband $15, $5 kids)

Fourth of July celebrations abound in the Carson City area. Fireworks can be found in Carson City, Reno, Sparks, and at both north and south shore of Lake Tahoe. There are several daytime events going on as well, so grab the kids, friends, and family and have a great Independence Day weekend!

Friday, July 3:
July Third Fireworks and Beach Party at the North Tahoe Events Center on Kings Beach, North Lake Tahoe (4pm-10pm, free; vendors, contests, games, music and more; Fireworks 9:30pm; FRIDAY)

Saturday, July 4:

Carson City:

The U.S. Marine Corps will be in South Lake Tahoe on a 13-day training mission July 27 through Aug. 8. The Marine Light Attack Helicopter Training Squadron 303 is based out of Camp Pendleton, Calif. Squadron 303 trains all of the future pilots for the Marine Corps Cobra and Huey fleets.

The training will include day and night flights of multiple aircraft between Lake Tahoe Airport, Minden-Tahoe Airport and Carson City Airport.

Looking good at 40 is not a problem for the Virginia & Truckee Railroad, based in Virginia City. Dubbed “Queen of the Short Lines,” the V&T’s history goes back to 1938 when a 17-year-old Robert C. Gray was a passenger on the last V&T excursion to Virginia City from Carson City, Nev.

Celebrate Memorial Day Weekend in historic Virginia City with the annual Celebration of Heroes Parade Saturday, May 23 at noon. Taking place along C Street, the parade honors the memory of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.

When the whistle blows Memorial Day weekend it will be full steam ahead this summer aboard the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad, Nevada's authentic train ride through the 1860s Comstock-era Wild West.

The Nevada Northern Railway, McGill Depot in McGill, Nev., has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the Nevada Historic Preservation Office announced Monday. The National Register is the nation’s official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation.

The Nevada Northern Railway built the McGill Depot in 1910 in to serve as the passenger and freight hub for the town of McGill during its days as a prominent center of Nevada’s copper mining economy. Built in the Craftsman style, the McGill Depot is nestled against the Duck Creek Mountains in eastern Nevada.

With a rhythmic choo-choo the Virginia and Truckee Railroad will come alive this Mother’s Day weekend as the vintage diesel engines offers a chance to take a trip back to the Wild West.

A Tahoe Talks Brown Bag Lunch Series recently launched offers a monthly forum for people to discuss and learn more about ways to strengthen communities, make towns safer for bicyclists and pedestrians, and help protect Lake Tahoe’s amazing natural resources.

Lunches are held monthly at ≈. They cover topics ranging from transportation to the economy and the environment, and offer a comfortable, low-key setting for people to discuss and learn about those issues. The events are free to the public.

The final weekend to take a train ride with Santa at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City has arrived. Today and Sunday the train will operate from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Advance tickets are on sale to allow priority boarding on a scheduled day. The historic and picturesque V&T Railway steam locomotive No. 25 pulls Santa Train, departing Carson City’s Wabuska Depot at the corner of Fairview Drive and Carson Street.

Hear the whistle blowing this afternoon? Beginning this Saturday, Santa Claus is spending the next two weekends at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

New for 2014, advance tickets are on sale to allow priority boarding on a scheduled day. The historic and picturesque V&T Railway steam locomotive No. 25 pulls Santa Train, departing Carson City’s Wabuska Depot at the corner of Fairview Drive and Carson Street.

Come by 1520 E Telegraph Street in Carson City and see the vintage trains. Enjoy remembering items from Christmas past. Items displayed in the store-front style era window are from the 1940s to the 1980s.

This window display was handmade by Alwin Weiler and his son Troy. Items reminiscent of movies like, "A Christmas Story," "Charlie Brown Christmas," and "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation." The window front will be displayed from now until January 10, 2015.

Santa Claus is spending two weekends at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City aboard the train Dec. 13-14, 20-21 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. New for 2014, advance tickets are on sale to allow priority boarding on a scheduled day.

Only 660 tickets remain for the family favorite trip to the North Pole aboard the 2014 Polar Express train, Nov. 20 to Dec. 22, 2014. Select coach seats aboard the all-ages holiday train into a winter wonderland and the world of imagination.

Because of the demand, more trips and passenger cars were added to the month-long event, which has consistently sold out since debuting four years ago and is expected to draw record numbers again this holiday season. Last year more than 16,000 passengers rode the train.

Santa Claus is spending two weekends at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City aboard the train Dec. 13-14, 20-21 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Family time is around the bend in Carson City as Labor Day weekend arrives. The 1905 Steam Locomotive No. 25 highlights the Labor Day weekend celebration at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City. The historic Virginia and Truckee train will carry passengers on 30-minute trips departing every 45 minutes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday through Monday, Aug. 30 through Sept. 1.

The museum’s Jacobsen Interpretive Center will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tickets for the 2014 season of the Polar Express aboard the historic Virginia and Truckee Railroad are now on sale. The perennial holiday favorite all-ages train ride from the frosty Northern Nevada landscape to the North Pole, will run from Nov. 20 to Dec. 22. The hour long V&T diesel train ride includes a keepsake silver bell, hot chocolate and cookies, entertainment and a reading of The Polar Express.

Students of Stephanie Fitch, of Dayton, Nev., a teacher at Dayton High School in Dayton, will be getting some valuable lessons this coming school year in learning the Holocaust as a result of their teacher having completed top-notch training this summer from educators of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Fitch was one of more than 200 participants who attended the 18th annual Arthur and Rochelle Belfer National Conference for Educators, an invitation-only three-day workshop for teachers hosted by the Museum in mid-July.