trains

Tom May and Chris Kennedy are scheduled to perform in Carson City, NV at The Brewery Arts Center performance hall, 511 West King St., Friday, July 25 at 7:30P p.m.

Tom May is a folksinger, songwriter and author who has been touring, performing, and recording for over forty years. He is also the host/producer of the radio show, “River City Folk,” heard on dozens of radio stations weekly since 1985 and on XM Satellite Radio throughout the country.

Hijinks on the Comstock with a twist comes to Carson City this summer with "Where is the Gold?" a Wild West melodrama and murder mystery dinner set aboard a vintage Virginia and Truckee Railroad steam engine train, July 18 and August 15.

"Where is the Gold?" produced by the Brewery Arts Center will entertain with plenty of Comstock legend and lore intertwined with spellbinding whodunit mystery. The audience will be invited to help the cast of characters solve the mystery of who stole the gold, and who is responsible for the death of Mr. Big.

Many celebrations are scheduled statewide in the month of July. These Nevada 150 events help celebrate all things Nevada and bring awareness to the state’s 150th Anniversary of Statehood. The following events are held July 1 through July 12.

With all the flavorings of the Old West, the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City will showcase several of its trains for the July 4 weekend.

It's living history on the rails when steam locomotives V&T No. 25 and the famous Inyo will operate along with the historic, self-propelled McKeen motor car Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Rides will be available behind the 25 and on the McKeen car every 45 minutes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

It is full steam ahead aboard Nevada's premiere window seat into the Wild West with the 2014 season of the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad taking to the rails beginning Memorial Day weekend.

Steam train rides from Carson City to the 1860s boom-era mining town of Virginia City will begin May 24 and extend weekends through Oct. 19. Friday diesel train tours will begin June 20.
 

Many events are scheduled throughout the Silver State in the month of May. These Nevada 150 events help celebrate all things Nevada and bring awareness to the state’s 150th Anniversary of Statehood. The following are events held between May 2 and May 15.

To commemorate National Train Day the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City will operate and offer rides on May 10 aboard Virginia & Truckee Railway's McKeen motor car No. 22.

The car entered service for the V&T on May 9, 1910, and was retired in 1945. No. 22 is the only restored and operable McKeen motor car in the world. In 2012, the Secretary of the Interior granted the No. 22 National Historic Landmark status, which recognizes the McKeen motor car's significance to United States history.

Mothers will be the star passengers Sunday, May 11 on a special edition train ride from Nevada's capital, Carson City to the 1860s boom-era mining town of Virginia City.

Tickets are on sale now for a window seat into Nevada's Old West aboard the historic Virginia and Truckee Railroad. The ride features storytelling, history and lore, shopping, a long stem rose for mom, and brunch opportunities in Virginia City.

Saturday, I attended a funeral in a somewhat cheerful mood. It was a celebration of the life of Ralph Denny, Sr., and he would have wanted it upbeat.

Over 350 people filled Carson City’s First Christian Church’s sanctuary and foyer. Ralph was not a celebrity or public figure, and few such folks were there – just the heart and soul of our local communities in abundance.
He was a fine man with such a great and joyous impact over 50 years on so many folks that most came in the same mood as me: sad to see Ralph gone, but feeling so much richer for knowing him, and wanting to celebrate him.

Tickets are selling fast but there are still some left on Nevada Northern Railway's award-winning Polar Express in Ely. This magical ride, licensed by Warner Bros., follows both the book and movie; and features a vintage diesel locomotive pulling heated passenger train cars to the North Pole.

Including Friday, there are there are 13 remaining Polar Express rides through Dec. 28; except Dec. 24 and 25 when the railroad is closed. Polar Express holiday trains in Carson City have been sold out for several weeks.

Today is the last railroad run with Santa Claus at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City.

The historic and picturesque V&T Railway steam locomotive No. 25 pulls the Santa Train, departing from Carson City’s Wabuska Depot at the corner of Fairview Drive and Carson Street from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. All seats are $3 and children 3 and younger are free. Tickets are available at the depot.

Santa Claus makes room for lots of children on his express runs at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, 14 and 15.

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 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. All seats are $3 and children 3 and younger are free. Tickets are available at the depot on days the train operates.

It’s a proven hot ticket to catch a ride from Carson City to the North Pole. For the third year, The Polar Express train aboard the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad has sold out. More than 16,000 passengers secured tickets on the Christmas season-flavored, children's story-inspired holiday passenger train.

Even with the addition of 18 more trains representing 6,500 seats over last year’s 10,000-plus capacity, a 66 percent increase, the train’s popularity continues to grow, V&T officials note.

With the holiday season just weeks away, THE POLAR EXPRESS train is cannonballing down the fast track, with nearly all tickets aboard the historic Virginia and Truckee Railroad sold out.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of Oct. 23-30.

A national workshop that trains people to assist families living in poverty in becoming self-supporting will be hosted by Capital City Circles Tuesday-Friday, Oct. 22-25 at Western Nevada College in Carson City.

The National Circles Campaign Hands-On Training workshop will include education for coordinators and coaches from around the country. They will meet in small training groups, and there will be a poverty simulation workshop on Wednesday, Oct. 23.

The Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City will offer a special run of the famous V&T Steam Locomotive No. 25 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 12-13.

Normally operated only on summer holiday weekends and for Santa Train, the historic and picturesque locomotive will pull the train, giving visitors a rare opportunity to ride the rails and photograph the equipment in fall splendor.

The Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City will offer a special run of the famous V&T Steam Locomotive No. 25 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 12 and 13. Normally operated only on summer holiday weekends and for Santa Train, the historic and picturesque locomotive will pull the train, giving visitors a rare opportunity to ride the rails and photograph the equipment in fall splendor.

V&T Railway's Candy Duncan is this week's guest on It's Your City. Candy discusses the train from Carson City to Virginia City that has hosted more than 10,000 rides this season. She also discusses the popular Polar Express trains set to fire up during the holiday season. Candy is joined by a special guest from the North Pole. For tickets go to www.vtrailway.com.

Enjoy a wondrous evening under the stars with our friends from Great Basin National Park as they host the Star Train at Nevada Northern Railway, Saturday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m.

There will be a trivia contest on board with prizes for those with their thinking caps on. Passengers will be let off the train in order to gaze through telescopes at the night sky, guided by the Dark Rangers of Great Basin National Park. This is a great train ride that the whole family can enjoy.

Take part in a special evening of historic trains, spirits (beer, wine), music, and special treats for adults 21 years of age and older to help local cancer patients and their caregivers.

The non-profit foundation, Empowered Lives through the Cancer Journey, housed at the Sierra Nevada Cancer Center, is hosting this adults-only fundraising event – an evening of Halloween fun and gaiety. The event is scheduled for October 19, 2013 at 5 p.m., at the V&T Railroad, F Street Station in Virginia City.

Returning with more rides and seat options for its third season after two consecutive years of sold-out tours, tickets to the Carson City Polar Express aboard the historic Virginia and Truckee Railroad are on sale now for the 2013 holiday season.

With just 30 trains in the U.S. that travel to the North Pole, the Polar Express aboard the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad has captured the hearts, minds and imaginations of children, their parents and grandparents making the train tour into a holiday tradition for Carson City area families.

Date night takes a trip back in time Saturdays on the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad “Toast of the Canyon” route. Wine and appetizers are served aboard the round trip historic steam engine excursion through the Carson River Canyon, Sept. 7 and Oct. 5.

Out of an abundance of caution, the trains will not run at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City for Labor Day weekend due to unhealthful air quality.

UPDATE: Out of an abundance of caution, the steam trains will not run at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City for Labor Day weekend due to unhealthful air quality, museum officials announced Thursday.

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Climb aboard and take a 30-minute train ride back in time this holiday weekend in Carson City, where the labor of the day was cast in hot iron grit and the Old West churned and turned the wheels of locomotive steam engines along the Virginia and Truckee Railroad line.

UPDATE: Out of an abundance of caution, the trains will not run at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City for Labor Day weekend due to unhealthful air quality.

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Family fun is just around the bend as Labor Day approaches in the Reno-Tahoe territory.

The State Historic Preservation Office, Nevada Site Stewardship Program, is pleased to announce a Stewardship Workshop to be held at the Churchill County Museum on Sept. 7 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. This workshop is free of charge and is open to all who are interested in volunteering to help protect Nevada’s heritage.

The museum is located at 1050 South Maine Street, Fallon.

Nevada residents receive 25 percent off a round trip train fare on the historic V&T Railroad in August. The discount is good for adult, child and senior/veteran fares for the Sunday 10 a.m. steam engine departures. (Twenty-five percent discount with online ticket purchases by using the code: NEVADA).

On track with summer vacation, the historic V&T Railroad now offers adventure-seeking children 12 and under the chance to climb aboard and ride a diesel train for free every Friday through summer.

Wagons Ho! Just imagine an SUV trek for the entire family that traces the same route used by 8,000 early pioneers in more than 1,500 covered wagons from 1849 to 1852 that brought a flood of immigrants to California, most of whom had the Gold Rush fever.

The overland emigrant trip would take five to six months crossing mountains, deserts, rivers, and some of the most hostile country in the world.