The Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum will be running Pumpkin Trains every Saturday in October at the junction of four former railroads in North Judson.
A diorama of the Erie, Chesapeake & Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York Central Railroads is on display in the admission-free museum, along with one of the largest collections of working railroad signals, a restored WWII Pullman Troop Car, and all types of rolling stock, engines, and memorabilia of a by-gone era.
Check the website for departure times and prices for Pumpkin Trains. Tickets are available at www.hoosiervalley.org or by calling the depot on Saturdays at 574-896-3950. It is advised to book advance as many of the trains sell out.
Trains leave the depot and take passengers on a leisurely journey before returning to the museum grounds.
Diesel Pumpkin Trains are 10-mile, round trip excursions to the Kankakee River, lasting approximately 45 minutes. Steam Pumpkin Trains take approximately 25 minutes and travel approximately 1.4 miles to the park before returning. All trains depart from the depot area and drop off passengers at the Pumpkin Patch on the museum grounds.
The Twilight Pumpkin Trains begin with an hour-long Not-So-Scary, Scary Animal Show, put on by Silly Safaris, at 4:15 p.m., Central Time, all four Saturdays in October. With a variety of animals and expert handlers, this experience is for all ages. Then the diesel train pulls away from the depot area at 5:30 p.m., Central Time, for a unique excursion through the Indiana autumn countryside as the sun is setting.
The Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum is an all-volunteer, non-profit educational organization dedicated to the preservation of railroad history in northwest Indiana.