Redwood Valley Railway

The Redwood Valley Railway is a miniature railroad in Tilden Park near Berkley, California.

The railroad uses 5" scale model live steam locomotives on a 15" narrow gauge track. Rides last approximately 12 minutes. As of December 2007, tickets for adults and children are $2 (children under 2 years old ride free). A five-ride ticket costs $8.

Operation Schedule

The Redwood Valley Railway Operates WEEKENDS (Sat-Sun) from 11-5 year-round AFTER memorial day in June, they operate DAILY 7 days a week from 11-5.

LABOR DAY returns the schedule back to WEEKENDS ONLY (Sat-Sun) 11-5.

pecial Events

The Second Weekend in June is the ANNIVERSARY MEET. (Open to the public Sat-Sun 11-6 for the occasion) MOST of the RVRY's locomotives are under steam, and often visiting locomotives and rolling stock appear for the occasion.

Prices & Other Important Visitor Information

$2.00 is the price for a single ticket (one ticket per person, per ride) $8.00 will purchase FIVE tickets, (The fifth ride is free, a generous 20% discount)

CASH (USD) and Personal Checks are Accepted, NO CREDIT CARDS are accepted to purchase TICKETS.

The RVRY operates when weather permits, heavy rain will cancel operations for the day. Shorter winter days in December will cause operations to cease when the sun sets in late afternoon.

The Redwood Valley also sells memorabilia. Available are blue pinstripe Engineer Hats& T-Shirts in a variety of sizes, with the T-shirts coming in a variety of styles as well.

Also available are Postcards, Sewn Patches, Metal Pins, and a beautiful Poster.

There is also a FULL-COLOR history of the railroad (presented as a booklet, digest size) for $1.00. Inside are numerous photos of the railroad's construction, drawings and specifications for each of the Redwood Valley's steam locomotives, and the story of how Erich Thompsen and a crew of dozens of train-enthusiasts built the Railroad essentially from Scratch over more than fifty years.

Locomotives

* The Number 2- A 0-4-0 Gasoline-Hydraulic locomotive "Juniper"
* The Number 4- A 2-4-2 Columbia "Laurel"
* The Number 5- A 4-4-0 American "Fern"
* The Number 7- A 2-6-2 Prairie "Oak"
* The Number 11- A 4-6-0 Ten-Wheeler "Sequoia"

Former Locomotives and Rolling Stock

The Number 1 "Cricket" a 12" gauge steam locomotive along with a few cars were sold to the Folsom Valley Ry. in Folsom Ca. [http://cencalrails.railfan.net/fvry.html]

Future Projects

The Number 3- A battery-operated locomotive and Parts for a 2-4-4 Forney and a 2-6-0 exist, but remain unassembled indefinitely. Plans for a second caboose and a lavish, scale (down to the furniture, wallpaper, and bar with tiny glasses) business car are in the works.

As of mid-2008 the boiler for the #13, the aforementioned 2-6-0 has been manufactured. Assembly has not yet begun on the #13.

The #9, a brand-new diesel-hydraulic switching locomotive is in the planning and development stages and should look somewhat similar to the temperamental but faithful #2. The #9 will have a diesel engine instead of a gasoline engine, and will be built as a heavier and more powerful two-axle diesel locomotive, similar to <25ton American industrial locomotives like those found on narrow gauge operations around the country.

Rolling Stock

The Redwood Valley maintains a dozen or so wooden gondolas, built similar to those found on 36" narrow-gauge lines in the American West. The gondolas are the mainstay passenger rolling stock for this operation, as they're fully equipped with seating for up to eight adults. The RVRy also owns three stock cars which have been specifically built to carry passengers as well, they are often favorites with the small children, although a full-sized adult can comfortably fit inside. The Non-Revenue equipment includes a boxcar, numerous Maintenance of way four-wheel, two-axle "jimmies", a flat car, tie jimmy, and extra convertible gondolas, which can either haul passengers or satisfy M.O.W. needs.

The RVRY rosters a single flatcar, built as a high school shop project by one of the crew back in the 1970's. This rugged flatcar has seen thousands of uses, and is one of the most versatile cars on the railroad.

Unique among the roster of cars is a coal gondola, once used to carry extra coal for the #4. Coal was used up until the mid-1970's when the #4 was converted to fuel-oil. The Coal gondola, with its higher sides is infrequently used. It currently carries a few dozen metal folding chairs for our annual meet. A favorite with both young and old is the Caboose. Based on a D&RGW 36" gauge prototype, this "short" center cupola caboose has graced the end of most revenue trains for over a decade. Once in the past it carried small children, but due to safety concerns, it was later refurbished with a full 5" scale interior, with scale furniture, seating and even a pot-belly stove.

-Please visit [www.redwoodvalleyrailway.com] for more information.