Special Features: All Aboard! For a Tweetsie Railroad review

Posted at 1:32 PM EDT (1732 GMT)

Jun. 13th, 2006 -- In this review I will be taking you to a place that harkens back to a simpler time in America’s history. The time is the 1800’s and the place is the Wild West.

No super highways were built. No airplanes streaked across the sky at hundreds of miles-per-hour. These were days when the only mode of transportation other than horse-drawn carriages was the steam locomotive.

Many towns could not afford or find professional police, so if they were lucky they might have a local sheriff to come to their aide. The towns were rough and tumble with an anything goes attitude.

This sets the tone and mood for our exploration of the day: Tweetsie Railroad located in Blowing Rock, NC.

I last visited the park about 30 years ago (I was around age 5). A day-trip to the park was much overdue and after a short drive up from Charlotte, NC (2 ½ hours), I was ready to explore the park, this time as adult.

Nearly fifty years ago a retired small gauge, coal-fired steam engine (nick-named Tweetsie for the melodic sound it’s whistle made) found a new home in the mountains of North Carolina in the beautiful town of Blowing Rock. For those unfamiliar with the term “small gauge railroad”, it refers to a track that it is more narrow and trains that travel on that track that are themselves smaller as well. Narrow gauge lines are built in areas where a normal full sized train could never maneuver.

Number 12 (Tweetsie) started it’s life in 1917 being built by Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia. Tweetsie served the East Tennessee & Western North Carolina Railroad until 1950.

Tweetsie is not the only engine the park owns. They also own Engine 190 (Yukon Queen) built in 1943 also by Baldwin Locomotive Works.

The coal-fired steam engines are rarities today in an age when most operators have switched to diesel powered engines. The smell of a coal-fired engine is unmistakable. It makes me think of old cigar stores and times gone by.

But Tweetsie Railroad is much more than just a train ride. Built on a mountain ridge the park has a unique beauty all it’s own.

The park features three to four (depending on how you look at it) areas of the park.

After visiting the Wild West themed ticket booths you arrive in Main Street.

Main Street is your loading area for the train ride up the mountain. We’ll just hop aboard and start our adventure on the rails.

We get the “all aboard!” call and we are off.

Up the mountain our engine chugs and throws huge stacks of smoke up and over the cars. Writers note: Sit towards the back of the train if you want to avoid being surrounded by smoke for the first few minutes of the ride as all the cars are open with no windows.

All seems fine on our way to the Frontier Office, but wait something is amiss here. The engine is slowing down! Now I see, this train is being robbed!

Bandits jump from and onto the train and engage in a quick scene getting the riders involved as they prowl the isles of the train asking for “donations”.

But our savior is here! Out comes the local sheriff and she is not at all happy to see the scene that is unfolding.

She quickly puts the bad guys on the run and our train continues on it’s journey into the wilderness of the Wild West.

Fort Boone soon appears and things look like they could quickly get out of hand again with the military fighting the natives of this wild frontier.

Thankfully our passengers are spared and we are off again, this time with nothing to interrupt our travels through these beautiful rustic lands.

At last we see civilization and pull into the station where we started our adventure 30 minutes prior.

We head into town to see what this Wild West town has to offer.

Shops and restaurants line Main Street. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the park has very reasonable prices for food and merchandise in their shops, a plus for any family on a budget.

Friendly faces can be found in every shop and as we walk along through the park. If we didn’t know better, we would think we were in Santa Claus, Indiana (Holiday World)!

Up ahead is Tweetsie Junction featuring the Tweetsie Palace Saloon (live show), the Pavilion Theater (another live show) as well as a few craftsmen (a blacksmith and leather shop). The Feed & Seed Restaurant is also available in this area of the park.

Tweetsie Junction also features a bus stop to Miner’s Mountain (for those not wishing to ride the chair lift).

Up the hill we are reminded that this park is located in the mountains and in spots can be quite steep for walkers or for anyone in a wheelchair.

We catch the chair lift and are off to the top of Miner’s Mountain.

After our relaxing ride to the top of the mountain, upon leaving the station we discover there is an option to climb a few stairs that lead to the roof of the station for a beautiful 360 degree view of the mountain.

Heading back downstairs I was reminded of a Robb Alvey European trip report as I walked past a children’s play area that actually features two human-powered rides (among other children’s rides)! While small in scope compared to their European counterparts, these two rides add to the eclectic feel of this little park.

It's time we explore this area of the park themed around a miner’s expedition.

Next up we come to the Mouse Mine Train Station. Hmmm…maybe this is the Miner in Miner Mountain.

The ride much like the park is a mystery to experience for oneself.

We board a junior sized train (without lap bars or any type of restraint for the open air, no roof cars).

After a minute-long travel around the top of the mountain we see a tunnel up ahead. The train slows to a stop and suddenly this junior train ride turns into a dark ride!

With the train stopped, a show featuring mice and other animatronic creatures begins. This part of the ride totally took me by surprise as I was not expecting a dark ride to be included!

After a minute long show our train starts up and we are off again. We take a short ride completing the circle around the mountain and come back to the station where we began our journey.

As we leave the Mouse Mine ride behind we head further up the mountain.

On the left are two children’s rides – F-80s (small jets) and a small boat ride. Also in this area is the Miner’s Mountain Theater that features live shows.

For adventurers that are feeling lucky, gold panning and gem mining are offered. Who knows? We may start the next gold rush right here in Tweetsie Railroad!

For those seeking the thrills, Tweetsie Twister (scrambler ride) is available for your riding pleasure.

Next to the Tweetsie Twister is the bus stop for a return ride down the mountain via bus if you don’t want to brave the chair lift.

A restaurant, restrooms, ice cream shop and company store are all located in this section of the park as well.

The Deer Park is the final stop in this area of the park and offers a petting zoo atmosphere for those wanting to get up close and personal with some local wildlife.

After we take the chair lift down the mountain we explore the Country Fair section of the park, located just up the hill from the chair lift station.

Located in the Country Fair section are several of your standard flat rides that you would find at a small amusement park or local county fair. A Ferris wheel, plane ride (for children), tilt-a-whirl, junior carousel and finally the Turnpike Cruisers (a guided car ride). This guided car ride however was different from any I had seen as it seemed to have been built in-house. Instead of a steel rail in the middle of the road to guide the car, the car travels along in a wooden trench, with wood rails on either side of the car to guide the car along the path.

For those wanting to get their exercise for the day, the park offers a walking trail in this area. The ¼ mile walking trail will take you back to the top of Miner’s Mountain.

Country Fair is the final section of the park.

While Tweetsie Railroad may not be a thrill seekers paradise (they do not even feature one rollercoaster) the park offers a unique look back at the past when the biggest excitement for many was just to hear the whistle of a steam locomotive.

Tweetsie Railroad is a great park for families. They offer reasonable admission, food and souvenir prices.

Tweetsie Railroad celebrates it’s 50th season starting this summer. While Walt Disney was making history in Southern California, history was about to be made in the mountains of North Carolina. Disneyland only opened one year prior to Tweetsie Railroad. Tweetsie Railroad would become North Carolina’s first theme park.

While Disneyland went on to become one of the biggest parks of it’s day, Tweetsie Railroad in many ways did not change that much over the years and therein lies much of it’s charm.

While many parks become bigger and bigger, Tweetsie still keeps chugging along just the same.

I found Tweetsie Railroad to be a refreshing change from many of the parks I have visited over the last decade. A park full of friendly faces, a unique family-friendly atmosphere and a beautiful mountain setting in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains.

Tweetsie Railroad has survived in a day and age where many smaller parks have not.

Happy Birthday Tweetsie Railroad. We hope to see you coming around the bend for many years to come.

For more photos of the park please Visit ThrillNetwork's database.

For more information on the park please visit: Tweetsie Railroad.

Special thanks from the writer to ThrillNetwork member Dukeis#1 for his help on this story and expertise in the field of small gauge steam engines.