2015 El Dorado Western Railroad timetable

Here's the 2015 spring and summer timetable for train rides offered on the El Dorado Western Railroad. The railway is completely operated with volunteer labor, men and women who give their time as a public service to citizens and visitors to El Dorado County. The line runs on the historic Southern Pacific Placerville Branch between Shingle Springs and Diamond Springs. We'll see you on the train!

2014-2015 El Dorado Western Railroad timetable

Here's the 2014-2015 fall, winter and spring timetable for train rides offered on the El Dorado Western Railroad. The railway is completely operated with volunteer labor, men and women who give their time as a public service to citizens and visitors to El Dorado County. The line runs on the historic Southern Pacific Placerville Branch between Shingle Springs and Diamond Springs. We'll see you on the train!

2014 El Dorado Western Railroad timetable

Here's the 2014 spring, summer and fall timetable for train rides offered on the El Dorado Western Railroad. The railway is completely operated with volunteer labor, men and women who give their time as a public service to citizens and visitors to El Dorado County. The line runs on the historic Southern Pacific Placerville Branch between Shingle Springs and Diamond Springs. We'll see you on the train!

http://museum.edcgov.us/railroad-schedule

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The CPLT caboose is almost ready

The Camino, Placerville and Lake Tahoe caboose is really shaping up. All the iron work is going onto the body. The steps are major achievement by our woodworkers. Roof catwalks, interior ladder, end wall grab irons and end deck handrails are next. 

Note ladder guards in place. We need an  additional retainer to pull guard in tight. The lettering will be white. 

Now we're ready to build a complete train on the track, couple it to a steam locomotive and run east to El Dorado, just 9 miles from this location at Shingle Springs.

Progress on the CPLT caboose

The Camino, Placerville and Lake Tahoe Railroad caboose project team has been very busy, making use of the dry fall months. The project is in the final completion phase, leading to raising the car body up on the wheel trucks. The major projects have included the installation of roof flashing, installation of the metal roof and installing the cupola windows and wall siding.

A caboose does not make a good boat, the cupola is mostly windows and the cupola wall is single sided. This lends itself to being a challenge to weather seal around the base of the cupola and windows. A quality roofing job was completed by Mott Roofing, with great detail made to flashing the cupola walls to main roof, and insuring a good drip edge around the car body.

The metal roofing is an exact match to the original metal roofing. Completing the roofing ahead of the rains was quite a relief. Other projects have included finishing the freight door hardware, and weather stripping the freight doors using re-purposed cloth fire hose. New drip guards were also fabricated to prevent water dripping down behind the freight doors.

Other metal work included making up new exterior wall retaining straps, roof catwalk supports, freight door latches, and cupola window retaining hooks. All existing metalwork was carefully stripped, repaired, and painted leading to installation. Current work is underway to install new wood/steel bolsters in the wheel trucks, finish installation of exterior grab irons, and develop a lifting plan to raise the car body.

All wood team, metal team, support team, and external professionals are thanked for their untiring contribution to bring El Dorado County's only in county built and operated caboose back to operational status.

Winter timetable for the El Dorado Western Railroad

The railroad offers great family fun for all ages. Please turn out and support the "oldest railroad line west of the Mississippi River" and ride a piece of history. Effective November 3, 2013 to March 2, 2014, the El Dorado Western Railroad will operate on its winter timetable. We'll see you on the train!

Journal boxes on CPLT caboose trucks

Those old trucks in the Camino, Placerville and Lake Tahoe Caboose No. 2 are coming along: