STEUBEN COUNTY, Ind. — Tickets have been released for the Fall Color Trains, scheduled to operate in Northeast Indiana and Southeast Michigan this October. Nickel Plate Road steam locomotive No. 765 of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society will serve as the main motive power for these all-day, round-trip excursions on the Indiana Northeastern Railroad under the Indiana Rail Experience banner.
“Our company [Indiana Northeastern] has spent the last three decades reinvesting in the line and developing industry in the region, and we’re looking forward to welcoming passengers to enjoy it this fall,” said Andrew Hershman, the railroad’s marketing and sales manager.
October 7 and 8 will see No. 765 lead the Indiana Fall Color Train from Pleasant Lake, Ind., to Hillsdale, Mich., and return. On Oct. 14 and 15, the Michigan Fall Color Train will depart Hillsdale to Angola, Ind. Due to limited turning facilities at the southern end of the line, the Oct. 14-15 excursions will operate with the 1944-built 2-8-4 in one direction and a historic diesel locomotive in the other, according to the Indiana Rail Experience website. Accommodations will feature vintage passenger cars, first-class tickets, a private car, and a layover in historic downtowns Hillsdale and Angola.
The Indiana Rail Experience, a partnership between FWRHS and Indiana Northeastern since 2022, has seen an extended 2023 schedule of 30-plus operating days with both steam- and diesel-powered excursions. According to the society, a series of Christmas trains are planned in November and December.
Visit the Indiana Rail Experience website for more information and to purchase tickets.
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