An American Legacy
In the early 1880s, lumbermen C.R. Johnson, Calvin Stewart, and James Hunter joined together to expand timber operations in Mendocino County. By 1885 the Fort Bragg Railroad was formed to make transporting lumber easier. This would form the foundation of what would eventually become the California Western Railroad, more commonly known as The Skunk.
The train played a vital role during this time in transporting families and workers who set up the various logging camps along the route and in doing so, became an entirely different type of line. It played an important part not only in the area's industrial life, but also in its social and cultural activities. No other logging railroad in America has made the deep impression on American life that was created by the line from Fort Bragg – first by the natural beauty of its route and later, by the distinctiveness of its equipment.
- The Skunk Train helps to preserve the history of the trains used to move redwoods along the Noyo River out to Fort Bragg, CA where the wood would be transferred to ships.
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- This line has a rich history and there are several places to take advantage of museums and natural sites in the local area to include the Glass Beach.
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- Some of the stock is already well on its way to being a "ghost rail."
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- The "skunk" moniker was established due to the smell of the engine and the heat generating system.
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- It is always a pleasure to see the old depots, stepping back in time.
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- The views were spectacular and the Conductor, docent, really had a good grasp of the history and brought it to life as we traveled the line.
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A Train Called Skunk
The nickname “Skunk” originated in 1925, when motorcars were introduced (today sometimes referred to as railbuses or railcruisers). These single unit, self-propelled motorcars had gasoline-powered engines for power and pot-bellied stoves burning crude oil to keep the passengers warm.
The combination of the fumes created a very pungent odor, and the old timers living along the line said these motorcars were like skunks, “You could smell them before you could see them.” Although the smell is now much reduced, we still like to think of ourselves as that little Skunk running through the redwoods.
- Remnants from a time long past still sit in place and are easily captured as you travel the route.
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- "Ranch" became part of the line because, with the running of the line, lumberjacks and the industry, providing food and the whole logistics of the operation was less expensive bring the supporting industry to the valley.
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- Since this is a tight valley, it is never far from some sign of a time long past.
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- Scenic as any railroad much like the train out of Santa Cruz, CA.
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- Signs of a past time can be seen both high and low. I could imagine the talking wire running along side the train route.
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- This "Old Timer" was describing to this "Whipper-Snapper" the reason the smoke stack was missing on the steam engine in a photo on the display. When he finished his explanation the rest of the story was, he was on the train when they hit a low hanging, snow laden limb.
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- There are trips that can be done from either Willits (inland) or Fort Bragg (ocean)
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- Mount Rubidoux, Ca. Do you see the signs of a rail? We have all seen the ore cars and mining equipment left behind as we explore forgotten sites. This is an example of repurposed ore rail (my opinion not confirmed). Frank Miller, the man behind the Mission Inn in Riverside, CA; was an avid collector of things. Be it art, shipyard anchor chains or ore cart rail. He used these "treasures" to decorate just as much as to save money and build within his surroundings.
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SANTA CRUZ BEACH TRAIN https://www.roaringcamp.com/excursions/ ... ch-train-2
DURATION | 3 hrs
Departing from the Santa Cruz Mountains, travel through Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, down the scenic San Lorenzo River Gorge, across a 1909 steel truss bridge and through an 1875 tunnel before arriving at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Reverse roundtrips departing from the beach in Santa Cruz to Roaring Camp and back may be purchased from the conductor on the train departing from Santa Cruz.
The Santa Cruz Big Trees & Pacific Railway operates passenger and freight services on one of the oldest and most historic lines in California. When the route opened in 1875 it carried lumber as well as picnickers and tourists to the Big Trees and Santa Cruz. Today’s Beach Train passengers can start their roundtrip journeys from either Roaring Camp in Felton or from the beach in Santa Cruz.
Departs from both the beach in Santa Cruz and Roaring Camp. See departure times for more information.
Please note that the 4:15 p.m. train leaving Santa Cruz is one way only. There is no return train to the beach.
- Pick up the train in Santa Cruz and travel inland to the "basin of the big trees."
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- Check for status of railway. The area was effected by the CZU Lightning Complex wildfires in August 2020.
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- At one time, great scenery.
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- I cannot vouch for the way it looks now after the devastating fires of 2020.
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- Perhaps William T. Jeter's greatest achievement would be his living memorials, the giant redwoods at the Henry B. Cowell Redwoods State Park at Felton, California. Earlier he had participated in the successful battle to purchase the “Big Basin” area north of Santa Cruz for public use and then later to procure the magnificent Felton big trees for Santa Cruz County as a public park. He would learn on his deathbed that his efforts had been successful and that the 1000+ year-old coast redwood grove had passed into public ownership. On 12 May 1934, a flag-draped bronze tablet attached to one of the giants was unveiled as memorial to “William T. Jeter, 1850-1930, whose unselfish efforts made possible the ownership of the Santa Cruz County Big Trees Park.” The “Jeter Tree” is still standing at the end of the 2nd millenium, as it was at the end of the first —- and will forever be a source of inspiration and pride to all in the family who visit.
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- An example of a steam engine used for some other chore besides moving rail cars sits off to the side at the Felton stop. Steam engines were used for many chores along many of the forgotten railways.
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If you can't make it out to distant and remote regions in the Southwest, you can definitely find many examples of old railway machines and cars at the Southern California Railway Museum: https://socalrailway.org/explore/
- https://www.trains.com/ctr/railroads/fallen-flags/remembering-the-pacific-electric-railway/
Pacific Electric (PE) was America’s largest interurban electric railway system, blanketing the Los Angeles region with more than 1,000 miles of rail lines. The origins of the Red Car system date back to 1895 and the opening of the region’s first electric interurban line connecting Los Angeles with Pasadena. In 1901, real estate and utility tycoon Henry Huntington formed the Pacific Electric, sparking an intense period of interurban expansion and a battle with the Southern Pacific (SP) railroad for control of the region’s electric railways. Huntington sold his interests in the PE to the SP in 1910, and the Great Merger of 1911 consolidated almost all of the region’s interurbans under SP control. In exchange for his interest in the PE, Huntington gained complete control of Los Angeles’ local streetcar system, the Los Angeles Railway. https://socalrailway.org/collections/pacific-electric/ - Redline Map.jpg (453.9 KiB) Viewed 384 times
