Steam Railroads near Frankenmuth, Mich.?

[RobertInOntario]

Another family and my family were thinking of visiting Frankenmuth, Mich. this October, probably in late October. The other family have been there before & really enjoyed the Christmas atmosphere. FYI, we would be driving there from Toronto, Ont. We'd head west and cross into the U.S. at Sarnia/Port Huron.

I'm also interested because I know there are at least two steam railways near Frankenmuth -- one in Owosso and the other is the Huckleberry Railroad. I believe the Pere Marquette Berkshire is being repaired at the moment but that they may be running another steam engine. The Huckleberry Railroad seems to be operating steam as well.

If we do visit Frankenmuth for a weekend or so in late-October, I was wondering if anyone here could advise us which railway would be the better one to visit? Time will be a factor as well as costs & convenience. The only "real" rail-fans on the trip will be my youngest son & myself! while the others will only be somewhat interested. If possible, we'd like to ride on a steam railway as opposed to diesel.

I've googled a couple sites --
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/huckleberry">http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/huckleberry</a><!-- m -->
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://michigansteamtrain.com/sri/schedule/">http://michigansteamtrain.com/sri/schedule/</a><!-- m -->

At the moment, I'm thinking that the Huckleberry RR might be the better option. Thanks in advance for any feedback or suggestions!

Cheers,

[BR60103]

Rob:
The Huckleberry is your most certain bet; it runs a regular, XMT, schedule (or did when we were there). <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/huckleberry">http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/huckleberry</a><!-- m -->
Owosso is more for specials. <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://michigansteamtrain.com/sri/">http://michigansteamtrain.com/sri/</a><!-- m -->
At the north end of Frankenmuth (near I75) is the Junction Valley railroad <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.jvrailroad.com/">http://www.jvrailroad.com/</a><!-- m --> -- miniature with a long ride, picnic areas, and a hobby shop.
The Huckleberry is located at one of those historic villages with lots of non-train stuff.

I just checked the site and re-read your post. There's less train activity in the fall but HR do some Hallowe'en stuff.

[RobertInOntario]

Rob:
The Huckleberry is your most certain bet; it runs a regular, XMT, schedule (or did when we were there). <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/huckleberry">http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/huckleberry</a><!-- m -->
Owosso is more for specials. <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://michigansteamtrain.com/sri/">http://michigansteamtrain.com/sri/</a><!-- m -->
At the north end of Frankenmuth (near I75) is the Junction Valley railroad <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.jvrailroad.com/">http://www.jvrailroad.com/</a><!-- m --> -- miniature with a long ride, picnic areas, and a hobby shop.
The Huckleberry is located at one of those historic villages with lots of non-train stuff.

I just checked the site and re-read your post. There's less train activity in the fall but HR do some Hallowe'en stuff.

Thanks, David. That's pretty much what I was thinking -- that HR was my best bet, especially with its Hallowe'en trips. Thanks also for the tip re the Junction Valley Railroad & Hobby Shop at the north end of Frankenmuth! My sons really enjoy those, even more than the full-scale ones, so it will be great to take that in as well. I'll visit their site shortly.

Not 100% sure if this trip will happen or not but it's good to find out what's there!

[BR60103]

Just a warning: there's a place called Birch Run which is a large shopping centre of outlet stores. IIRC it's at the southern interchange to Frankenmuth from I75.

[RobertInOntario]

Just a warning: there's a place called Birch Run which is a large shopping centre of outlet stores. IIRC it's at the southern interchange to Frankenmuth from I75.

Thanks for the heads-up, David. I'll be sure to avoid that area. :-)