It's The End for the Maui Sugar Cane Train

Why the music? You've got nat sound to work with. 

The doc will have very little music. This was made for the tourists. We are trying to get Henry Kapono to do the voice over. He did the music for one of the Christmas videos on the forum we did. It was about "Toys and Trains". He's a very nice guy and he took his family on the train the last run. Don

Very sorry to hear that it is closing.  I got to ride it back in June 1991 on my honeymoon.  Our room in the hotel in Kaanapali faced inland and I saw the train from the window.  I took some long distance photos of the train.  My wife was amused by my reaction (but not surprised).

Stuart

We live right up the hill from where you stayed. Kaanapali Hillside. We will miss the little whistle. I spent a lot of time down at the engine house. Don

Don

Wow!

Got to be glad for the time you had and I know you're going to miss it 

It's great you got to share it with all of us

Mark

Sorry to hear the line is finally closing. I actually really liked the video.   I love the flowers on the cars too.  Too bad some of that effort didn't go into track work though, that ride looked a bit rough.   

Having spent time around 15" gauge steamers and smaller prototype engines,  the sound of this engine's whistle,  the single piston air pump,  and the general mechanical noises all just have the right feel to me.  Sorry I was never able to get there in person.   

What's the story on that tender design?  Is that was is referred to as a turtle tender?

Really glad l got to ride this several years ago.....wonder why somebody is blocking this preservation of history?  For me, this was an attraction to Hawaii 

@colorado hirailer posted:

Really glad l got to ride this several years ago.....wonder why somebody is blocking this preservation of history?  For me, this was an attraction to Hawaii 

Maybe they just don't want a tourist train chugging across their property and/or the possibility of tresspassers.  Not everyone loves steam trains.

Rusty

@Stuart posted:

Very sorry to hear that it is closing.  I got to ride it back in June 1991 on my honeymoon.  Our room in the hotel in Kaanapali faced inland and I saw the train from the window.  I took some long distance photos of the train.  My wife was amused by my reaction (but not surprised).

Stuart

 

We've stayed at the Kaanapali twice - once in 2011 and again in 2019. Definitely missed seeing it last year. When I would hear the whistle, I would ru out our door as our door faced the highway. 

@scale rail posted:

We live right up the hill from where you stayed. Kaanapali Hillside. We will miss the little whistle. I spent a lot of time down at the engine house. Don

Didn't realize you lived so close - I would have contacted you when we were there last year. Maybe next time! 

Judging by your footage and the short video, this will be a great documentary. Although like Rich I am not a fan of a lot of music that accompanies train videos, I liked the music for this one. Just the right feel.

Can anyone give some details on why an agreement couldn't be reached. I tried to look it up, but couldn't find any information.

@Clarence Siman posted:

Can anyone give some details on why an agreement couldn't be reached. I tried to look it up, but couldn't find any information.

It's likely the details won't be made public.

Rusty

Will, when we did an hour DVD for the Golden Gate Railroad Museum about the Southern Pacific #2472 I got a few comments about using some music but the vast number of comments went something like this. "Finally someone did a watchable video about trains". I come from a television background and my approach is to entertain. Sure when there's a reason to have sound up full, I would do that, but sitting through an hour of train sounds doesn't happen to appeal to me. We even got a review from a railroad magazine that said, "this is a video everyone would like not just hard core railroad people". I am doing this video for TV and home video. There might be two versions. We had three GoPro cameras on the engine for most runs the last week it ran the full line. We also filmed inside the train talking to people riding it for the last time. We talked to the engineer and fireman. We did a wonderful interview with the original owner. All this was three years ago. The train ran for Christmas three years and was sold out every run but it could only run about a third of the line then had to back down to the station. With no tourists here the owners had no way of making money even it they got the right of way. Lahaina is a ghost town. Tourists are the only industry and there are none. 

I talked to Craig the present owner many times and he thought he would get a deal to run all the way to Lahaina again but when he called me yesterday and told me the engines are for sale,  and it's all over,  it was very sad. Sad for for everyone that loved that little train and sad for the island. He had the two steam engines rebuilt last year figuring on getting the OK to run again. They were going to rebuild the trestle, everything was going to work out. I don't know what is going to happen with the Plymouth switcher. There are not many narrow gauge diesels around. Will keep folks informed. Don

I am a big fan of Hawaian music with those haunting steel guitars, so I did not mind! Very sorry for the loss of history, but hope some museum can acquire those engines!

Tin Art, will let you know who buys them when I can, every thing is not finalized yet. Don

THANKS!

Don,

I see an opportunity for you to move up into a larger scale. 

4877, I see who my first track crew would be. Also maybe a new paint job for the engines. Don

Sad   We used to take our kids on this when they were younger.  (OK, it was mostly me that wanted to go).  Although were some not so nice stretches of track with trash on the side or junk in peoples yards.

I have a television background too, and I have a hard time sitting through most train videos. Give me some dramatic structure. I like music that is well done. Let's be honest. Guys that produce train videos don't always have the best musical taste. 😁

@colorado hirailer posted:

.....wonder why somebody is blocking this preservation of history? 

Easy: NIMBY

Andre

I would think the big issue with property ownners is LIABILITY!  I would not allow the train to run on my property unless I was absolutely clear of anything done by the railroad.

And also there would be those who would trespass on property beyond the ROW.

Was there any consideration to buy the ROW, and seal it off?

@jhz563 posted:

What's the story on that tender design?  Is that was is referred to as a turtle tender?

I think so, looks turtlish here.

Link was from the above photo. It usually reprints it.

https://ogrforum.com/...ge/true/DSC_5686.JPG

Our new National Motto- "It's all about me"

Don't like trains, don't live near them and complain about it.  Same with parks and club land used for decades for RC clubs, off road trails, etc.etc.  This stuff sickens and angers me. It's a rock throwing pro moving into a city of greenhouses and whining their trade me diminished there...move.

Was this line being restored after abandonment or did the lease not carry over to new line owner? Or did a new land buyer throw some weight around?.. What happened there.

  If abandoned I don't fault the land owner too much, but still wouldn't say hi at the local diner or help with a flat tire   

@Adriatic posted:

I think so, looks turtlish here.

 

"Whaleback" tender

@Just a fan posted:

"Whaleback" tender

Same thing according to Wikipedia.  Or called a loaf tender, though they don't say who called them what.

Both narrow gauge engines were built in 1943 at the Porter Company for the mining operation. The sister engines were brought to Maui sometime in the late 60's and converted from tank engines. New cabs, wheels and tenders were built. Flat care were shipped from Alaska of all places and converted to passenger cars. A few flat cars are still on the property. The little railroad was a huge money maker, making millions for years. It was a wonderful and beautiful ride. Most of it was through green sugar cane or pineapple fields. Two trains coming from both directions with a siding in the middle for passing. When the sugar cane plantations closed down, the tourist railroad started to die. It died a slow death. I was asked not to tell the details about the lost right away tell everything is settled and the trains are gone. Don

@jhz563-

Porter 0-4-0T’s converted to 2-4-0’s with tenders...  no wonder it seems familiar!

Maui and the tourist are the big losers in this. We rode this train every time we were there. So SAD.

There still is a non-operational tank engine at the Lahaina station and the operating diesel Plymouth switcher.

@scale rail posted:

Both narrow gauge engines were built in 1943 at the Porter Company for the mining operation. The sister engines were brought to Maui sometime in the late 60's and converted from tank engines. New cabs, wheels and tenders were built. Flat care were shipped from Alaska of all places and converted to passenger cars. A few flat cars are still on the property. The little railroad was a huge money maker, making millions for years. It was a wonderful and beautiful ride. Most of it was through green sugar cane or pineapple fields. Two trains coming from both directions with a siding in the middle for passing. When the sugar cane plantations closed down, the tourist railroad started to die. It died a slow death. I was asked not to tell the details about the lost right away tell everything is settled and the trains are gone. Don

When I was there in June 1991 there were a line of flat cars letters "WP&Y" in a siding.  I pointed that out to my wife that they were from Alaska. She replied "did they take a wrong turn in Albuquerque?"

Stuart

@mlavender480 posted:

@jhz563-

Porter 0-4-0T’s converted to 2-4-0’s with tenders...  no wonder it seems familiar!

Hi Mike!  It does explain why it sounds so right!!

Four minutes of GoPro#1 POV from boiler, GoPro #2 was over the drivers #3 shot up at boiler and stack #4 next to sand down forward. All cameras ran from pull out a the engine house to the "Y" for turning the engine around and full length of the line all the way to the turn table in Lahaina. Picture what it looked like in the 70s. After the trestle was cane all the way to the mountains on the left of screen and almost to the ocean on the right. Harvest time you would see the cutting of the cane and loading them at that time on trucks. Don

Don, I loved the video in your original post, particularly the portion where the train is running while the music is playing. 

I think your choice of music in your videos is always outstanding, and contributes greatly into making your videos works of art.  Arnold

Don, what is the latest in the Sugar Cane Train?  I will be heading to Maui for a break the end of July, was hoping it was still running.  
jon.

It has been over a year since Don's last post.  Hopefully we will hear from him.

@CAPPilot posted:

It has been over a year since Don's last post.  Hopefully we will hear from him.

Pretty sure that he "departed" (or was banned from) the OGR Forum, quite a long time ago.

In addition, I believe he moved to Arizona, so he may not be up to date on Hawaii happenings!!!

I was in Maui a year ago.  As of July 2021, the sugar train cane was out of business.  The tracks were overgrown with vegitation.  The trains were parked.  No signs of operation.

Currently, the trains (loco and rolling stock) are up for sale.

Stu