NKP 765 Sunday Lehigh Gorge

Hope you enjoy the trip.

You'll have a great time....the 765 never fails to put smiles on everyone's faces.

The ticket sales for this trip have been put on hold.  Went back to the site a few minutes later and it's a different trip now up.  Somebody jumped the gun as now it's the Erie limited up for sale not the Lehigh Gorge.

Hope this trip out of Bethlehem goes through, looking forward to it.

The trip is still scheduled. A few weeks ago the date changed to Aug 22 & 23.

The Erie limited is Aug 2nd.

Bob

Thanks for the heads up.  See you there bright and early.

Bob

Those of you going through the Lehigh Gorge will enjoy the trip; the scenery is awesome. Last summer, my wife and I went from Mountain Top to Jim Thorpe and back. A lot shorter trip, but we really enjoyed it. Make sure you have lots of film or extra batteries if your camera is digital digital. I've never been on the rails from Mountain Top to Pittston, but I've hiked the area, and there is some nice scenery as well.

Be on the lookout for Bald Eagles anywhere along the gorge. We saw one last summer. Hopefully I will remember the day of the trip, and get some photos as the train passes through Mountain Top. Hopefully there will be a schedule of estimated times for various locations.

Enjoy,

Don

Ok, both trips are now on the website and I'll be purchasing soon.  Any good hotels in the area? 

I've never stayed there, but I've heard Hotel Bethlehem  (on the north side of the river) is nice.

What area are you referring to Gary, Bethlehem or Pittston? The Bethlehem Hotel is nice, right in the center of town on Main street. Pittston is relatively close to the Mohegan Sun Casino, Hotel and Convention Center. I rarely stay in hotels, so I can't vouch for their cleanliness or affordability. There are a lot of sights to see in the Bethlehem area.

Don

The trip runs out of Bethlehem/Allentown, so there is no need for a hotel in Pittston.

Bethlehem is the boarding location. Pittston is just the turn around point. They will wye the 765 or train there. Jim Thorpe is the stopover town. A rare thing for us in the Allentown and Lehigh Valley area to board a train excursion in our area. 2 years ago NS hosted the Lehigh Limited, a diesel trip from Hoboken to Bethlehem on NJT, Amtrak, NS, and NS and NJT on the return. But, Bethlehem was simply the lunch stop and turn back point, you couldn't board there, you had to board in Hoboken, NJ or Newark, NJ. This trip boards in Bethlehem. I suppose there isn't a suitable boarding location in Allentown, so they chose Bethlehem. At least we get the extra miles and the rare trip through Allentown Yard. I thought the trip wasn't leaving from the casino, now it is? We bought four coach tickets today for Aug 22.

I just wanted to cover all the bases, you never know.

Don

Here are a few pics of the station in Bethlehem, even though it's not the boarding sight, it's a nice station.

Don

That's the ex-CNJ station on the north side. The ex-LV station on the south side still stands and was renovated for medical offices.

Anybody know the route? Will we be going to Jim Thorpe for layover?

We probably will pass by the LV union station, but most likely will not see it from the train due to vegetation.

We probably will see Beth steel.

Yes, the train will probably leave from the parking lot by the new Sands Hotel, and at Union Station turn right onto the bridge over the Lehigh River to head through Allentown Yard to reach the ex-CNJ line north toward Lehighton. You must go through the yard to reach that line.

Just purchased tickets from my son and I looking forward to the Sunday trip, my first big steam experience

Just for ha ha's, I check to see what rooms are going for at the Sands, almost 300 bucks with tax.  So I booked down the road at a Comfort Inn for 150 something.

There's also a Holiday Inn Express at the I-78 exit a mile or so down Rt. 412, and a new Hyatt Place on the north side of Bethlehem, and Radisson Hotel Bethlehem. Those would be the closest to the train.

No, that is not where the train will leave from. Please don't post about things you know nothing about.

You will get specific instructions on where to park with your tickets. You will ride a bus to the boarding site.

That's a great cigar bar/restaurant now, The Wooden Match.

For those looking to dine in Bethlehem at nearby locations (there's certainly no shortage), my wife and I frequently dined at a great little place steeped in railroad history formerly known as The Main Street Depot, located under the Hill-to-Hill bridge in Bethlehem.

We haven't been there in a good 5+ years, and I believe the restaurant now goes by the name The Wooden Match.  Lots of great railroad history in that area of town.  Check out these links if you're so inclined...

• The Wooden Match
• Related story about new owners of The Wooden Match

Enjoy!!!

David

Thanks, David.

Lots of fascinating history in this part of the country.

Ok, both trips are now on the website

What website are you referring to?  Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway doesn't list any of these.  The Ft. Wayne RR Historical Society only lists the Aug 22 & 23 trips in the Lehigh Gorge.

Would someone please post a link to the referenced site, thanks.  -Ted

Ok, so parking is by the Sands, but boarding is elsewhere. You mentioned the fence blocking the NS tracks there. Do you know where the actual boarding site is?

Yes, I do.

Are you allowed to say where the boarding is in Bethlehem? Also, do you plan to be in 765's cab during these trips? We already bought tickets for the Saturday run. All it says is to go to 77 Sands Blvd. Is that the parking lot? But why does it say parking AND boarding is at 77 Sands Blvd.? I assumed that was boarding for the train, now you say buses will take us from the parking lot to the train. How far away is the train boarding from the parking lot?

Rich,

Nine of us from the Black Diamond Society of Model Engineers in Bethlehem will be on the Sunday train. Hope to get to say hello, Saturday the 22nd is my birthday. Would a belated birthday cab ride be out of the question?

JohnB

Hey, that's not fair. 

Anyway, I'm guessing there will be a photo run by somewhere?

Can someone educate me as to why the departure location is not being mentioned in this thread but instead seems to be treated as a secret?  I'm sure there is a reason, but it is certainly not obvious to someone like me who is not "in the know" regarding train excursion procedures. 

I saw that one poster was asked not to comment about things he knows nothing about.  Fair enough, but why then hasn't someone "in the know" posted the actual location to prevent further speculation?  We ARE talking about a train ride here and not some highly-guarded national security information, correct??

If you purchase a ticket for these trips, you will know where the parking and boarding locations are.

The parking location is in an area where traffic issues will be daunting. We don't want a lot of railfans in their cars trying to find the steam locomotive and getting in the way of paying passengers who are trying to find a parking place.

The boarding location is on private property with very limited space for vehicles, hence the need for the buses. Traffic control will be in place which will allow only on-duty NS employees and the passenger buses into the boarding site.

There will be plenty of opportunities to see the steam locomotive once we get on the roll out of town. There are no really good photo locations in Bethlehem, anyway.

We purchased tickets and the only instructions are to go to 77 Sands Blvd. That must be the huge parking lot by the new Sands Hotel. The boarding then must be somewhere else, down by Union Station perhaps? Photo locations? Will the train be crossing over the old RR truss bridge from south Bethlehem to the north side of the river to go through Allentown yard and the ex-CNJ heading north toward Lehighton? If it is crossing that bridge, then people (non-riders) could see the train crossing the bridge from Sand Island or by the old CNJ depot on the north side.

You will soon receive an email with a correction to that address. It is not the correct address.

getting a constant bombardment of questions like this would really take any positive aspects away of planning trips such as this,if i was involved.-jim