8 Classic U.S. Train Rides

1. Adirondack Scenic Railroad. Originally the Mohawk & Malone Railway (built in 1892), this New York line runs between Utica and Lake Placid through the restored forests and picturesque waterways of Adirondack State Park.

2. Alaska Railroad Coastal Classic. This train departs Anchorage, winds along Turnagain Arm where the soaring glacial mountains of the Chugach Range plunge into the Pacific, and ends its journey at Seward and the Kenai Fjords.

3. Cape Cod Central Railroad. This 27-mile ride from Hyannis, Massachusetts, to the Cape Cod Canal takes you through the historic colonial towns of Barnstable and Sandwich, with views of cranberry bogs, sand dunes, and salt marshes.

4. Cass Scenic Railroad. Take in West Virginia’s colorful autumn foliage on converted old logging flat cars on the same rail line that once hauled timber to the Cass lumber mill. 

5. Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad. From New Mexico to Colorado’s old silver mining region, this steam railroad is America’s longest (64 miles) and highest (10,015 feet) and includes the parlor car featured in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

6. Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. This historic train—which appeared in the 1956 film Around the World in 80 Days—travels past breathtaking cliffs overlooking southern Colorado’s rushing Animas River. 

7. Grand Canyon Railway. Arrive at the spectacular South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona in antique rail cars pulled by the “French Fry Express,” a 1923 locomotive fueled by recycled cooking oil.

8. Great Smoky Mountains Railroad. This scenic journey begins at the historic depot at Bryson City, North Carolina, and runs 53 miles through beautiful Appalachian forest greenery and along trout streams.