On Mon, 28 Jul 2003 20:40:47 +0100, someone who calls themselves "ian
R. Weeks" wrote:

Dear All,
From Saturday for 2 weeks my family and I will be holidaying in
California. Starting in San Francisco and finishing in Los Angeles,with
several days in Carmel and Santa Barbara.Despite the kids having fixed
ideas on what they want to do I reckon I can possibly insist on a few
hours of what' Daddy wants to do'.Any suggestions as to minature Live
Steam I might be able to see.
Kind regards,
Ian

Miniature live steam would be at TravelTown in Griffith Park, Los
Angeles. http://www.cityofla.org/RAP/grifmet/tt/index.htm You can
take rides on scale live steamers even. http://www.lals.org/

If you want something a little bigger, go to Disneyland - the
Disneyland Railroad engines are narrow-gauge, oil fired. ;-) You can
even ask at the Main Street station to take a kid or two with you (as
a cover :-) and ride up front with the engineer & fireman. Engines #1
and #2 were scratch-built in 1954-55 by Walt Disney Imagineering at
the studio in Burbank, engines #3 and #4 are restored turn-of-last-
century Baldwins.
http://www.carolwood.com/

For full-size and operating trains and streetcars, Orange Empire
Railroad Museum in Perris - it's another hour and a half east, but
interesting. (Though they don't have any live steam stuff operable
right now, one engine is all torn down to do the boiler.)
http://www.oerm.org
(Note that they have a really good links page.)

Oh, and they just opened the Gold Line service! http://www.mta.net
We ripped out the Pacific Electric Red Cars, and 40 years later we're
putting it back together - often following the old right-of-ways.
(And of course, the NIMBY's are screaming about the horns and crossing
bells disturbing them...)

-- Bruce --
--
Bruce L. Bergman, POB 394, Woodland Hills CA 91365, USA
Electrician, Westend Electric (#726700) Agoura, CA

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