On Saturday April 26th, the Virginia Railway Heritage Coalition will be hosting a bus tour of some of Roanoke's lost railroads.
Two trips will be provided with departures at 9am and 2pm. Each tour will last approximately 4 hours.
Departure will be from the O. Winston Link museum and will follow the Norfolk & Western west to locations such as the original roundhouse and current locomotive facilities. We'll then ride along the Catawba Branch, past Hanging Rock to the end of the original line on the mountain near MacAfees Gap. We'll take a short detour to see a small segment of the Valley railroad. Then we'll return and travel near the Virginian Railway and see locations of the original narrow gauge RR that hauled ore north from the Rorer Mine located between Roanoke and Mill Mountain to a long-lost transloading facility downtown near 13th Street. You'll see portions of the Roanoke Belt Line and the Roanoke and Southern RR (now the Pumpkin Vine/ Winston- Salem mainline). We'll pass the Virginian Railway's Roanoke Passenger Station, the Roanoke Railway & Electric carbarn and office building, the current Norfolk Southern office building and many other heritage locations all from the comfort of a restored bus provided by Commonwealth Coach and Trolley.
Tickets are $10 per person and are on sale through the
O Winston Link Museum