Family Rail Days Fest begins Saturday

SPENCER — The N.C. Transportation Museum's 2010 Family Rail Days Festival, set for Saturday and Sunday, will celebrate the golden age of railroading and offer something for every member of the family. Featuring historic locomotives and rail cars displayed alongside modern rail equipment, the event will give visitors a chance to enjoy train rides, great music, model train layouts and a model train expo.

This year's 2010 Family Rail Days will be held in association with 2nd Saturdays, a partnership between State Historic Sites and the N.C. Arts Council. Artists will be given the opportunity to show and sell their work Saturday. Poetry, music, painting, drawing, photography and more will be offered.

Visitors to the festival will have numerous chances to ride the rails. Boarding at the pedestrian crossing, the passenger train will offer a 25 minute ride around the museum property on classic rail cars pulled by vintage diesel locomotives. The caboose train, boarding at the Barber Junction Visitor's Center, gives everyone a chance to ride in their favorite train car. At the Roundhouse, motor car rides will be offered, giving visitors a chance to ride these smaller pieces of rail equipment used to repair tracks.

An up-close view of the N.C. Transportation Museum's classic steam and diesel locomotives will be available during the Parade of Power. The Parade of Power takes place at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday.

Turntable rides will be offered throughout the festival. Families can take a spin and get a closer look at how the Spencer Shops operated during the good ol' days.

While train rides and views of railroad equipment are always exciting, visitors will also be able to see railroading on a far smaller scale. The North Raleigh Model Railroad Club and the Atlantic Coast S-Gaugers will set up in the Bob Julian Roundhouse throughout the event.

Rail Days is also home to a huge model railroading show, also in the Roundhouse, with vendors providing all types of model locomotives, train cars, model railroading supplies and accessories.

Special activities will include a Model Train Play Table, coloring in the Roundhouse, take-home crafts and the Operation Lifesaver Booth, which teaches kids and adults about railroad safety.

Tickets are $12 each, with discounts available for museum members. Tickets entitle visitors to unlimited train rides and all the sights and sounds around the museum. Saturday train rides take place every 45 minutes between 9:15 a.m. and 12:45 p.m., then resume every 45 minutes between 2:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. Sunday train rides take place every 45 minutes between 9:15 a.m. and 12:45 and every 45 minutes between 12:45 and 3:45 p.m. The N.C. Transportation Museum, located in historic Spencer Shops, the former Southern Railway repair facility is located just five minutes off I-85 at Exit 79 in Spencer.

For information, call 919- 807-7385 or visit www.ncculture.com.