| July 27, 2010 | July 26, 2010 | July 23, 2010 #2 | July 23, 2010 #1 | July 21, 2010 | July 14, 2010 #2 |

| July 14, 2010 #1 | May 26, 2010 | May 19, 2010 | April 19, 2010 | April 15, 2010 | March 29, 2010 |

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July 27, 2010

COME ONE…COME ALL…LET’S IMPRESS PBS

The Portola Railroad Days Event Committee and the Western Pacific Railroad Museum are calling for all “able bodied” folks to help in a scheduled clean up day, Saturday, August 7, 2010 beginning at 8AM, at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum grounds, in Portola.

As most everyone knows, this year’s Portola Railroad Days will be the focus of a PBS show called “ Tracks Ahead”. This show will be broadcast early next year throughout the U.S. and even in some European Countries.

It will also feature the Western Pacific Railroad Museum, its grounds and interior; as well as the Feather River Express excursion train which will be making Eastbound and Westbound trips through the Feather River Canyon, the weekend of Railroad Days.

This 15 car train will be parked on Museum grounds from Friday until Sunday. We have many locals riding this train and in addition it will be bringing many folks from the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento areas to spend the weekend (and hopefully money) in Plumas County.

We want to show off our area and the Museum, in hopes of attracting more tourism in the future.

According to David Epling, Museum General Manager, here are some major items that the Museum needs help with:

1) General clean up-Bring your elbow grease, also, some rags and cleaners would be helpful.
2) Scrap metal removal- a chance for someone to cash in by collecting and hauling away unneeded metal.
3) Some painting-Bring your brushes-Museum will provide the paint.
4) The very important job of weed abatement-This will be headed up by Wood’s Fire and Emergency Services. We still need more weed eaters and help for this large project.

Let’s show our “Community Pride” and help in this clean up. Nearly every local merchant will benefit financially with the needs of the onboard passengers who will be parked on the Museum grounds. A clean and organized Museum will be the best P.R. for our town, bringing in much needed future tourism revenues.

If you as a merchant, are unable attend- a proxy from your workforce would be appreciated! Please contact David Epling at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum for more details at 832-4131.

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July 26, 2010

LOUNGE SEATS FOR THE FEATHER RIVER EXPRESS

Following a near sell-out for the Domes to Railroad Days, the Feather River Express. A rail buff group from the Bay Area who has reserved all of the seats in the Silver Splendor Vista Dome has just released 20 Lounge seats for us to sell.

The price for this ticket is $348 round trip and the Local folks Option is being offered at $198. These tickets are available for either Friday, August 20 th or Sunday, August 22 n.d. Also there are still 3 Pullman Sleeper rooms available with premium Dome Seating.

Remember, half of the proceed are being donated to the Western Pacific Railroad Museum. For more information on these rooms or to book on the Silver Splendor Lounge you may call the reservations line for Trains & Travel International, Inc. at 800 359-4870 or (775) 453-1004.

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July 23, 2010

Patrick Michael Karnahan shows at Feather during Portola Railroad Days

Portola, California (July 20, 2010) – The work of Patrick Michael Karnahan, an accomplished artist, songwriter and musician, will join local artists during a special Railroad Days art show and raffle at the Feather Community Arts Center in Portola, Saturday, August 21, during Portola Railroad Days. Proceeds from the show and raffle will benefit the art center and Portola Railroad Days events. Doors will open to the public at 10:00 a.m. and close at 7:00 p.m., an artists’ reception, will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The art raffle drawing will be held in the hall at the end of the reception.

Karnahan’s impressive portfolio embodies his passion for life, and his interests in railroads, aircraft and firefighting. An 18-year career with the United States Forest Service provided inspiration and a unique avenue for Karnahan’s talent as an artist. After being commissioned by the USFS on several paintings, he embarked on a personal journey of highlighting the work of firefighters.“My mission is to take the skills I have developed in painting portraits, trains, and landscapes, and use them to showcase America’s Angels of the Forest.”

The past 20 years of Karnahan’s career have also included commissions of several fine art posters, covers for both magazines and books, and calendars—including the notable OSH (Orchard Supply Hardware) calendar. With the success of distributing nearly a million calendars throughout California in 2008, OSH has already commissioned Karnahan for their 2011 Train Calendar.

Karnahan exhibits include such venues as California State Railroad Museum Railfair events, Penn State University as a part of America’s Railroad History, the

Smithsonian Museum Folklife Festival in Washington D.C., and the Kennedy Center. Karnahan’s work for the August show will focus on railroads of Eastern California & Nevada.

Event organizers are currently soliciting local artists interested in participating in the one-day art show. Work should be saleable and should focus on the railroad, local history, flora and fauna. All work will be juried for acceptance. Interested individuals should contact Donna Mills at (530) 832-6032, or download an entry form from www.PortolaRailroadDays.com. Additional information on the Feather River Express excursion train running to the Portola Railroad Days Festival from the Bay & Sacramento Areas call 1-800 359-4870 or visit www.traintrips.biz

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July 23, 2010

RAFFLE TO HELP FUND RAILROAD DAYS

Portola, Calif. (July 21, 2010)- Trains and Travel International, Inc., has donated two Coach Tickets for the Domes to Railroad days-Feather River Express excursion train to the Portola Railroad Days Planning Committee. In addition, Chris David, has donated 2 tickets for the “Stars in the Barn”.

These generous donations are being made to try and help the Railroad Days Events Committee make up for a shortfall of funding for the 28 th Annual Portola Railroad Days. This event along with many other programs have had large funding cuts as our local governments deal with their own shortfalls.

Your ticket purchase of $20.00-could win the following prizes totaling $376.00 and also help to promote this community tradition of Railroad Days.

The train tickets are for the West bound trip through the Feather River Canyon, on the old former Western Pacific route. This trip historically co-insides with the 100 th Year Anniversary of the first through passenger train, that passed through Portola, while running on the newly completed track from Utah to California , on August 20-22, 1910. This route has seen very few non-private passenger trains, since 1970.

These Coach tickets are for Sunday, August 22, 2010. Your adventure begins when you board the train at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola that morning. You may choose one of 2 options: You may take the train from Portola –West bound, through to Emeryville in the San Francisco Bay Area , or, from Portola to Sacramento with a bus transport back to Portola. This ride also includes a boxed lunch and drink.

“Stars in the Barn” tickets are for the Saturday night, 8:00PM show, on August, 21 st, 2010, at the Corner Barn Highway 89/70, Graeagle, CA. which is 10 miles west of Portola.

This show is produced, and co-directed by Chris David, a local resident business owner, horse enthusiast, performer and musician who has spent thirty years in the entertainment business. His background includes acting in Broadway shows and playing with some of the Big Bands back East. Chris is also an avid horseman.

Chris and Alain Gauthier both co-directors and performers have infused Japanese Taiko Drummer musicians of outstanding international performing talent into this unique show. The experience combines exciting music, dramatic lighting, and sensual soul performances all on one stage. With a location as magnificent as the performance, Stars in the Barn is an extravaganza of colossal proportions set in the natural beauty of the High Sierras. The performance is to be held at the Corner Barn Highway 89/70, Graeagle, CA.

Send a check or money order for each $20.00 ticket purchased payable to

DM Consulting to:

Railroad Days Raffle
P.O. Box 312
Portola, CA 96122

Be sure and include your name, address and phone number
Upon receiving your payment we will mail you your raffle receipt

DRAWING TO BE HELD BY THE RAILROAD DAYS PLANNING COMMITTEE IN PORTOLA ON AUGUST 10, 2010

For further information or reservations onboard the Feather River Express you may call Trains & Travel International at: 1-800 359-4870 or (775) 453-1004 or visit www.traintrips.biz All proceeds will go to help fund Portola Railroad days 2010.

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July 21, 2010

August 21 Wine Tasting Scheduled for Newly Re-Opened Nakoma Golf Resort

Clio, California

The Portola Railroad Days 2010 Committee is excited to have the opportunity to show off one of the area gems, the reopening of the Nakoma Golf Resort. The committee has added another event to its robust calendar of activities celebrating the area’s lengthy love affair with train travel. On Saturday, August 21, train guests, seasonal visitors and local residents alike are invited to an “inaugural” wine-tasting at the recently re-opened Nakoma Golf Resort on County Road A-15/Portola-McLears Road.

The event will take place between 1:00pm-4:00pm, following the Golden Spike Parade. Shuttle buses will make a continuous loop between Portola and Graeagle, with one headed in each direction to maximize opportunities for guests to hop aboard from the parking lot at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola. A $5 bus pass guarantees everyone an opportunity to experience not only Nakoma, but everything in between, without the hassles of parking or concerns about alcohol consumption. Tickets are $25 if ordered in advance and $30 at the door. The first 150 guests will receive commemorative wine glasses, while area restaurants such as Longboards, Grizzly Grill and Cuccias will demonstrate their support by providing signature appetizers or entrée samples.

Once a significant draw to the area, the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed clubhouse and its renowned Dragon golf course languished in bankruptcy for nearly five years before being purchased in April of this year by the Schomac Group of Tucson, Arizona. Conceived in 1923 for the Nakoma Country Club in Madison, Wisconsin, the daring design was never constructed due to a poor economy and concerns about Wright’s scandalous lifestyle during that period.

Because the dramatic facility was built in a completely different setting from the one for which it was originally intended, Arnold Roy, an architect who apprenticed under Wright, supervised its eventual construction and adaptation to the amazing, but challenging, mountain terrain.

This facility reflects significant Asian influences that resulted from Wright’s stay in Japan in the early 1920’s, during which time he designed Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel. It stays true to his organic approach as well, however, and the mix of styles is a source of fascination for visitors. Particularly noteworthy is a soaring central fireplace that has become something of a hallmark of many Wright creations. It dominates the stunning Wigwam Room, whose windows overlook incomparable views of the High Sierras. The Refectory is home to a unique bar and lounge where unusual furnishings are characteristic of the famed architect’s designs.

The Nakoma clubhouse, its sprawling golf course and surrounding Wright-style villas today reflect ongoing renovations that have already revitalized much of the building and its grounds. Gold Mountain’s homeowners and Schomac’s management team want to thank the property’s many fans for the support they’ve shown over some very trying years, and will provide the facility at no charge. As a result of their generosity and the philanthropic spirit of both the wineries and local restaurateurs, all ticket revenues will go back to the committee to help fund this years events for Portola Railroad Days, that draw visitors to our communities.

58 Degrees and Holding, a Sacramento-based wine bar and restaurant, has developed a terrific wine list, invited vintners, and will help host the tasting. Those who enjoy a particular wine, once they’ve had a taste, may purchase it by the bottle or case for their own pleasure.

Railroad buffs remain committed to their passion and have filled 15 private railroad cars that will depart from the San Francisco Bay Area and travel through the spectacular Feather River Canyon on August 20 th and 22 n. These days, passenger travel on the canyon’s tracks is a real rarity, as the last scheduled service ran through the Feather River Canyon in March 1970. Only freight has moved on those rails for the past 40 years, so the opportunity to view the lush vistas along the Feather River from the vantage point of a luxurious railroad car has generated great interest in Plumas County and its neighbors. The Nakoma Clubhouse similarly lures visitors from afar. Together, they present a major boost to the local tourist economy and provide the kind of entertainment and attractions that set the area apart.

Call Trains & Travel International toll free at 1-800 359-4870 or (775) 453-1004 to reserve your ticket for the 2010 Portola Railroad Days wine tasting fundraiser today. For additional information on the 28 th Annual Portola Railroad Days or Feather River Express passenger train tickets visit www.portolarailroaddays.com and www.traintrips.biz

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July 14, 2010

Railroad Museum Recruits More Volunteers

Portola, Calif. (July 14, 2010) —Community volunteers have been assisting t he Western Pacific Railroad Museum (WPRM) in Portola, California in its efforts to clean up museum grounds in time for the 2010 Portola Railroad Days celebration in late August. While many projects are underway and some have been completed, a long wish list to transform a working museum into a tourist attraction still remains. The list includes everything from simple clean up to more skilled labor like plumbing, carpentry and welding.

The museum still needs volunteers to help with: performing general grounds clean-up and weed removal; re-covering picnic tables; filling low spots, pot holes and a hole created by sewer trucks in parking lot; striping lot with paint or chalk; cleaning up interior of diesel shop, including displays along gift shop wall, main aisle and shop bays; reorganizing diesel shop display room; creating guide signs for gift shop, restrooms and key equipment on display; building donation boxes; repainting wedge snowplow by the front gate; repairing water fountain in diesel shop; upgrading and repainting women’s restroom; upgrading men’s restroom; building new bridges between passenger cars; completing work on three specific railroad cars.

The filming crew for the hit PBS series, Tracks Ahead will arrive a week prior to Railroad Days to film a documentary of the town of Portola, the WPRM, Domes to Railroad Days on the Feather River Express and the Portola Railroad Days festival. The documentary is scheduled to air sometime in 2011. WPRM hopes to complete as much work as possible before the crew arrives.

If you can volunteer for any of these projects, please contact David Epling as soon as possible, at (530) 832-4131 for details.

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July 14, 2010

Rock Bottom Band Benefit Concert at Chalet View

Portola, California (July 14, 2010) – Owners of the Chalet View Lodge, just west of Portola, are keeping it light this summer. Bob and Carrie Hickman are hosting a “Music & Brews” benefit on Saturday, July 24 for Portola Railroad Days. The special family evening, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., will feature live music, beer tasting and a variety of outdoor activities. A small cover charge of $20 per adult will be donated to Portola Railroad Days for the August event.

Steve Leal, of the Rock Bottom Band, first contacted the Railroad Days committee about performing a benefit concert, but event planners were without a proper venue. “I thought we were going to lose out on the generous offer. I was obviously thrilled when Bob [Hickman] called me! The Lodge presents a picturesque setting, with large golf greens, patios and a pool,” said Donna Mills, Railroad Days event Chairman. “Families can bring chairs or a blanket and sit back and enjoy the music. Kids can just be kids. This is life in the mountains. It’s great!” To top off the evening enjoy a full moon rising up in the sky.

“Railroad Days has been a tradition for 28 years now,” explained Mills. “People expect it. Some plan their vacations around it. It’s a mountain of work, but there have been a lot of new folks pitching in this year.”

Lynette Ertel, Marketing Manager for Gold Mountain explained that the new owners of Nakoma, Ryan and Michael Schoff, want to do something special for the community as well. Ertel is working with the Schoffs to host a benefit wine tasting during the Railroad Days event.

The Feather River Express excursion train, due to arrive Friday, August 20, will bring another 500 rail fans and tourists to Railroad Days, many of whom have never visited Plumas County. “We have a captive audience and a perfect opportunity to showcase Eastern Plumas County,” commented Mills. “A wine tasting at Nakoma is a natural fit.”

Planners of these events see them as prime opportunities to reach out to locals, as well as to build year-round tourism in the area.

For information about Music and Brews, please call Chalet View Lodge at (530) 832-5588. For information about the wine tasting event or regarding Portola Railroad Days,

Visit www.portolarailroaddays.com or contact Donna Mills at (530) 832-6032. For information on the Feather River Express passenger train and how you can win two tickets on this train visit www.traintrips.biz or call Trains & Travel International in Reno at 1-800 359-4870.

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May 26, 2010

Railroad Museum Recruits Volunteers

Portola, Calif. (May 26, 2010) — The Western Pacific Railroad Museum (WPRM) in Portola, California is looking for a few good volunteers. The museum staff hopes to recruit a small army this summer that can help with several projects on museum grounds prior to the 28 th annual celebration of Portola Railroad Days in late August.

August 20-22, 2010 marks the hundredth anniversary of the first through passenger train operated over the Western Pacific Railway from Salt Lake City to Oakland, and happens to coincide with this year’s Railroad Days festival.

There is a mountain of work to complete before August. Museum officers are hoping the community and visiting train buffs will provide some extra muscle to help put a shine on the museum before the PBS filming crew arrives in Portola on August 16.

The filming crew for the hit PBS series, Tracks Ahead will be in the Portola area and at the railroad museum for a week during the railroad days festival. They will be showcasing the museum and the town of Portola in a documentary of the centennial celebration due to air sometime in 2011. The filming crew will be onboard the special chartered passenger train, the Feather River Express from Emeryville to Portola on Friday August 20 and then will capture the Portola Railroad Days Festival on Saturday. On Sunday the crew will be following the westbound special passenger train down the Feather River Canyon filming it at scenic locations to top off the program.

The museum staff has a lengthy wish list that entails everything from simple clean up, weed-eating and painting to more skilled labor like sign-making, plumbing, carpentry, welding and more. Anyone with a little extra time and a need to give back can contact David Epling, at (530) 832-4131 for details.

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May 19, 2010

Portola Gears up for 28 th Annual Portola Railroad Days Festival

Invites Vendors to participate

Portola, Calif. (May 19, 2010) —The Portola Railroad Days Planning Committee is inviting vendors to take part in the 28 th Annual Portola Railroad Days Festival which is scheduled for August 19-23, 2010. This year’s Festival includes an important historic event that helped the early development of the Feather River Canyon region and Northern California. August 20-22, 2010 marks the 100 th Anniversary of the first through passenger train operated over the Western Pacific Railway from Salt Lake City to Oakland. This historic date happens to coincide with this year’s Portola Railroad Days Festival.

In Celebration of the first passenger train, The Feather River Express will travel from Emeryville to Portola, on August 20, 2010, picking up additional passengers at Martinez, Davis and Sacramento, to commemorate this Historic Anniversary and celebrate Portola’s 28 th Annual Railroad Days Festival. The train will be parked at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola for the weekend and will be open for public viewing.

For information on the Western Pacific Railroad Museum go to: www.wplives.org and

The Feather River Express go to: www.traintrips.biz or call 1-800 359-4870.

“This year’s event is special”, remarks Donna Mills, event Chairman. “It’s not often we see a passenger train travel on the freight-only Feather River Canyon Route. This one is coming expressly to help us celebrate Portola Railroad Days. We couldn’t be more excited! Regular passenger-train operations through the Canyon ceased in 1970.”

Mills said the town plans to “roll out the red carpet” to welcome visitors and the train passengers, just like it did 100 years ago. “Our celebration grows every year. This year we are really focusing on bringing the railroad, the town and its visitors together,” commented Mills.

“We have activities planned for the whole family that will stretch from one end of town all the way to the Western Pacific Railroad Museum. We have several shows planned, including a live ‘train robbery’, a classic car show, music, historic slide shows, a parade, train rides, and more. We will have carnival rides and are planning a town-wide scavenger hunt with local merchants.”

The event includes an outdoor art and crafts show. City crews close Commercial Street to automobile traffic so that vendors and pedestrians can have free reign of the entire street for the weekend. Many local merchants host special sidewalk sales. This year event planners will add an art exhibit and auction inside the Feather Community Arts Center.

With this year’s Railroad Days holding so much historic importance the planning committee is extending an invitation to food, drink and arts & crafts vendors in California, Oregon and Nevada to sign up for a booth and come to Portola to take part in the celebration.

Vendor applications can be downloaded directly from the Portola Railroad Days website at www.portolarailroaddays.com, or contact Pat Bridge (530) 836-0164 or Lorraine Wakefield (530) 832-0446.

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April 19, 2010

Portola Businesses Work Together To Welcome Railfans to Event

Portola, Calif. (April 19, 2010) — Merchants and businesses in and around Portola, California are rolling up their sleeves and preparing for the 100 th Anniversary Celebration of the first through passenger train operating over the Western Pacific Railway and into Portola. The date happens to coincide with the 28 th Annual Portola Railroad Days Festival August 19-22, 2010.

Local Rotarians have taken on numerous tasks aimed at sprucing up the downtown area for their annual Rotary International “Clean-Up Day”, Saturday, April 24 th. Other businesses and organizations are banding together to lend a hand with improvements at the historic Western Pacific Railroad Museum located at the west end of Portola, in preparation for this August event.

A larger than normal crowd is expected at Railroad Days this year, partially due to a special excursion train operating from Emeryville to Portola. The Feather River Express, due to arrive on August 20, 2010, is expected to book all 400 seats well in advance of the event for the three-day excursion.

Special one-way tickets on Sunday, August 22 ND, are available for local folks who live in the upper Feather River Canyon region. This option will include the train ticket from Portola to Sacramento with a direct return charter motor coach back to Portola. For more information or tickets call 1-800 359-4870 or visit www.traintrips.biz

The Feather RiverExpress will be parked at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum, which will allow easy access to the Portola Railroad Days Festival for those passengers who have purchased Pullman Sleeping Class on this excursion. On Saturday, August 21 st, the train will be open to the public for viewing at the museum.

On Sunday, August 22 nd , the excursion train will depart Portola and head westbound down the Feather River Canyon, 100 years after the first passenger train traveled this same route. On August 21, 1910 Western Pacific’s first through passenger train from Salt Lake City, Utah departed Portola and ran down the Canyon on it’s journey to Oakland.

Organizers have come up with creative lodging solutions in and around Portola, including transportation to and from the event from local hotels and motels, for passengers not booking on the Pullman Sleeping cars. Also transfers are being made available to and from Reno.

Another draw to the event is the annual Railroad Days Show and Shine. Always a big hit, Curt McBride, organizer of the classic car show, is receiving applications daily, and expects upwards of 100 entries or more for the event.

Meanwhile, art & crafts and food vendors are turning in early applications hoping to secure prime locations in two downtown parks and on Commercial Street. With extra activities planned in and around the museum this year, there will be no shortage of space for vendors down Commercial Street and in the parks. For more information or applications, call (530) 832-6032 or visit www.PortolaRailroadDays.com.

Others in the community are planning events to round out the weekend hoping to bring even more visitors to the area. Chris David, a local equestrian, is organizing a first ever Stars in the Barn on Friday and Saturday, August 20 and 21, at The Barn in Blairsden, Highways 89 and 70, just ten miles west of Portola. The two-day event features a professional horse show presentation, Taiko Drummers and Japanese acrobats. For more information or tickets to this unusual event, contact Chris David at (530) 249-0384, or chrisdavid@jps.net.

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April 15, 2010

Portola Celebrates Centennial Anniversary of First Passenger Train

Portola, Calif. (April 15, 2010) — August 22, 2010, marks the 100 th Anniversary of the first through passenger train operated over the Western Pacific Railway, which made a stop at Portola on August 21, 1910. The date happens to coincide with this year’s planning of Portola Railroad Days Festival, August 19-22, 2010.

The Feather River Express special excursion train will travel from Emeryville to Portola, on August 20, 2010, picking up additional passengers at Martinez, Davis and Sacramento, to commemorate this Historic Anniversary and celebrate Portola’s 28 th Annual Railroad Days Festival. Engineers will park the train at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola for the weekend. This will give easy access for Pullman sleeping-car passengers to attend the Portola Railroad Days celebration on Saturday, August 21 st .

On Sunday, August 22 nd , the train will depart Portola and head westbound down the Feather River Canyon, 100 years after the first scheduled through passenger train did the same. The first westbound passenger train was a 7-car Press Representative Special. This train departed Salt Lake City, Utah at 7:00AM on August 20, 1910, arriving Portola the next day. It then continued down the Feather River Canyon on August 21 st , making a stop at Hartwell, which is now called Quincy Junction. Here a Quincy & Western Railroad special met the Western Pacific special and all passengers rode this train the five miles to Quincy for a celebration and parade. After re-boarding the WP train it continued westbound to Oroville. On August 22, 1910, the first passenger train ran on into Oakland.

The train arrived in Oakland running down the middle of 3 rd Street near Broadway which is now known as Jack London Square. The first through passenger train from Utah arrived at Western Pacific’s 3 rd Street Station promptly at 4:15pm amid the shrieking of factory whistles and crowds of people. Engineer Michael Boyle eased the train through the Arch of Triumph at 3 rd and Broadway and stopped in front of the Depot and reviewing stand. This train was greeted by thousands upon thousands of men, women and children standing on the street, on roofs tops, in windows, and atop telegraph poles to get the best possible view.

Western Pacific Vice-President C.H. Schlacks commented; “Our trip from east to west has been a continuous celebration”. All along the route hundreds gathered to cheer and give welcome. According to one eyewitness, a staff writer for the San Francisco Call, “The welcome which greeted this train is likely to never again be equaled”.

The trip was amazing with towns decorated, salutes fired, parades and brass bands were everywhere. Once speeches were made in Oakland a parade of welcome four miles long escorted the passengers and railroad officers to a banquet at the Claremont Country Club.

“This year’s event is special”, remarks Donna Mills, event Chairman. “It’s not often we see a passenger train travel the freight only Feather River Canyon Route. This one is coming expressly to help us celebrate Portola Railroad Days. We couldn’t be more excited!”

According to Mills, Chris and Deborah Skow has been instrumental with coordinating the event this year—especially the train. “People just don’t get the opportunity to experience the Feather River Canyon by train anymore. Regular passenger-train operations through the Canyon ceased in 1970.”

Mills said the town plans to “roll out the red carpet” to welcome visitors and the train passengers, just like it did 100 years ago. “Our celebration grows every year. This year we are really focusing on bringing the railroad, the town and its visitors together,” commented Mills.

“We have activities planned for the whole family that will stretch from one end of town all the way to the Western Pacific Railroad Museum. We have several shows planned, including a live ‘train robbery’, a classic car show, music, historic slide shows, a parade, train rides, and more. We will have carnival rides and are planning a town-wide scavenger hunt with local merchants.”

The event includes an outdoor art and crafts show. City crews close Commercial Street to automobile traffic so that vendors and pedestrians can have free reign of the entire street for the weekend. Many local merchants host special sidewalk sales. This year event planners hope to add an art exhibit and auction inside the Feather Community Arts Center as well (located about midway down Commercial Street) to help raise funds for the event.

The Portola Railroad Days Planning Committee has started receiving vendor applications for the outdoor art and crafts show but says there is still plenty of room available. For more information or a vendor application, please call Lorraine Wakefield at (530) 832-0446. For information on the 28 th annual Portola Railroad Days Festival call (530) 832-6032 or visit www.PortolaRailroadDays.com. For information on The Feather RiverExpress excursion train call 1-800 359-4870 or visit www.traintrips.biz

HISTORIC PHOTOS AVAILABLE - Call for information

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March 29, 2010

Portola Railroad Days Names Grand Marshall

Portola, Calif. (March 29, 2010) — Portola Railroad Days (PRRD) committee nominated Bob Larson as Grand Marshall for the 28 th annual Portola Railroad Days Golden Spike Parade on Saturday, August 20, 2010 in Portola, California. The event kicks off with a community barbeque, music and a carnival on Thursday, August 19, and ends on Sunday, August 22.

Bob “Hoopie” Larson, long time resident of Portola and retired locomotive engineer from Western Pacific and Union Pacific railroads, is respected by both his extended “railroad family” and local residents in the greater Portola area.

As is true with many railroad employees, Larson was also a railfan during the span of his 40-year career with the railroad. Larson carried a camera with him from the beginning of his career in 1956 until he retired in 1997. He created an extensive slide collection of his railroad adventures from the perspective of a railroad employee. Some of his life’s work is published in several books, including Life on the Feather River Route – A Railroader’s Pictorial Scrapbook of Memories by Bob Larson, Four Ways West Publications, 2005; and Western Pacific Trackside with Bob Larson by Tim Morris, Morning Sun Books, Inc., 1999.

Larson, who now lives in Las Vegas, still has a home in Blairsden, California. PRRD invited him to share his work in a special presentation during Portola Railroad Days’ commemorative celebration of the 100 anniversary of the first passenger train over the Western Pacific Railway.

Portola Railroad Days’ theme this year, “Tracking through the Sierras”, focuses on the pioneering spirit of early Portola and the Western Pacific Railroad. According to event planners, Portola Railroad Days will include an array of family-oriented activities including refreshments, live music, entertainment, art & crafts, classic cars and much more.

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