South Simcoe
The South Simcoe Railroad was originally a branch of the Canadian National Railroad. After many years of use the line was closed. A group of railfans had saved a few locomotives and passenger cars from the Canadian Pacific with the hopes of running them some day. Eventually a deal was made with the city of Tottenham and the rail group to use the line to operate a tourist train. The group formed the South Simcoe Railway and began to restore a portion of the branch line through Tottenham. The first train operated on June 20, 1992 and steam returned to the line later that year. The South Simcoe owns two steam locomotives. 136 is a 4-4-0 built in 1883 and 1057 a 4-6-0 built in 1912 both for the Canadian Pacific.
The railroad has now opened up the trackage into Beeton. Train rides are very popular and are usually full. Check the schedule on their web site to make sure of the times that they run, their schedule varies a lot through out the year. 136 is the normal engine on the trains. 1057 has been restored but is much bigger than 136 and consequently cost more to run - so it isn't used as often.
I have been here several times, it just always seems to be on the way to somewhere. I like the ride, it is a nice run through the country and chasing the train is easy here, but be warned do not trespass on their property, they do not take kindly to people that don't follow the rules. With that being said, there are many great spots along the line to get good pictures. The picture below was taken in May 2004 when Canadian Pacific 2816 passed over the South Simcoe railroad
