News and Events

2009/08/03  Commission Meeting Revels in CC-VC Ticket Sales, Deals with Broken Locomotive, and Hears Plans for Western Village in Carson Canyon

Ticket sales are going very well (at $48.00) for interim operations this summer.  Locomotive #18 (McCloud River Railroad) was returned with significant bearing damage to the Comstock this past week.  The Bertagnolli family plans to build a historic recreation of a western village in Brunswick Canyon.  The Sierra Railroad is getting paid $21,300 to do a study of how interim operations should be conducted, who pays for what, and what the ticket prices should be.  The meeting notes have been posted.

2009/06/08  Commission May Allow Steam Operations in August

The Nevada Commission for the Restoration of the Virginia and Truckee Railway plans to write an interim use agreement with the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau to allow trains to operate in August for a planned Railfest event.  See the meeting notes for a record of the discussions.

2009/05/26  Finally, Water and Sewer Service to the Depot

The transaction to buy the Svetic property by the Nevada Commission for the Reconstruction of the Virginia and Truckee Railway between the depot and Main Street was completed earlier this year.  This now provides the most-direct possible route for water and sewer service to the depot.  Volunteers cleared about 200 cubic yards of dirt and rock over the memorial day weekend, and the County will be digging the trenches within the next few weeks.

2009/05/23  V&T Railroad's Successful Opening Day for 2009

The first train of the day was nearly full leaving Virginia City for Gold Hill this morning behind steam Consolidation locomotive #29.  New, higher ticket prices were in effect.  The additional fares were very well accepted by the public.  The additional funds will be used to prepare the two new (antique) coaches for passenger operations when the long line to Carson City is opened up to the V&T RR, and to buy a badly-needed third coach.  The Nevada Commission for the Reconstruction of the Virginia and Truckee Railway has not yet decided when those operations will be permitted, but the current V&T operator from Virginia City to Gold Hill is ready to start any time.

2009/03/10  Nevada State Railroad Museum Operating Schedule for 2009

2180 South Carson Street (at Fairview Avenue traffic light), Carson City, NV 89701

Fares:

Steam -- Adults $5.00, Seniors 65+ $4.00, Children 6-11: $3.00

Motor Car -- Adults $4.00, Seniors 65+ $3.00, Children 6-11:  $2.00

Santa Train -- All seats $2.00

Active duty military and veterans on Flag Day June 14th -- Free

Schedule is subject to change without notice and equipment substitution may take place at any time.

2009/01/13  Railroad Commission Meeting Addresses Prickly Operational Issues and Operating Subsidy

For the first time it was publicly stated that the railroad will require a continuing subsidy, with the strong (to the point of certainty) implication that the railroad will not generate revenues sufficient to pay back any of the bonds or to provide any direct revenues to the participating counties.  Click here for notes taken at this meeting by the GHHS.

2009/01/11  German Modeler Builds High-quality O-Scale V&T Equipment

Pastor Thomas Ahlhelm of Urbach, Thuringen, Germany has been working on V&T models for many years.  Click here to see some photographs of his work.

2009/01/04  Virginia & Truckee Railroad Expands Operational Plans for 2009; May Include Gold Hill Depot

With the acquisition of new equipment and the publicity surrounding the construction project for the extended line to Mound House, the existing Virginia & Truckee Railroad is ramping up plans for the new year.  Dinner trains, charters and possibly a BBQ venue are being added; probably not all of them the first year.  We are also hoping that the railroad will use the new, enclosed coaches to offer some late winter or early spring test market runs, with appropriate publicity, of course.  That will depend on reaching an interim operating agreement with the railroad reconstruction commission.

Can there be a BBQ lunch venue in their plans?  The Gold Hill depot grounds could be made available to the railroad, given the necessary permits and a major cleanup of the existing track components.  The membership of the Gold Hill Historical Society are working with the Virginia & Truckee Railroad management to see if this can be done for 2009.  Two other BBQ sites are also under consideration, but we believe that the Gold Hill site would be the most interesting.

2008/12/21  Gold Hill Historical Society Makes Copies of the 1994 V&T Reconstruction Study Report Available On-line

The GHHS has built an electronic copy of the subject study in order to help give it greater distribution.  That study contains financial projections and lists many operational issues that the newly-reconstructed railroad to Carson City must solve before it can successfully become a major tourist attraction and turn a profit.  Most of these issues remain unsolved to this day.  The following documents are now available:

1. Feasibility and Economic Impact of the Expanded Virginia & Truckee Railroad, September 1994 (9.7 MB PDF)
2. Economic Impact Study Update (RIMS - II Study of 2008) of the Extended Railroad Operation (41kB PDF)

3. Excel(tm) Spreadsheet Data for the September 1994 Report:

   Table of similar recreational railroads in the United States

   Table of fares of similar United States recreational railroad

   Visitor Questionnaire Response Data

   Ridership Estimates

   Financial Tables

2008/12/08 Important Notes from the December Meeting of the Nevada State Commission for the Reconstruction of the Virginia & Truckee Railway (http://www.vtrailway.com/)

Operational details were discussed at the December, 2008 meeting that will have implications for how far, and even if, any trains run over the extended line in 2009.

2008/11/17  V&T Bridge Construction Over Highway 50 at Mound House

Excavation in preparation for setting of bridge piers along Highway 50 started on this date.  View looking southeast.  Photo by S. Stough.

Click to download full image (607 kB).

2008/11/14  Updated 11/30 Gold Hill Depot Track Construction

Thanks to Kim Fegert for giving up his weekends to build the two house tracks at Gold Hill Depot.  As of Friday, November 14th, the switch and derail have been installed, and a short length of track beyond.  As of Thanksgiving, the second switch has been installed and the house track for the locomotive (last photo in the series) has been tacked together, including the switch ties for the west side track.  Once ballasted, there will be enough track to hold Feather River Shortline Locomotive #8.  Volunteers Funds, materials and equipment loans were also arranged by Kim and included funds from volunteer scrap work in Reno (Kim was allowed to keep the funds from scrapping steel highway rail) and 17 years of collecting supplies from around Northern Nevada.  Below are some additional construction photos.  Click on the thumbnails to enlarge (download the .jpg files).

2008/11/09  Pennsylvania Venture Capital Firm to Evaluate Comstock Tourism Investment Potential

New Venture Strategies, Inc. of Wayne, Pennsylvania, a firm that performs business case analyses for Philadelphia and Washington, DC area venture capital investors, has been collecting data on local tourism to support business case trade-offs.  The core assumption is that the V&T reconstruction project is completed at least to the head of the Carson River Canyon south of Mound House, and that the Comstock area can be transformed from a local day-trip venue to a world-class, destination (over-night stay) family entertainment attraction, building on the historical recreation potential of the area.  Members of the Gold Hill Historical Society, and others, have been asked to supply ideas and current econometrics to New Venture Strategies, Inc.

The business case analyses will remain private to New Venture Strategies' clients.  The Gold Hill Society hopes to obtain a non-confidential extract of the final report and recommendations.  If we are successful in getting access to the report, we will post the results here.

Individuals wishing to assist the effort should contact Steve Stough at the Gold Hill Historical Society.

2008/11/06  V&T Railroad Reconstruction Photo Status

A collection of overhead photographs was taken of the Virginia & Truckee Railroad construction on this date.  Six of the images are provided here.  Click on them to enlarge (download the full JPEG file(s)).  Photos courtesy of Steve Stough.

Curve at Tunnel 2 (1.3 MB)	Tunnel 2 (570 kB)	Upper Mound House Siding (1.12 MB)
Upper Mound House Cut and Fill (652 kB)	Lower Mound House Grading Near Highway 50 (490 kB)	End of Track (at quarry) (407 kB)

2008/10/07  Acquisition of Adjoining Land for Access

The Commission for the Restoration of the Virginia and Truckee Railroad has entered into negotiations for acquisition of a parcel in Gold Hill that would permit parking at the Gold Hill Depot and direct access to the property.  The owners have offered to sell.  This is not an imminent domain case.  Settlement is likely in the month of October.

2008/08/31  V&T Historic Society Seminar

The Virginia & Truckee Railroad Historic Society hosted Guy Rocha, the Nevada State Archivist, for a presentation on mining and miners.  Steve Stough from the GHHS presented a short introduction (click here for presentation charts -- 740KB .pdf).

2008/08/05  Storey County Renews Gold Hill Depot Lease to GHHS

Storey County renewed the Gold Hill Historical Society's lease on the Gold Hill depot for another five years.  The County also agreed to repair road and track grades on the properties adjacent to the Gold Hill depot.  Specifically, Telegraph Street will be replaced on its original alignment, so that the Virginia & Truckee railroad grade can be rebuilt, in order to connect the spur switch at Gold Hill to new track that the GHHS will construct to connect the existing V&T operation to the depot.

Re-grading is expected to occur as soon as the equipment returns from fire-fighting in California.  As of 8/14/2008, most of the road bed has been moved.

2008/07/26.  Airmen's Charity Dinner to Benefit Gold Hill

A private charity dinner was held at Cuesta Soledad, a private house in Red Rock, for the Santa Clara County Airmen's Association of California in support of the Gold Hill Historical Society.

2004/01/16  Railroad Project is On!  From the Virginia City Register.

2004/01/02  Railroad Hostage Freed  From the Virginia City Register

2003/12/19  Madman Chains Self to Rail  From the Virginia City Register

Last updated 2009/08/04