Crossroads Village in Flint is a living history museum where actors present historical re-enactments of everyday life for early American towns. Huckleberry Railroad is a part of the experience for visitors. The train ride is 40 minutes long and travels through woods, meadows and along Mott Lake. The riders sit in wooden coach cars, some original, others replicas, and are pulled by one of two restored coal-fired locomotives. Trains run during the summer season from the end of May through Labor Day, Wednesdays through Sundays.
Crossroads Village and Huckleberry Railroad
6140 Bray Road
Flint, MI 48505
800-648-PARK
geneseecountyparks.org
Junction Valley Railroad in Bridgeport, Mich., is an operating display railway that was completely designed and built to be a family train ride. The buildings, trestles, tunnels, bridges and the trains were all engineered for Junction Valley Railroad. The train ride is 2 miles long. Different types of train cars are available to riders, from enclosed to an open-air, wagon style. The locomotives and cars at Junction Valley are quarter-sized, smaller than actual operating trains. The track includes 16 railroad bridges and five highway bridges, more than 30 buildings and stations, 60 track switches and a 100-foot tunnel. Junction Valley is open seven days a week from the end of May through Labor Day. Around Halloween, special haunted train rides attract thrill seekers.
Junction Valley Railroad
7065 Dixie Highway
Bridgeport, MI 48722
989-777-3480
jvrailroad.com
The Coopersville and Marne Railway, in Coopersville in West Michigan, offers train excursions for families on antique passenger cars. The 14-mile trip from Coopersville to Marne, then back again, on a section of the Grand Trunk railroad lasts an hour and 15 minutes. On regular, non-theme train trips, the conductor points out interesting locations along the way, while music from the 1800s is played in the background. Throughout the year, theme trips offer some extra entertainment during the trip. Great Train Robbery excursions give passengers the experience of being chased by gun-toting train robbers on horseback, then boarded and "robbed" of their fake money and jewels they were given before departing. The Bunny Train runs around Easter, the Pumpkin Train in the fall and Santa Train around Christmas. On Memorial Day, a Veteran's Free Troop Train mimics the troop trains of World War II and veterans of any military branch ride for free. Train rides run from April through December, with additional rides added May through October.
Coopersville and Marne Railway
311 Danforth St.
Coopersville, MI 49404
616-997-7000 ext. 4
coopersvilleandmarne.org
