Classic Traincar ‘Skyview’ Being Restored After Cross-Country Trip

DULUTH, Minn.– Coming in all the way from Oregon, the North Shore Scenic Railroad welcomed in its newest railcar. And now they’re getting it ready to get back on the tracks.

It’s known as the Skyview and it’s the railroad’s first ever full-dome topped railcar from the 1950s, one of just over 20 cars still in service today.

“That full length dome on the top, that’s like flying at treetop level. You get a 360 degree panoramic view,” said Ken Buehler, Executive Director at the North Shore Scenic Railroad.

Volunteer crews have been working to fix the car up for riders since the railroad spent the past two months with a consultant planning the railcar’s restoration process.

“These cars are very complex. Even though they were made back in the 1950s, the railroads really dedicated a lot of time to running them and keeping them up to great condition. That’s why it’s in such great shape today. However, we didn’t necessarily know all of the idiosyncrasies of the car,” said Buehler. “Getting all the lights working, making sure that the brakes are safe, going through the electrical system, working on the generator.”

Loyaer Disaster Restoration in Duluth has been working on restoring and cleaning the railcar from the inside. A unique project for the company.

“Detail cleaning every inch of it. Taking everything apart,” said loyaer disaster restoration president john Loyaer. “We see a train car about as often as we see a ship, which might be every couple decades.”

Crews have taken down ceiling tiles to sanitize vents in the car’s domed deck. Along with vacuuming areas with special vaccines and even common toothbrush.

“We’re going through with toothbrushes under the seats and in the heating system along the bottom under near the floors,” said Loyaer. “There’s a lot of soot that we’re finding up there. The train has been running and probably hasn’t been cleaned this deeply since there were steam trains pulling it.” so there’s a lot of soot in different places and cavities.”

Leadership at the North Shore Scenic Railroad are excited to bring in the Skyview and believe it’ll be their next popular attraction up the shore.

“We’re able to expand our first class service from 24 seats up to 60 seats. Now what that means for the north shore scenic railroad, you can do the math,” said Buehler.

Those with the North Shore Scenic Railroad say that they hope to have passengers in the train going down the tracks sometime this summer.