So sorry. That was a fun little ride. Loved the turntable.

Oh NO, say it ain't so. My wife has stage 4 cancer and if she makes it, that is the one thing she wanted to do again when we go back to Maui. So sorry to hear this. I won't tell her for a while. Very sad day in Maui. So glad we got to ride it 2 or 3 times. Loved the little turn table then had.

Why are they loosing their ROW ?

Steve

I'm trying to find out. The owner is a sharp guy. I have a call in for him. Will let you know. Don

Always rode the train, Sad to see it go. I too wonder why the loss.

have my 8mm film   from 1977, 

 That train  should be considered a national treasure and protected.Given that its been around so long.And a piece of history.

I'm glad I shot almost every run for a week when they had sold it to a mainland company. We all thought that was the end of it. Maui folks got together and stopped the sale and a local guy and his partner bought it. I don't think anyone local will want it now that it's less than half the length it was. The plan was to move the station and turn table up on the hill at the new end of line. The cost was going to be huge. They have to charge $50 each to ride the Christmas Train.

Well anyway we have about 20 hours of HD video and interviews with the original owners and more. I think it will make a good hour or so video. Will keep you posted. Don

On the subject - This guy is hanging out in the PA RR museum

Dang it.

I was hoping to get back out there again and ride this again someday. Though it was a classic, "ride to nowhere" it was a lot of fun.

My wife and I were lucky to get to ride this. In 2003, we took a cruise ship through the islands and a storm blocked us from going to Fanning Island, so we landed at Lahaina instead (though there's no dock there, so we had to be ferried to the ship and back which took quite a while), just a few blocks from their depot with the turntable. They were running steam daily then. Did a luau that evening, too. Wasn't part of the original plan but it was the best day of the cruise, for me (and yes, my wife enjoyed it).

That is really distressing news! I will try to give you a call tomorrow or over the weekend, Don. Have other "stuff" to discuss with you as well, my friend.

OK Allan, I will be home. Vicky got a dream job working for the harbor master in Lahaina. The little yellow building on the left is her office. Water on three sides. Not bad. Don

Yep, gone right past that when I was there!

Lee, there is a siding about half way up the line. I asked the original owners about it. They told me at one time they ran both steam trains all day and they built the siding so they could pass each other. When we moved here eight years ago the one train was almost empty most of the time. The last owners didn't care about the train. There were three derailments that I know about in one year. On one of the last runs I was filming before they shut down the last time. A coupler fell apart just before we crossed the trestle. We had to slowly back down to the engine house with men working the hand brakes of the cars. Four of us had to search the high brush for parts of a coupler. We collected enough parts to make a coupler. The passengers thought it great fun watching us for about an hour. Don

Gee...l do hate that news, for the second time!!  Glad l checked that off my bucket list.  Don't understand how this could be allowed...this is part of history of all the islands. And American history....not Cuba or India?  Is that where else you have sugar cane railroad history?  I could even spell the name of it....

colorado hirailer posted:

Is that where else you have sugar cane railroad history? 

Louisiana.

At least two Louisiana sugar plantation narrow gauge locomotives are still in operation.

No kidding on two Louisiana sugar trains running!!  Dang...missed those on my plantation and N'awlins self driving tour!!  No advertising, hiding under bushel?  And l even spent the night in a haunted plantation house. Ghost trains would go with ghost houses.  They had sugar cane and  mills in FLA , too... trains??....(l locked myself out of a rental car outside mill ruins in FLA. but think may be very old Spanish mill?)

colorado hirailer posted:

No kidding on two Louisiana sugar trains running!!  Dang...missed those on my plantation and N'awlins self driving tour!! 

They're not in Louisiana any more. They're in California.

News story on the subject:

The Sugar Cane Train’s “Holiday Express” may reach the end of the line after this year with the owners saying they currently are unable to secure a deal from a major landowner to keep the train running.

Train co-owner and Lahaina businessman Todd Domeck said that for several years they have been trying to work out a lease or purchase agreement with a private landowner in order to run the train full- time.