Author: The Nack Daddy

Following the Big Boy’s arrival, Hen & I again grabbed a bite at the Zephyr Cafe, then joined the throngs of people exploring the neighboring Utah State Railroad Museum.

Located in the city’s old Union Station, the museum is home to UP 833, the sister engine to the one accompanying the Big Boy, as well as to extensive model railroads and an old automobile museum. (Could this place be designed any better for Henry?!) Other highlights included seeing one of the train cars featured in the 2002 Olympic Torch relay as well as a car from the Golden Spike centennial 50 years ago. Hen narrated plenty of footage for his YouTube channel while wrestling his own furious (and highly verboten) desire to climb all over the engines. Oh—and the museum featured a live countdown until the Golden Spike ceremony, by then just over 22 hours away!

Check out some photos from our visit, as well as a quick video tour of the grounds. (“That kid does not know a thing about trains,” Hen remarked more than once.)

Man, it’s taken a full week for Henry & me to decompress from our trip and to just start sharing our adventures. To make things manageable, I’ve opted to break our epic into sections. So… here we go!

Flying into Salt Lake on Wednesday afternoon, we bumped into some fellow railfans who were already prepping their period garb for the celebrations. After landing we grabbed our car & headed up to Ogden, UT, where the famous Big Boy steam engine—the world’s largest at 1.2 million pounds (!), and newly restored after years of work—was due to make its triumphant return. Hen & I found shelter from the blustery evening in the trackside Zephyr Cafe, constructed from an old railcar!

And then, the next morning—it was time. Hen was, of course, practically vibrating with excitement, and he wasn’t let down. Union Pacific & the state of Utah put on quite a show—bringing in the governor & other speakers, and shutting down streets to host numerous pop-up shops. After much excited waiting, we finally saw the old gal pull in & get reunited with UP’s other working steam engine, the 844. Making up with sneakiness what he lacks in height, Hen was able to make his way to near the front of the crowd to capture some shots.

Check out those images & more in our gallery!