Central Coast Railroad Festival Announces Rail Excursions on National Train Day and Beyond

For Immediate Release
April 27, 2012

Central Coast Railroad Festival Offers National Train Day & Summer Excursions

Wine Rail Excursions Continue on the 2nd Sunday of Each Month, Plus Special NTD Family Excursions & More

The Central Coast Railroad Festival is expanding its offering of unique rail excursions on the California Central Coast. CCRRF Wine Rail Excursions will continue on the Second Sunday of every month. Special Family and Wine Rail Excursions have just been scheduled for National Train Day on Saturday, May 12th as well as to the June 22nd Pomar Junction Train Wreck Friday party.


The Coast Starlight on the Cuesta Horseshoe Curve
Photo credit: Jim Radford

The National Train Day Family Excursion on Saturday, May 12th includes a round trip ride on Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner from Grover Beach to SLO and back. The trip starts at 11:30am at the Station Grill in Grover Beach and visits the NTD activities at SLO's Amtrak Station. The NTD event in SLO will include railroad art displays and running model trains from the SLO Model Railroad Association. Upon returning to the Grover Beach Station Doc Burnstein's Big Red Truck will meet everyone with a free ice cream treat!

The CCRRF will also sponsor a National Train Day Wine Rail Excursion on Saturday, May 12th. This Excursion will start at the SLO Amtrak Station at 3:00pm and feature a ride on Amtrak's Coast Starlight between SLO and Paso Robles. Guests will also enjoy wine tasting and railroad songs and stories from troubadour Don Lampson at the D'Anbino Tasting Room in Paso Robles.

The monthly Second Sunday Wine Rail Excursions offer guests the opportunity to enjoy a special historic and scenic train ride on Amtrak's Coast Starlight up or down the Cuesta Grade. These Excursions also include railroad history, a light lunch and visits to rail related wineries. Three new excursions are now available: a Sunday, May 13th trip which starts in SLO and visits Pomar Junction Winery; a Sunday, June 10th trip which starts in Paso Robles and visits D'Anbino Tasting Room and Pomar Junction Winery; and a third trip on Sunday, July 8th which starts in SLO and visits Pomar Junction Winery.

A special Excursion will be offered on Friday, June 22nd to Pomar Junction Winery and one of its famous Train Wreck Friday parties. This trip starts in SLO at 3:00pm and includes a ride on Amtrak's Coast Starlight between SLO and Paso Robles, a private bus trip to Pomar Junction and return to SLO. At Pomar guests can enjoy BBQ, wine, rockin' blues from the Brad Wilson Band and a sunset over the vineyards.

Wine Rail Excursions are $49 for adults and $39 for children 15 and under. Each Excursion is limited to 24 friendly guests and they generally sell out in advance. The train/bus trip to the Pomar Train Wreck Friday party is $39 per person. The NTD Family Excursion is being offered for $19 per child (up to 15 years old) and $25 for adults. Tickets are available only online at www.ccrrf.com/excursions.html. Complete Excursion information is also available at the Festival's website.

The Central Coast Railroad Festival celebrates rail's history future and fun throughout San Luis Obispo County. The 4th Annual Festival will take place October 4-8, 2012. The Festival also sponsors excursions, concerts and other activities year round. Further information on the Festival, including photos and schedules from past years, and an email notification sign up, can be found at www.ccrrf.com/contacts.html or by calling the Festival office at 805-773-4173.

For more information:

http://www.ccrrf.com/
http://www.nationaltrainday.com/
http://www.amtrak.com/
http://www.pomarjunction.com/
http://www.danbino.com/
http://www.stationgrill.net/
http://www.docburnsteins.com/
http://slomra.org/
http://www.donlampson.com/aboutme.htm

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Contact:
Curtis Reinhardt, Director
Central Coast Railroad Festival
805-773-4173
webmaster@ccrrf.com