Redwood Valley Railway

Redwood Valley Railway
Locomotive No. 7 "Oak" and passengers
Overview
WebsiteTilden Park Steam Train on Facebook
Technical
Line length1.2 mi (1.9 km)
Track gauge15 in (381 mm)
Highest elevation497 m (1,631 ft)

The Redwood Valley Railway is a 15 in (381 mm) gauge miniature railway at Tilden Regional Park near Berkeley, California, United States.[1]

History

890m
970yds
13
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10
9
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1

Selected locations in and near Tilden Regional Park 
  •  Points of interest 
  •  Nearby parks and museums 
1
Tilden Little Farm
2
Tilden Park Merry-Go-Round
3
Inspiration Point
4
Lake Anza
5
Brazilian Room
6
Regional Parks Botanic Garden
7
Tilden Park Golf Course
8
Redwood Valley Railway
9
Blake Garden
10
Indian Rock Park
11
Berkeley Rose Garden
12
Lawrence Hall of Science
13
San Pablo Reservoir

It was established in 1952 by Erich Thomsen as the Tilden South Gate and Pacific Railway, on a 12 in (305 mm) gauge, and has since expanded to 1+1⁄4 miles (2 km) of track and carries over 160,000 passengers yearly.[2] Thomsen worked in the engineering department for the Western Pacific Railroad[3] and received at least three patents for his work.[4][5][6] The railway occupies land near the base of Vollmer Peak that was previously used as an anti-aircraft gun emplacement.[2][7]

800 now-mature redwood trees were planted when the railroad was initially laid out.[7] In 1968, the railroad was re-gauged to 15 in (381 mm) in.[8] The new 15" gauge, 5" scale equipment allowed two adults to ride side by side and is representative of American narrow gauge railroads.[9] Two of Redwood Valley's locomotives have made trips to England, run on several English 15 in gauge railways, including the Ravenglass and Eskdale.[9][10] After Thomsen died in 1995, his daughter Ellen Thomsen assumed operations of the Redwood Valley Railway,[11] which included the planting of 900 redwood trees on the property by 2019.[12]

The railway's 10-year lease with the East Bay Regional Park District expired in 2019, and Thomsen and the district have not been able to agree on terms for a long-term lease.[13][14] The railway does not receive any financial contribution from the district, and operations, maintenance, landscaping, and fire hazard abatement are paid for with private funds.[13] She told SFGate in October 2025 that the lease dispute is preventing the railway from getting county permits to make capital improvements to the site, and said that "with no legal protection, we may have to pick up everything and leave".[13] A statement by the district called the Redwood Valley Railway "a cherished and valued resource".[13]

Operations

Rides last approximately 12-15 minutes[7] along the 1.25 mile track.[12] As of October 2024, a ticket for adults and children over 2 are $4,[14] or $16 for five rides.[15] Dogs are allowed on the train but are required to be on a leash at all times.

Schedule

The Redwood Valley Railway (RVRy) operates Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 6pm year-round (11am to sundown in winter - weather permitting).

During the summer (from mid June to Labor Day) the railway operates 7 days a week from 11am to 5pm weekdays and 11am to 6pm weekends.

Special events

The first full weekend in June is the Anniversary Meet, which is open to the public from 11am to 6pm. Most of the RVRy's locomotives are under steam, and often visiting locomotives and rolling stock appear for the occasion.

RVRy celebrates "Winterfest" during the first and second weekends of December, where the railway stays open until 7pm and "Father Solstice", with his green suit and puffy white beard, rides along.[12]

Rolling stock

Locomotives

The railroad has four 15-inch scale steam locomotives, designed by Erich Thomsen and built on location by the railroad's Redwood Valley Shops. Each is designed for service on the RVRy and while they are not based on any full-size prototypes, they share many details with engines built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works built between 1875 and 1910.[2][10] They hold about 150 gallons of water and make 10 trips. In addition, RVRy owns a single diesel-hydraulic locomotive, number 2, which only is used for work trains.[16]

Number/name Class Wheel arrangement Builder Year Notes Photograph
2
Juniper 		0-4-0 Erich Thomsen 1930s Diesel-hydraulic locomotive, used mainly for non-revenue operations. Formerly used vintage Hercules engine. Rebuilt in 2008.[16]
4
Laurel 		Columbia 2-4-2 Erich Thomsen's basement workshop 1965 In revenue service.[17] Received new boiler and tender tank.
5
Fern 		American 4-4-0 Redwood Valley Shops 1986 In revenue service. Rebuilt in 2014.[8][18]
7
Oak 		Prairie 2-6-2 Redwood Valley Shops 2005 In revenue service starting April 2006; built c.1978–2006 by Ray Pimlott.[19][20] Partially rebuilt October–December 2017. Running gear rebuilt 2025.
11
Sequoia 		Ten-Wheeler 4-6-0 Redwood Valley Shops 1976 In revenue service starting September 1978. Rebuilt early 2018.[19][21]
18

Anne

0-4-0 Hillcrest Shops 2001 Built for Chris Allen's private railroad. Lettered for West Side Flume & Lumber Co. (WSF&LCo.) Donated 2022. Used for special events.
02 Rail Truck West Side Locomotive Works 1995 Built by Ken Kukuk while awaiting GSP&P 13's boiler. Same as H&W 03 & HH&YV 08. Lettered for GSP&P.

Cars and other stock

The Redwood Valley Railway maintains 13 wooden gondolas, built similar to those found on 36" narrow-gauge lines in the American West.[22] The gondolas, equipped with seating for up to eight adults, are the mainstay passenger rolling stock for this operation. The RVRy also owns three stock cars which have been specifically built to carry passengers as well. These are often favorites with small children, although a full-sized adult can comfortably fit inside.

Other equipment includes a boxcar, a pair of extra convertible gondolas (from flatcars), which can either haul passengers or satisfy maintenance-of-way needs.

The RVRy owns 13 four-wheel maintenance-of-way cars known as "jimmies", which have specialized uses such as welding, tie replacement, or carrying ballast. Two of which came with WSF&LCo. 18, built for Chris Allen by the Hillcrest and Wahtoke in 2001.

The RVRy's first flatcar was built as a high school shop project by one of the crew in the 1970s. Three more have followed since then.

Unique among the roster of cars is a coal gondola, once used to carry extra coal for number 4. Coal was used up until the mid-1970s when number 4 was converted to fuel oil. The coal gondola, with its higher sides, is infrequently used. It currently carries a few dozen metal folding chairs for the annual meet.

A favorite with both young and old is the caboose. Based on a D&RGW 36" gauge prototype, this "short" center cupola caboose has graced the end of most revenue trains for over 30 years.

Future projects

Parts for a 2-4-4 Forney and a 2-6-0 exist, but currently remain unassembled. Plans for a second caboose and a lavish, scale (down to the furniture, wallpaper, and bar with tiny glasses) business car are in the works.

As of late-2024, the boiler and frame for number 13, the aforementioned 2-6-0 have been manufactured and are on-site. Not to be confused with a visiting GSP&P 13 from the Glenwood, Southpark and Pacific.

Former

Number 1 Cricket, the 12 in (305 mm)-gauge 4-4-0 steam locomotive that was first used when service started in 1952,[2] along with a few 12" gauge cars were sold to the Folsom Valley Ry. in Folsom, California[23][24]

Storage

The RVRy has 3 barns to store cars when not in use. They also have a roundhouse, which has a viewing window to see their other steam engines. There is also a tunnel, which was going to be part of an expansion line, until it collapsed mid-way. The tunnel is now used to hold four cars.

References

  1. ^ "www.redwoodvalleyrailway.com site". Archived from the original on May 21, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d DelVecchio, Rick (June 1, 2002). "Tilden's iron horses / Miniature railroad celebrates 50 years in Berkeley". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
  3. ^ "Like You To Meet: The Redwood Valley Railway". The Blue Parrot's perch. June 9, 2010. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  4. ^ US 2475164, Thomsen, Erich, "Sanitary discharge nozzle for hose", published July 5, 1949 
  5. ^ US 3469784, Campbell, Jackson E & Thomsen, Erich, "Apparatus for reducing shells in outer-curve rails", published May 17, 1968 
  6. ^ US 3496882, Campbell, Jackson E & Thomsen, Erich, "Method for reducing shells in outer-curve rails", published February 24, 1970 
  7. ^ a b c Hartlaub, Peter (August 10, 2016). "Bay Area small-train culture gains steam". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  8. ^ a b Mitchell, Steve (2014). "Trip Report – Redwood Valley Railway". Yard Goat Images. Archived from the original on May 4, 2015. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  9. ^ a b Booth, Steve. "History". Archived from the original on April 24, 2003.
  10. ^ a b Thomsen, Erich. "Architecture First". Archived from the original on June 6, 2003.
  11. ^ Ioffee, Karina (November 19, 2025). "Tilden steam train owner says Berkeley Hills attraction's days may be numbered". Berkeleyside.
  12. ^ a b c Tyska, Jane (December 20, 2019). "The steam trains return for annual Winterfest in Tilden Park". East Bay Times. Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  13. ^ a b c d Pawlowska, Kasia. "'We're out of time': Bay Area institution's future uncertain amid lease dispute". SFGATE. Archived from the original on November 26, 2025. Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  14. ^ a b "Dispute over lease agreement puts East Bay's Tilden Park Steam Train in jeopardy - CBS San Francisco". www.cbsnews.com. October 26, 2025. Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  15. ^ "Redwood Valley Railway".
  16. ^ a b Callan, Miles (March 7, 2009). "In Depth: Redwood Valley Railway's #2". Interacting with Miniature Railroading [blog]. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  17. ^ Bailey, Douglas C. "Redwood Valley RR No. 4 "Laurel"". steamlocomotive.info. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  18. ^ Bailey, Douglas C. "Redwood Valley RR No. 5 "Fern"". steamlocomotive.info. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  19. ^ a b Bender, Kristin (September 11, 2006). "Chief engineer keeps trains running in Berkeley hills". East Bay Times. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  20. ^ Bailey, Douglas C. "Redwood Valley RR No. 7 "Oak"". steamlocomotive.info. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  21. ^ Bailey, Douglas C. "Redwood Valley RR No. 11 "Sequoia"". steamlocomotive.info. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  22. ^ Callan, Miles (June 7, 2008). "What prototypes are the Redwood Valley's cars based?". Interacting with Miniature Railroading. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  23. ^ Quinn, Evan. "Folsom Valley Railway". Central California Rails [blog]. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  24. ^ Bailey, Douglas C. "Folsom Valley Railroad No. 1". steamlocomotive.info. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
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