The Heber Creeper is dead. Long live the Heber Valley Historic Railroad Authority.
OK, so maybe the new name doesn't have the same ring to it, but it's better than the alternative - no railroad at all.Besides, notes Ken McConnell, Authority chairman, just because the new railroad line can't legally use the name Heber Creeper - that moniker still belongs to the previous operator - doesn't mean railroad fans can't . . . and do.
"I'm just thrilled that the Heber Creeper is up and running again," said a woman passenger as she herded her four youngsters off the train following the 16-mile run from the railroad's new depot in Heber City down to Vivian Park in Provo Canyon.
"I was afraid I had missed the chance for my kids to know what it's like to ride the train."
She's not alone in that sentiment. Many Utahns and as many tourists were shocked and dismayed when the famed recreational train, launched in July 1971, made its final run in October 1989.
The Heber Creeper, owned by New London Railroad and Village Inc., headed by Heber City businessman Lowe Ashton, is a private company that owned the former terminal property and some of the rolling stock and leased the tracks from the state.
Beset by litigation and financial troubles, the Creeper's end came when New London rejected as insufficient a 1991 $1.13 million buyout offer from the state, which then withdrew its offer. The Creeper then was history.
It might have stayed that way were it not for the efforts of a dedicated band of Heber City residents who labored and lobbied for 18 months to convince the Legislature that if the city would donate property for a new depot, they should appropriate $1 million in start-up funds for a new railroad, along with an additional $400,000 to be set aside for track maintenance and repair.
That's the way it worked out. Heber City paid $40,000 to buy 3.9 acres three blocks south of the old Heber Creeper depot and yard, and the lawmakers came up with the $1 million seed money. The choo-choo was back on track.
In its new incarnation, the railroad is set up as a non-profit, independent state agency with a board of seven directors appointed by the governor. McConnell, an aircraft loading agent for Delta Air Lines, is chairman for a four-year term and that gives him the right, on his day off from Delta, to put on his engineer's hat, red neckerchief and bib overalls, holler "all aboard," and head 'er on down the tracks.
Some of the passengers during a recent run said they were riding while they could because they feared that it might shut down again. No chance, assures McConnell.
"It will absolutely survive this time," he promised. "It is finally structured the way it should have been years ago, and we aren't going to let it go down again. All of us involved have a passion for railroading. It's not a job, it's a love, true love. We will do whatever it takes. That's why it will succeed."
All of the money made by the railroad goes for salaries for the 28 Authority employees and for expansion of the operation. The directors who control the Authority are unpaid. "That keeps us honest," assured McConnell.
Also, there is the added incentive that there will be no more bailouts by the state. "They (the Legislature) told us that if we get in trouble, don't come back," he said.
So far, so good. McConnell, 53, and a Heber City resident since 1980, estimates that the land, equipment, buildings and rolling stock - some purchased by the Authority and some donated - has tripled the state's million-dollar investment to total assets of $3.2 million over the 15 months since the new railroad made its inaugural run on May 8, 1993, during an unseasonable snowstorm.
The new Authority had to start pretty much from scratch since much of the Heber Creeper equipment had been sold. The new train can carry about 380 passengers in a combination of three restored closed cars acquired from the Great Smoky Mountains Railway in North Carolina; three former flatbed cars - one of which was used to haul tanks and artillery in Operation Desert Storm - that have been converted to open-air passenger cars; and a restored caboose, built in 1942 and used throughout the Union Pacific system until it was retired in 1982.
The Authority also has three locomotives. Two are diesel and are currently used on the 32-mile round trip. Under renovation is a Baldwin coal-fired steam engine that was built in 1904 and used by the Union Pacific in Utah and Idaho. Gloria Montgomery, executive director of the railroad, said she hoped to have the steamer operating by the end of October.
Retired in 1958, the steamer was on exhibit at the Utah State Fairpark until 1970 when it was donated to the Promontory Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society and then was moved to Heber City, chugging into town under its own steam.
McConnell said the train has been averaging 180-200 passengers per run and is roughly 2,000 passengers ahead of last year for the same period. The Authority has to make $1,800 (about 112 passengers) per trip to break even when using a diesel locomotive. That will jump to $2,000 per trip when the higher-maintenance steam engine comes on line - an event for which McConnell can hardly wait.
"It will be a big draw for us," he said. I know a lot of people are waiting to ride until the steam locomotive is ready."
Also scheduled for installation for use with the steamer are two mechanical turntables that will allow the engine to reverse itself at each end of the run so that it can always be at the head of the train. "It's not mandatory, but it's better for a steam engine to not run backwards," said Montgomery. "Running backward we have to go a little slower."
The Authority also has a gift shop and snack bar currently operating out of a caboose at the Heber depot, but McConnell has bigger plans. He foresees a permanent depot built on a 1920s theme with an ice cream parlor, gift shop and antique photo studio.
"We want people to drive up, park and walk into the 1920s - the era of these coaches," he said. No timetable has been set for construction of the new depot.
The Heber Creeper was well-known for its dinner runs, complete with white linen tablecloths. McConnell said the idea of offering formal dinners has not been ruled out, but it would have to be examined carefully.
"So many tourist trains have gone out of business doing dinner trains because you have to charge so much," he said. "In some areas, people don't mind paying $80 for dinner, but this isn't one of them."
Montgomery said she is determined to make a dinner train work but noted that in the interim, the railroad offers the Blue Grass Express every Saturday at 7 p.m., featuring live bluegrass music and light refreshments. The shorter, evening ride goes to Deer Creek dam and returns. Also, a complementary continental breakfast is offered Sundays on the 10 a.m. excursion to Vivian Park.
The Authority plans to keep the train running during the winter, said Montgomery. "Winter is my favorite time of the whole year to ride," she said. "It's great in winter and especially fun. You can really see the steam. Either the day or night train - it's wonderful."
McConnell gives the credit for the new railroad's success to its employees - particularly chief mechanical officer Craig Drury in charge of the steam engine restoration - to volunteers and to corporate donors. Among the latter, Kennecott Corp. donated the caboose, Union Pacific offered money for a water tower, Hercules kicked in an 80-year-old water tank that had never been used, and the Southern Pacific donated one of the turntables.
"A lot of people questioned whether we could do this, make a go of it," said McConnell. "We started out with nothing and 11 months later we rolled out."
Currently, round-trip excursions leave the Heber City Depot at 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. One round-trip excursion leaves Vivian Park at noon. The number of trips will slow around the middle of September, and the summer season will end Oct. 30.
In November, the railroad will begin its first winter season, operating one daytime trip on Saturdays and Sundays from Nov. 26 through March 25, except Christmas Day. One midweek evening ski train is planned, in which busing is provided from Park City.
Diesel locomotive fares are: Adult round trip to Vivian Park $14; children 10 and under $8. Adult one way to Vivian Park $9; children $5. Fares are slightly higher for the steam locomotive. Seniors receive a discount, and limited wheelchair accommodations are available. For more information, call 654-5601.