Abandoned railroad around Eureka Springs?

[White Rabbit]

Does anyone know anything about that abandoned railroad line around Eureka Springs and Holiday Island? I just checked out a tunnel the other day that travcojim told me about, and I was wanting to find out more about the actual railroad line. Like, when it was abandoned, what RR company owned it, etc. I've been searching the net for a while, but I can't find anything.

Any of you Arkansassians know anything about it?

[travcojim]

The railroad that ran that line was the Missouri and North Arkansas, sometimes called the MAY NEVER ARRIVE>> That tunnel was build back in the early 1900's, The line ran all the way over to the White River near Calico Rock Arkansas. I haven't stopped yet but there is a book there at the train station there in Eureka that has the history of that line. I have heard that alot of places are left where the old line went thur differnt areas, old bridges and stuff like that.

[White Rabbit]

The railroad that ran that line was the Missouri and North Arkansas, sometimes called the MAY NEVER ARRIVE>> That tunnel was build back in the early 1900's, The line ran all the way over to the White River near Calico Rock Arkansas. I haven't stopped yet but there is a book there at the train station there in Eureka that has the history of that line. I have heard that alot of places are left where the old line went thur differnt areas, old bridges and stuff like that.

Awesome, thank you jimbo. I'll have to try and pick up that book next time I'm in Eureka, because I'd like to know all the good stuff about that line.

[Willard]

Interestingly enough the guy that ownes the railroad at Eureka Springs owns a lot of the old mainline of the North Arkansas Missouri Railroad. there's a mile secion that he's been trying to buy for a long time so he can rebuild the line (it's near where the current Eureka Spur is) but the old lady that now owns the right of way won't sell it. I thought about getting ahold of the old man and seeing if he'd be interested in trying to buy the line up to siglman mo and from there buying up the old abandoned (I belive Missouri Pacific) Mainline from Siglman to Downtown Spirngfield. My furthur thoughts were to see if he might want to buy the old downtown railroad lots and rebuild the old train and locomotive building sites that were there in the 1870s when it was still the Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railway and also rebuilding the old Frisco Passenger and Freight depots all as railroad museums and give rides from here to Eureka Springs and back and cool stuff such as that.

[David Keetz]

yah, there's been a lot of talk of rebuilding the railroad. I remember going to the tunnel several years ago ...it was cool to see wrabbit actually make it all the way through that thing. During the summer it's way snake infested.

The tracks run all the way to Grandview and Berryville that you can still trace.

Another really neat place to go is Beaver. It's got this really cool one lane wooden bridge that you have to drive over if you want to go through the town. (Orlando Bloom was shooting some footage for a movie there this past summer)

[White Rabbit]

Another really neat place to go is Beaver. It's got this really cool one lane wooden bridge that you have to drive over if you want to go through the town.

I love that bridge. It's fun to stop in the middle of it and feel the car get slinged around, even though the sign says not to do that.

[tyler]

I think it would be absolutely great if someone managed to rebuild the aforementioned railway. We frequent Eureka Springs, it's about our favorite place to go, and it would be really cool to take a train down there and back.

[downhil]

while in beaver town, you can see the cut in the hillside where the train would come thru and cross over the lake. if you park at the main swim area, you can easily see it across the lake. i bet if you follow that tracks path, it would take you to the holiday island tunnel you found.? maybe.

[Ford Prefect]

I think it would be absolutely great if someone managed to rebuild the aforementioned railway. We frequent Eureka Springs, it's about our favorite place to go, and it would be really cool to take a train down there and back.

There is a nice excursion railway between Flippin AR. and Callico Rock AR.. It rides along the White River and offers some great views. If you are ever in Flippin you should take a trip, I think it is only $15 to $20 for first class, (we all roll like that, right? ) and lasts about four and a half hours.

Ryan B.

[tyler]

Thanks a lot for that, Ford. I'll bring that up next time we head to Arkansas.

[henrm]

i've heard about that RR. there's a station down from downtown eureka springs that is no longer in use anymore..w/ the exception of a gift shop. but, that's just about all i know

[Willard]

The Railroad in Eureka Springs is still in use... it gives dinner rides down the old spur to the main line as well as day excursions along the same track... No it doesn't go anywhere further then that but it's still something fun to do. The guy that ownes the train and track right of way also owns a lot of the original main line track bed from the North Arkansas Railway. There's one area of mainline that he is trying to buy but the old lady that now owns it won't sell or even lease it.

[caver]

I had a chance to visit last weekend while attending a regional caving event in SW Missouri.
Note bat in flight, lower left, look for shadow.

While checking the other end of this RR line I noted
a trestle just off the main highway. I drove a couple miles down and stopped at a pull out. While checking map and gps I noted what looked like old tracks across the creekl in the woods.
Investigating I found them nice and shiny.

I hear a rumbling in the distance but chalk it up to
a couple motorcycles driving by.
I then hear more rumbling as I'm down in the creek washing the mud off my boots from the S5 tunnel.
This is followed by the distinct sound of rail wheels screeching on rr tracks.
Hey, this tracks is in use by a tourist train!

I drive back up to the trestle to watch them turn around.

Interesting as this spur is not shown on a topo map but the old one to the tunnel is.
It was late in the day and I had a bit of a drive to get back to the cavers gathering but I managed to play tourist and visit nearby Onyx Cave.
Ticket guy was real character.

[bugo]

The railroad that ran that line was the Missouri and North Arkansas, sometimes called the MAY NEVER ARRIVE>> That tunnel was build back in the early 1900's, The line ran all the way over to the White River near Calico Rock Arkansas. I haven't stopped yet but there is a book there at the train station there in Eureka that has the history of that line. I have heard that alot of places are left where the old line went thur differnt areas, old bridges and stuff like that.

There are pictures of two of the old bridges here:
http://bridges.midwestplaces.com/ar/carroll/

[Willard]

sweeeeeeeeeeeet!