Sisters Ruthie and Trixie Schatz and their cousin Claire Fiore were clearly excited Saturday morning as they waited to board the Colebrookdale Railroad’s special train: Santa’s Polar Bear Express.
The Schatz girls, 5 and 4, and their parents, Edward and Kim Schatz of Pittsburgh, met their cousin, also 5, and her parents, Kim’s sister Katie and husband Ryan Fiore of Macungie, Lehigh County, at the station in Boyertown about half an hour before their 10 a.m. departure.
Laughing and hugging, the children warmed around the outdoor firepit beside the train platform before beginning their hour-long excursion on the railroad’s Secret Valley Line.
All around them, other eager children and their families munched the complimentary cookies and sipped hot cocoa to warm up as they waited to board.
Claire said she and her mommy haven’t baked any cookies for Santa yet, but they will make sure to have some fresh from the oven in time for his visit next week.
When it came to writing letters to the big man from the North Pole, the girls got an earlier start. Certain Santa Claus would make an appearance on the train, they popped their sealed envelopes in the mail last week, their parents said.
And it’s a good thing, too, because sure enough, not only Santa, but several of his helpers were on board.
The Grinch, a less welcome guest, also made an appearance. But even the curmudgeonly character created by children's author and cartoonist Dr. Seuss caught the Christmas spirit when he saw the opulently decorated early 20th century coaches decked for the holidays.
Those children who waited to mail their letters were not disappointed. The jolly old elf happily accepted all the correspondence handed to him as he visited from car to car.
Passengers chose from differently priced ticket options to ride in the railroad’s luxury first-class parlor and lounge cars, family-class diner and beaver cars, and coach-class deluxe and diplomat cars.
That made no difference to Santa. He visited all the cars on the train, greeting every child on board and giving each a souvenir coloring book and small box of crayons.
Avalon Cameron, 4, nearly bounced out of her seat in the diner car as she and her parents, Dave and Diana Cameron of Ambler, Montgomery County, waited for the train to start.
But it wasn’t just the meeting with Santa the little girl so eagerly anticipated.
“This is her first train ride,” her mother explained.
The couple rode on the Colebrookdale Railroad a few years ago, before their daughter was born, Diana Cameron said, and wanted to share the experience as a family.
Santa's Polar Express seemed like a good way of introducing their daughter to the line.
“We just think it is so magical,” Cameron said.
The line between Boyertown and Pottstown was begun in the 1860s to serve the iron industry.
The Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust has operated the line since 2010 and began tourist excursions in 2011, said Nathaniel C. Guest, founder and executive director.
Dates for Polar Bear Express train excursions run through Christmas Eve.
For more information, visit www.colebrookdalerailroad.com/secret-valley/santas-polar-bear-express/.