RIDING THE DURBIN & GREENBRIER VALLEY Wild, Wonderful BY ERIC MILLER/PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
DATELINE — A RATHER REMOTE AREA amongst the rugged, imposing moun- tains of the Mountain State, West Vir- ginia. There never seem to be enough adjectives to describe the stark, breath- taking beauty of this state. John Denver sang about West Virginia, and although quite appropriate, “Almost Heaven” has been turned into a well-worn cliché. In August 2011, my family and I set
out into this relatively unspoiled wilderness for a weekend of railroading adventure on the Durbin & Greenbrier Valley (D&GV) Railroad. Driving miles and miles of those country roads, up steep mountains, around sharp curves and through wide valleys, took us deep into the heart of West Virginia, into places where life seems a little slower and certainly much more relaxed.
The Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad, under contract, operates the West Virginia state-owned West Vir- ginia Central Railroad, a 132-mile col- lection of former Western Maryland lines purchased from CSX Transporta- tion in 1997. The D&GV also operates the state-owned Durbin Railroad, a rail-isolated five-mile long ex-C&O line (the Durbin Branch) in the same area. D&GV provides both freight and pas- senger excursion service on the ex-WM lines, comprised of the former Beling- ton, Tygart and Laurel Subdivisions and Dailey Branch. After a rather grueling drive on some extremely twisting, curving roads, and a stop at a country store to make sure we weren’t lost, we finally arrived in the tiny town of Durbin. This commu-
nity is the home of the Durbin Rocket, a little excursion train powered by a Cli- max geared steam locomotive. One of only a handful of operational Climax lo- comotives, the Moore-Keppel Lumber Company No. 3 was built in 1910 and has been lovingly restored to her as- built appearance. When we arrived, the little Climax
sat simmering softly alongside the clas- sic yellow C&O frame depot. A few pas- sengers were milling about, some en- gaged with the fire-filled belly of the beast before them, others chatting on the depot platform. An animated little boy, no more than two, was boisterous with excitement over what was about to be, no doubt, his very first train ride. At promptly 2:30 p.m., No. 3’s whistle sounded her departure, and so began
OPPOSITE: The headlight of Climax No. 3 pierces the mist and swirling steam at Heavener,
W.Va., on the Durbin & Greenbrier Valley’s Durbin Rocket excursion train. ABOVE: Having run around the train and shoved back to the boarding area, “Western Maryland” F7 No. 67prpares to lead the New Tygart Flyer back to Elkins after the brief stop at the High Falls of Cheat.
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