RAMROD stopped at the little town of Elbe for lunch at the Mount Rainier Railroad Dining Company. It took a bit of maneuvering to fit all of the PC800s and allied bikes into the gravel lot.
Old dining cars and cabooses serve as the restaurant.
In the private dining car that we reserved for RAMROD riders.
After lunch I wandered around a bit to look at the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad equipment and the old Elbe Evangelical Lutheran Church.
This congregation was originally founded in 1893 by settlers from Germany. The church was built in 1906. It is incredibly small and picturesque.
Inside the church.
A small organ or piano in the corner.
An old locomotive that is on static display at the Elbe depot of the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad.
This is a geared locomotive. It was designed for logging railways where steep tracks and hastily laid rails were the name of the game. Perhaps someday in the future this engine will be restored to join the other engines in the railway’s operational steam engine fleet.
The front wheels and gear set.
A big u-joint on one of the drive shafts coming from the pistons.
Another u-joint that feeds power into a wheel set.
The little depot at Elbe. At one time, passenger trains from Tacoma would pass this way on their way east. Now the line only serves as a short tourist train route.
