Table of Contents
Quick Facts
| Railroad Name | Verde Canyon Railroad |
| Website | https://verdecanyonrr.com/ |
| Train ride | Diesel pulled train of historic passenger cars through scenic canyon |
| Location | Verde Canyon Railroad 300 N. Broadway Clarkdale, AZ 86324 Google maps: https://goo.gl/maps/FRZSXkumJNwoB4QUA |
| Length of trip | 4 hour trip over 20 miles |
| Cost of single ticket | $109.00 non event trains |
| Special Trains | Chocolate Lovers’ Special Uncorked Winefest Grape Train Escape Ales on Rails The Magical Christmas Journey Engineer for a Day Caboose Rides |
The Verde Canyon Railroad is a tourist railroad. It runs between Clarkdale and Perkinsville Arizona. The passenger excursion line operates on 20 miles of track of the Clarkdale Arizona Central Railroad (AZCR), a shortline.
Clarkdale, where the railroad is headquartered. is located about about 25 miles southwest of Sedona, Arizona.
History
The tracks on which the Verde Canyon Railroad runs were opened in 1912 as part of a north– southern branch line connecting a copper smelter at Clarkdale and also the copper mines at Jerome to Santa Fe Railway tracks going through Drake. The Santa Fe Railway owned as well as operated the 38-mile branch line from 1912 to 1988.
Milepost 0 of the AZCR is at Drake, where the line satisfies the BNSF Railway system. The AZCR track to Drake is still made use of for hauling products also though the excursion line quits at Perkinsville.
Adventures include a 4-hour, 40-mile big salami from Clarkdale to Perkinsville as well as back. Scenes from How the West Was Won were filmed at Perkinsville in 1960s. The course adheres to the Verde River, crossing bridges and trestles, as well as goes through a 680-foot-long bent tunnel. Between milepost 30 and Perkinsville, a lot of the land along the railway right of way remains in the Prescott National Forest or the Coconino National Forest (across the river).
Notable Roster
The railroad uses vintage EMD FP7 first generation diesels that were originally Alaska Railroad units.
Other things to see
The John Bell Railroad Museum is part of the depot complex in Clarkdale. Housed in an old boxcar, the museum displays rail artifacts and photographs, many of which came from Bell’s personal collection.
Getting There
The address is:
Verde Canyon Railroad
300 N. Broadway
Clarkdale, AZ 86324
By Rail
The closest Amtrak station is Flagstaff. Getting to Clarkdale may involve renting an automobile. Amtrak also goes to Mericopa Arizona, which is outside of Pheonix. Again, ground transportation would probably be best with a rental car.
amtrak.com
By Air
The largest airport nearby is probably Phoenix.
By road
Highway 89A passes through Clarkdale with Sadona being 22 miles away.
Flagstaff is 46 miles away.
