There are still a few seats left on this year's Fall Foliage Train Tour, departing Woonsocket Depot Saturday morning for an eight-hour trip through three states to a fall festival in Putnam, CT, bookended by autumnal views.
The annual tour run by the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council (BVTC) leaves One Depot Square at 9 a.m. Oct. 19 bound for two hours of travel through fall foliage-draped landscapes along the Blackstone Valley River, and through RI, MA and CT. "It's great to look out the window and see what's going on," Houle said.
The remodeled Woonsocket Depot station gives patrons a sense of the golden age of rail travel, said Donna Houle, special projects coordinator at BVTC. "It's a great location to leave from," Houle said, with doors that open to the train platform.
Once in Putnam, travelers have three and a half hours to enjoy an arts and crafts fair, music, sidewalk sales, the Great Pumpkin Festival, and the Fall Bazaar and luncheon at the Putnam Congregational Church.
Houle said a lot of people from Woonsocket are among the annual trip's 380 passengers for its sole run of the year. Tickets, available online, run from $29.50 for kids to $59.50 for adults.
Houle said that between the Fall Foliage Tour and the Polar Express trips in November and December, along with other runs, the BVTC has made about 175 runs on Providence and Worcester Railroad. "And I've been on every one of those myself," she said. She didn't start out as a train enthusiast, but, "I've actually turned into one," Houle said.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
