There’s a new offering on the Skunk Train in the Northern California town of Willits. It’s small, fast, electric and… pedal-powered? On a recent sunny day in spring, I joined a group to try out the Skunk Train Railcoaster. Here’s what it was like.
Mendocino County’s Skunk Train has two depots at either end of its 40-mile track, one in coastal Fort Bragg and another in the inland town of Willits. Electric-assist railbikes have been running for years from Fort Bragg, and with the debut of the Skunk Train Railcoaster, Willits is putting its own spin on the concept. Unlike the flat section of track near Fort Bragg, this 15-mile adventure from Willits winds its way up a long, steady climb followed by a rip-roaring descent.
Skunk Train: Fort Bragg vs Willits
Once, the Skunk Train, properly called the California Western Railroad, connected the 40 miles between Willits and Fort Bragg. That ended in 2013 with a tunnel collapse halfway between the two towns. Since then, efforts have crawled along to raise the heap of cash needed to remodel the line, while tourists can still take out-and-back rides in both towns.
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The Fort Bragg and Willits ends of the Skunk Train each offer a distinct experience. Still, with its romantic coastal scenery, Fort Bragg’s train rides have tended to draw more crowds than the ones in Willits. But this inland depot of the friendly old train has a lot to recommend it. Located right off of 101, it’s only 2½ hours from San Francisco and 3½ from San Jose. The landscape of sun-kissed, Wine Country-esque fields giving way to higher redwood-clad hills is objectively gorgeous. The sunny inland weather will make family trips easy to plan, and the thrilling ups and downs of the Railcoaster itself are sure to please kids.
The Railcoaster experience, explained
Each railcoaster car has two seats (riders need to be at least three years old). The experience is booked per car, not per person, so you’ll take a significant price hit if you want to ride solo. Helmets are provided, and the car has water bottle holders as well as a small basket for personal belongings. This basket will also hold your (provided) lunch, and it’s small, so don’t come with a hiking- or outing-size daypack. Just pack a small gym bag, purse or other pouch of essentials like sunscreen, sunglasses, camera and a warm layer (the temperature can change once you pass the summit and enter the redwood forest).
Both people in the car pedal, but only one is the “driver”, who controls the brake and the electric pedal assist (do you want to chug along on level 1, or zoom uphill on level 3?). You’ll travel along the railway line as a gaggle, with one staffed car in front and one in the back, so don’t expect to be alone with your copilot zipping through the trees (keeping the appropriate following distance with the person in front of you will be the biggest determiner of pace). Still, we just as often got a few hundred feet between us and our neighbors as we rode their tail, so this didn’t feel limiting.
The ride starts out through Willits. Honestly, passing through town railroad crossings and waving at bewildered cars as the bell clanged was one of the goofy highlights of the trip for me. Once out of town, you pedal along open fields and beneath grand old oak trees before you begin to climb along a rocky hillside where meadows, manzanita scrub, cliffs and forest all intersperse. The 3.5% climb, we were told, is pretty steep for a train, but the electric pedal assist railbikes made it feel like a breeze.
After the summit at 1,750 feet above sea level, it’s through a tunnel and down into the redwood forest on the other side, where lunch is served at a clearing in the trees with picnic tables and strings of lights. Here you can chow down on your included lunch, play some cornhole or giant Connect 4, and take a close-up look at the ancient Wolf Tree before hopping back in your railbike for the return journey. On the way back, of course, the ups and downs are reversed: chug uphill through the redwoods, then ride the brake as you careen back down into Willits.
More reasons to visit Willits
The Railcoaster isn’t the only thing that’s new in Willits this summer. The Highball Express, a train ride which runs in the evening and features bars and dinner on board, is also returning after a hiatus. And in September, there’s the Flynn Creek Circus, a circus show in the forest where a special Skunk Train departure takes you to the big top.
In town, you can grab a locally-brewed beer at Northspur Brewing Company and stay at the newly remodeled Inn at Baechtel Creek. For breakfast after spending the night, Lumberjack’s serves up the kind of hearty Americana which Cracker Barrel has made its fortune imitating. You can’t miss it: look for the giant Paul Bunyan statue overlooking the main road back to the freeway.
As I merged back onto 101, I reflected on how many times I had passed through Willits on the way to somewhere else. It was surreal to think that this quirky townscape, with so many adventures waiting to be had, was hiding, invisible, behind the freeway berms. That’s what I love about being a Californian: we have such an incredible density of hidden gems, just waiting to have their day. And it looks like Willits is ready to sparkle.
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