Conway Scenic Mountaineer

Crawford Notch is one of the great passes through New Hampshire's White Mountains, a steep-walled valley where the Saco River rises. In 1875 the Portland & Ogdensburg Railroad pushed a line up through it, cut into the cliffs and carried over the ravines on tall bridges, to link Portland, Maine, with the Great Lakes. For a century it carried freight and summer visitors to the grand hotels at the top of the Notch, and the last freight trains used it in 1983.

Since 1995 the Conway Scenic Railroad has run excursions over it, and its Mountaineer is the long trip of the two it offers: from the Victorian station in North Conway up the Saco valley and through the Notch to the old depot at Crawford, then back the same way, four to four and a half hours in all. The train is dressed as a streamliner of the 1950s, with vintage coaches, comfort cars and glass-roofed Budd Vista Domes behind a diesel in the railroad's green and yellow, and it crosses the Frankenstein Trestle and the Willey Brook Bridge high above the valley floor.

The Mountaineer runs from late May into November, twice a day from July to October, when the foliage turns the whole Notch red and gold.

The trip starts at North Conway station, a yellow wooden building of 1874 with two domed towers, beside Schouler Park in the middle of the village. It was built by the Portsmouth, Great Falls & Conway, later part of the Boston & Maine, saw its last regular passenger train in 1961, and has been the Conway Scenic Railroad's headquarters since the first excursion left it on 4 August 1974. Tickets bought online are collected at the window, open from 9:00 to 16:00; inside are a small railroad museum and the Brass Whistle gift shop.

Seats come in three classes. Coach is a set of vintage cars from the early and middle years of the last century, with seats in twos and fours and windows that open, heated in cool weather but not air-conditioned. Comfort Class has bigger seats and more legroom in streamlined cars with large windows and air conditioning. The Observation Dome seats are up under the glass roofs of the railroad's three Budd Vista Domes, cars of the 1950s with a view in every direction. A snack bar sells hot dogs, nachos, snacks, coffee and local beer; boxed lunches have to be ordered at least 48 hours ahead, and no other food may be brought on board.

The train runs north out of the village and joins the old Maine Central Mountain Division, now owned by the State of New Hampshire, then follows the Saco River north-west up the valley past Bartlett, where the railroad once kept extra engines to help heavy trains up the climb ahead. On clear days you can see the Presidential Range, and Mount Washington among it, across the valley.

Into the Notch

Beyond Notchland the climb steepens and the valley closes in. The track runs on a shelf cut into the mountainside, and the train crosses the Frankenstein Trestle, about 520 feet long and 85 feet above the gulf beneath Frankenstein Cliff. The steel trestle dates from 1893 and replaced a wrought-iron one of 1875; both cliff and trestle are named after the American painter Godfrey Frankenstein. A little further on the line passes the site of the Willey House, where a landslide killed the Willey family and two hired men in August 1826, and crosses the Willey Brook Bridge, 400 feet long and 94 feet high.

At the top the train squeezes through the Gateway, a narrow rock cutting at about 1,900 feet, and runs out beside Saco Lake, where the river begins, to Crawford. The depot there was built in 1891 in the Queen Anne style and is now an information centre run by the Appalachian Mountain Club. After a short stop the train sets off back down the Notch, and the crew asks everyone to change sides so that each passenger gets the valley view on one of the two legs.

The locomotives

The Mountaineer is hauled by diesels in Conway Scenic's green and yellow. Recently most trips have been worked by No. 216, an EMD GP35, with No. 252, a GP38 delivered new to the Maine Central in 1966 and a veteran of this very line, filling in. On the heavy autumn trains, with wet leaves on the rail, the railroad puts two locomotives with dynamic brakes on the Crawford run. The railroad's steam engine, No. 7470 of 1921, is a small switching engine, and it is out of service for repairs with no date set for its return.

The Mountaineer leaves from North Conway station, 38 Norcross Circle, and runs to Crawford and back in 4 to 4½ hours, with a short stop at the top. How often it runs depends on the season.

On the busiest autumn days a third train leaves at 11:30. The morning train reaches Crawford at about 10:45, and the afternoon train leaves Crawford at about 15:15, which is what makes the two special tickets below possible on days with two trains. From late November to March a Winter Mountaineer makes the same run through the snow.

• Hiker's Ticket: out on the 9:00 train, about four and a half hours at Crawford, back on the afternoon train, home by 17:30.
• Crawford to North Conway and Return: for visitors already at the top of the Notch. Board at Crawford at 11:00, reach North Conway at about 13:00, and take the 13:30 back to Crawford. Tickets are sold online only, not at Crawford.

Good to know:

• Book ahead for late September and October, when the dome seats sell out weeks in advance.
• No dogs are allowed on the Mountaineer.
• Crawford is colder than North Conway, even in summer, and has little shelter for anyone staying there.

Departures as of October 2026, from the railroad's booking calendar and its 2026 timetable notices. Confirm before travelling on conwayscenic.com (opens in a new tab).

Fares depend on the class, the age of the passenger and the season, with a higher rate on busy dates such as the October foliage weeks. A Coach seat costs an adult $75 at the regular rate and $83 at the high rate; Comfort Class runs from $105 to $130 and an Observation Dome seat from $185 to $198. Children aged 4 to 12 and toddlers of 3 and under pay less. Fares cover the train only; boxed lunches are extra and must be ordered at least 48 hours ahead.

You can cancel up to 72 hours before departure for a new date or a credit valid for a year; after that, there is no refund or credit. Fares checked October 2026 at conwayscenic.com (opens in a new tab); US dollars.

No rail pass covers the Mountaineer. The Conway Scenic Railroad is a private heritage railroad that sells its own tickets. Amtrak's USA Rail Pass is valid only on Amtrak's own services; Interrail and Eurail do not apply anywhere in the United States.

The railroad's own options are group rates for bus tours and other parties, booked through its group sales manager, and gift certificates.

Checked October 2026 against conwayscenic.com (opens in a new tab) and amtrak.com (opens in a new tab).

North Conway is the main village of the Mount Washington Valley, on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. Cathedral Ledge and Diana's Baths are just outside the village, the Kancamagus Highway begins at Conway just to the south, and Crawford Notch State Park lines the railroad for its last miles up the Notch.

North Conway has inns, motels and resorts within walking distance of the station, and many more through the valley. At the top of the Notch there is the Appalachian Mountain Club's lodge at Crawford. Book early for the foliage weeks.

Planning this trip and stuck on something, or spotted a time, fare or detail that has changed? Send us a message about Conway Scenic Mountaineer. We read every one, and we update this page when something has changed.