Comments on: Huntsville and Lake of Bays Railway No. 1, a 1926 MLW coal-fired 17 Ton 0-4-0 saddle tank engine “The Portage Flyer”, is posed beside the station in Huntsville, 2 days after the resurrected railway officially opened. The station area configuration seems to have changed since this picture. In the early 1900′s, waterways were primary transportation corridors in Muskoka. The original route of the 42″ gauge railway, completed 1904, portaged the short distance between Lake of Bays and Peninsula Lake – the rocky terrain and 100 foot height difference making a canal uneconomic. The rail route of just over a mile wasn’t easy either, with a maximum grade of 7%, tight curves and a switchback. By 1959 the railway had become unprofitable so it was shut down. The track, engines, and equipment were purchased by the Town of St Thomas, and used to build and operate their Pinafore Park Railway. In 1984 St Thomas put their park railway up for sale. Funds were raised by enthusiasts of the Huntsville and Lake of Bays Railway Society and the railway was brought back to Huntsville and stored. Local organizations got together in 1993 to establish Muskoka Heritage Place, with a new railway route in Huntsville Memorial Park, building of an engine house, station, equipment refurbishment, etc. Lots of history and background at portageflyer org website, though their operational info was outdated. Schedule information is at muskokaheritageplace ca website – I would contact to verify before visiting. Be aware that a small diesel locomotive powers a lot of their trains. http://www.railpictures.ca The BEST Canadian photos on the Internet, eh? Thu, 07 May 2026 18:00:21 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1 By: jp4pix http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=39051#comment-35095 jp4pix Sat, 28 Sep 2019 14:53:55 +0000 http://www.railpictures.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/HLoB1040_HuntsvilleON_2000-0703_R3-rpca.jpg#comment-35095 Thank you for the correcting information, Mr. Kennedy. The source mentioned was imprecise about the away-from-Huntsville years, and I went off the rails a bit - will re-work the caption. Hope the image is of interest. From that same source, apparently engine #1 was non-operational in 2000; #2 was running first. Thank you for the correcting information, Mr. Kennedy. The source mentioned was imprecise about the away-from-Huntsville years, and I went off the rails a bit – will re-work the caption.
Hope the image is of interest. From that same source, apparently engine #1 was non-operational in 2000; #2 was running first.

]]> By: R.L.Kennedy http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=39051#comment-35090 R.L.Kennedy Sat, 28 Sep 2019 01:54:23 +0000 http://www.railpictures.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/HLoB1040_HuntsvilleON_2000-0703_R3-rpca.jpg#comment-35090 The CITY of St.Thomas never owned the train or the railway operation. It was owned by Percy Broadbear a CPR London Division locomotive engineer. He and his son Don were the ones who setup and operated Pinafore Park RR all those years. When the City decided they no longer wanted the train operating Don sold it all to the new group. It was stored for some years and their planned operation fell apart. It was relocated to Huntsville where it operates now. The CITY of St.Thomas never owned the train or the railway operation. It was owned by Percy Broadbear a CPR London Division locomotive engineer. He and his son Don were the ones who setup and operated Pinafore Park RR all those years.

When the City decided they no longer wanted the train operating Don sold it all to the new group. It was stored for some years and their planned operation fell apart. It was relocated to Huntsville where it operates now.

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