By Justin Franz 

NORTH CONWAY, N.H. — The 470 Railroad Club recently completed its years-long restoration of former Boston & Maine F7A 4268. The locomotive, painted in B&M’s classic maroon and gold, is joining sister locomotive 4266 in service on New Hampshire’s Conway Scenic Railroad. 

On April 24, the two locomotives made their public debut together on CSRR’s Conway and Sawyer River excursions. Later this month, on May 22, the two F7s will lead the first train to Crawford Notch, the Mountaineer. Unlike the regular excursion, this inaugural trip of the year will make a number of photo stops along the way and will be one of the few times this year the two classic cab units will go to Crawford Notch.

The 470 Club, based in Portland, Maine, owns a number of historic diesels, including the B&M F7s and former B&M GP9 1741. Locomotive 4266 has been in service for decades but 4268 has mostly sat on display, gutted of the internals needed to run. A few years ago, the non-profit 470 Club stepped up its efforts to get the locomotive in service and acquired a New Hampshire Northcoast GP9 to serve as a parts source. After a few years of steady work, the F7A was fired up this spring for the first time since the 1970s. 

Conway Scenic’s regularly scheduled Mountaineer excursions will begin on May 24, 2022, about a month earlier than in previous years. The Mountaineer will operate Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays between North Conway and Crawford Notch. Regularly scheduled Mountaineers will board at the North Conway station at 1130 a.m. and return by 4:15 p.m.

For more information and to buy tickets, visit ConwayScenic.com.