16 | North Platte Travel Guide 2025
Ride the Rails Experience the Incredible Railroad Heritage of North Platte, home to the World’s Largest Rail Yard.
Cody Park Railroad Museum North Platte is a fantastic destination for people who love trains and the railroad. The Cody Park Railroad Museum is just one reason why. This hands-on museum gets Buffalo Bill’s Buffalo of Approval for having the only Challenger 3900 series steam locomotive on public display in the world. Unit 3977 is not just on display, you can climb up and get the engineers view before you walk through a series of old rail cars, including a mail car and a caboose, that are filled with old railroad memorabilia from the time when trains were America’s main mode of transportation. In addition to the 3900 series is unit 6922. The 6900 series diesel locomotives were the largest ever
Golden Spike Tower Anyone who’s ever loved the railroad or been interested in trains will instantly understand why the Golden Spike Tower gets Buffalo Bill’s Buffalo of Approval. The tower offers the best view of the world’s largest railyard, Union Pacific’s Bailey Yard, where every day approximately 20,000 railcars are sorted and sent on to their next destination. The tower also includes multimedia exhibits on the history of the railroad as well as the Orphan Trains and the North Platte WWII Canteen, but the real treasure here are the volunteers. Every day you’ll find friendly volunteers, in almost every case a retired Union Pacific employee, manning the tower ready to enlighten
made. These two locomotives made a combined horsepower of over 12,000. It’s not just the locomotives and rail cars, you’ll also find the old Hershey, Nebraska rail depot. It also has historic railroad artifacts inside. All of this combined with the other rail attractions in town to make North Platte a must-visit for railroad fans. It’s no wonder these attractions get Buffalo Bill’s Buffalo of Approval. Address: 1601 N. Jeffers Street VisitNorthPlatte.com/ cody-park-railroad-museum Season/Hours of Operation: May 1-October 1: Mon-Sat 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Sun 12 p.m.-6 p.m. Other times by appointment. Admission: Free
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