The toot toot of a vintage Baldwin locomotive still echoes throughout the Blue Ridge Mountains near Blowing Rock in North Carolina. Here, the Tweetsie Railroad features an old-fashioned attraction centered on family fun. Recently celebrating its 50th anniversary, the park has evolved into a full scale entertainment center.
   Main Street attractions, along with the train depot, include a shooting gallery, arcade, 1800s saloon, childrens playground, country fair games, gem mining and gold panning. The main attraction of the park features a thrilling ride through the mountains aboard old #12, a steam powered locomotive that's logged thousands of miles over the last 95 years.
   Today's rail line follows the narrow-gauge tracks of the old East Tennessee & West Carolina Railroad, where trains hauled freight and passengers over the mountains. Tweetsie's scenic tours began in 1957, following part of a 66 mile run over the Appalachians from Boone to Johnson City, Tennessee. The Tweetsie soon became one of the top attractions in the Boone area. Adding to the thrills of younger travelers, the train was frequently attacked by Indians, or passengers robbed at gunpoint by a band of desperatos, part of the Wild West theme.

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