Seven years ago I wrote about an attempt to take a trolley tour that didn't work out.
https://sporktogo.blogspot.com/2017/12/oregon-leaving-lake-oswego.html
It finally did.
One big help is that you can now purchase tickets online, and not having to just show up in hope. In 2017 they seemed to add that ability for the Christmas events, but they had all been sold out.
Selling out is still an issue, but another big help in this case was that they added a week so that people could view the fall foliage.
Perhaps encouraged by our recent visit to the Oswego Heritage House, we decided to go for it.
You might think that seven years is a long time to wait, but that turned out to be a good move.
For the past five years part of the line has been under construction. This was the first time back on the full route, going to Bancroft Street in Portland.
One of our conductors stopped to take a photo of the historic moment.
The staff are affiliated with the Oregon Electric Railway Museum at Powerland Heritage Park. As usual they were helpful and enthusiastic.
It was also informative. We now know that the one house we have seen from a few different angles is built upon the remains of the Palatine Pump House, part of Portland's water system before it was moved to Bull Run.
If that makes part of its design seem less over the top, we saw many other houses that can only be explained by conspicuous consumption.
There have been some accommodations needed for having a trolley line going by (expensive) homes, but at least some residents seem to enjoy it.
Do take that "shore" part literally; sometimes it looks pretty steep.
We found it to be a fun way to travel and get the lay of the land.
Maybe some day we will be ready to try Elk Rock Garden again.
COVID: While the windows do open, they were closed and there were lots of riders. Assume you are going to be around people and mask appropriately.
Accessibility: I did not see anything built in for mobility devices. There are bench seats, with most configured forward facing but some side benches. However, at the end of the route to go back, everyone in the front facing seats needs to get up and slide the back rests across the seat, thus switching to forward facing in the other direction.
It does not seem like it would be great, but reach out to the company if you have questions.
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