"Living the life, every little boy's dream." That is how David Steckel of Wenonah described his job to SNJ Today last November. He spent 48 years as an East Coast tugboat captain, and in retirement he works as a trainman on the Woodstown Central Railroad.
The quote fits the trains. The schedule needs more explaining. Woodstown Central has become one of the main organizers of Salem County's October and November weekends, and it runs on working freight track that the county owns. Each fall excursion is built around what that track can and cannot do, so the trip you pick decides which part of the county you see.
A freight railroad that also hands out pumpkins
Salem County owns the Salem Branch. SMS Rail took a 10-year lease on it in 2021, and Woodstown Central is the name of SMS Rail Lines' passenger operation. County records show the contract for maintaining and operating the Salem County Railroad went to SMS Rail Service, Inc. on February 17, 2021. The first public excursions ran on November 5, 2022, and both trips sold out.
Excursions are a side business for SMS. The company is based in Logan Township's Pureland Industrial Park and mostly hauls freight on the Penns Grove Secondary, about 16,000 cargo cars a year. It has also carried glass on the Salem tracks for some time. SNJ Today reported that SMS recently upgraded the Salem line at about $1 million per mile.
Public money keeps going into the line. In April 2026, the county accepted a $1,501,379.15 grant from NJDOT's Rail Freight Assistance Program for Salem County Railroad improvements at various locations. That grant was awarded for freight. The pumpkin trains run on the same rails.
The featured locomotive is No. 9, a steam engine that had not run since 1981. Restoring it took about 13 years and cost about $1 million, and it is built to travel at 15 to 25 miles per hour. Jeff Sutch, one of the SMS owners, ran the same engine in the 1970s. The railroad has restored one steam and three diesel engines. Its passenger cars are a 16-seat caboose, a 40-seat open-air car, two 65-seat coaches and two 40-seat table cars.
Why the trains stop where they stop
The track was originally the Salem Railroad, built around 1863, and it runs from Woodbury to the Port of Salem. Woodstown Central mostly runs its trips between Swedesboro Brewing Company and Fenwick Grove. Southwest of Fenwick Grove, the curves are too tight for long passenger trains.
That limit explains why so many trips end in the same place. Fenwick Grove is a cleared outdoor stop just outside Salem City, beside Fenwick Creek. SMS owns it. It also has a triangle of track where the crew can move the engine to the other end of the train for the ride back. That gives passengers a clear view of the locomotive, which they can't get once they're aboard.
Every train leaves from South Woodstown Station at 650 Alloway-Woodstown Road. From there the season splits into three kinds of trip:
- The southern run to Fenwick Grove is about nine miles and 30 minutes each way, through Salem County woods and farmland. The Pumpkin Patch Flyer, the Salem Ghost Train and the Trick-or-Treat Special all use it.
- The farm stop is the Corn Maze Express. Riders get off at historic Penton Station and go into Bil-Dol Farm, which the railroad describes as having exclusive train access.
- The long run is the Fall Foliage Rambler, a two-hour, 32-mile trip through Woodstown, Swedesboro and Salem.
What is left on the October schedule
It is Sunday, October 4, so the first weekend of pumpkin and corn maze trains is almost over. Here is what remains, in order:
- October 10 and 11. Pumpkin Patch Flyer and Corn Maze Express, departing at 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m.
- October 16 and 17. Salem Ghost Train at 6:30 p.m., with local folklore presented with the Salem County Historical Society.
- October 17 and 18. Pumpkin Patch Flyer and Corn Maze Express, same three departure times.
- October 23. Trick-or-Treat Special at 6 p.m., with candy and Halloween activities at Fenwick Grove.
- October 24. Salem Ghost Train at 6:30 p.m., plus the last Saturday for daytime pumpkin and corn maze trains.
- October 25. Last Pumpkin Patch Flyer and Corn Maze Express departures.
- October 30. Trick-or-Treat Special at 6 p.m.
- October 31 and November 1. Fall Foliage Rambler at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
The Pumpkin Patch Flyer used to be called the Autumn Leaf Pumpkin Train. The full trip takes about an hour and 45 minutes, including about 45 minutes at Fenwick Grove for pumpkins, games and fall activities. A pumpkin comes with the ticket. Cider, donuts and other food at the grove do not.
The Corn Maze Express takes about two hours, starts at $35, and is listed as pulled by No. 9. It includes round-trip rail and admission to Bil-Dol Farm's patriotic-themed corn maze, with about an hour to explore it on your own. The maze is on working-farm ground of grass, gravel and dirt, so the railroad suggests comfortable walking shoes.
Both trips have the same logistics. Arrive 20 to 30 minutes before departure. Parking is free, and there are restrooms at the station and on the train. Neither trip is wheelchair accessible. The railroad notes that schedules can change, so check the booking page before you go.
When the station becomes the destination
In November the railroad yard itself becomes the venue. South Jersey Preservation and Woodstown Central are hosting the Autumn Market at the Woodstown station on November 7, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The lineup includes local farmers, artisans, breweries, food vendors, live music, train rides and children's activities. Organizers expect fall vegetables, local honey, pie pumpkins and possibly farm-fresh turkeys ahead of Thanksgiving. They also say they hope it becomes an annual tradition. The event grows out of South Jersey Preservation's farmers market series, which started in 2026.
The holiday schedule moves south. Breakfast with Santa is marked new for 2026 and runs Saturdays and Sundays from November 28 through December 20. On December 5, the Salem Yuletide Special leaves from Pedersen Park in Salem City instead of Woodstown, for a 35-minute, six-mile caboose ride with Santa. That makes it the one listed trip that starts at the Salem end of the line.
The same weekends, away from the rails
The railroad's own trip-planning page suggests stops in town before or after a ride. Its list includes Woodstown Diner, Barney Loves Books, Woodstown Tavern, Cream Valley Custard, Bil-Dol Farm, Town & County Golf Links and Cowtown Rodeo.
A few other outings fit around the train schedule:
- Coombs Barnyard, 20 Route 77, Elmer. The flashlight corn maze is open Friday and Saturday nights through October 31. It costs $10, opens at 6:30 p.m. and takes last entry at 8:30 p.m. Coombs's third annual Pumpkin Carve for a Cause runs October 9 through 11. Donations go to Corgi Run Farms in Pilesgrove, which cares for farm animals with special needs.
- Auburn Road Vineyards, Pilesgrove. Covered-wagon tours go from the vineyard past Cowtown's horse and bull pastures and stop at Bullhide Brewery. They run weekly through November 1 at $35 a ticket, and the Sunday tour runs from 1 to 4 p.m. The winery's four-course Dinner in the Vineyard is October 16, 6 to 9 p.m. That is the same night the first Salem Ghost Train leaves Woodstown.
- Olive Street Community Garden, Salem. A neighborhood party is set for October 10, 1 to 4 p.m., at the Garden House, 67 Union Street. It will have food, hot drinks, music, games, crafts and face painting.
Two common fall plans won't work this year. Woodstown's Fall Festival, scheduled for September 26, was canceled because of weather. Fort Mott State Park in Pennsville is still open, but its ferry season ended in late September, and its winter hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. began October 1.
On October weekends, the 3 p.m. Corn Maze Express gets back to Woodstown in time to drive to Elmer before Coombs Barnyard opens its flashlight maze at 6:30 p.m.
I follow how local institutions like the Salem Branch shape everyday life around them, because that kind of context matters when someone is weighing a move or a sale. If you live near the line and are curious how Salem County's growing calendar fits into your own plans, Gavin LaRocca is happy to talk it through. Let's Connect.
