“This train, this one right here, it runs on Christmas spirit,” Brooke Thatcher told the rail car full of antsy, excited children and their parents.

Little faces bent in wonder and eyes filled with curiosity as they considered their plight. If they wanted to see Santa, it would be up to them and their joy for the holiday. So, moments later when Thatcher asked the group a question, they exaggerated their cries of agreement. Little voices joined their adult counterparts to become strong for a common purpose — to ignite the magic of the locomotive and find Santa.

Thatcher, a host on the Heber Valley Railroad’s North Pole Express, introduced the eager children to the other staff members in her car. There were a handful of elves straight from Santa’s workshop and a hot cocoa chef.

The journey, she informed them, would not be accomplished without the efforts of both Santa’s helpers and the train’s passengers. There were cookies that they’d have to eat, cocoa they’d have to drink, singing they’d need to do and, yep, they’d have to dance, too..

That didn’t deter them, though. No one steps onto The North Pole Express without a sense of adventure, and the 550 passengers, 61 crew members and a couple of other stray passengers who boarded the train one evening before Christmas were no exception.

The North Pole awaited — the second North Pole, one Thatcher said existed in Utah.

Though the outside of the steam-powered locomotive had invoked fear in some of the passengers with its mystical smoky smells, curious hissing groans and towering presence, once inside the steam-heated cars, apprehension turned to pure excitement.

Gavin, 10, was happy to be aboard. Though he’d ridden Salt Lake’s FrontRunner in the past, this was his first time on a steam train. Not only were the cars older than him, they were older than his parents and likely his grandparents before them.

Mark Nelson, Heber Valley Railroad’s executive director, said the train was over a century old. The youngest of the 11 cars on this trip was built in 1949, the oldest in 1919.

When Thatcher came to Gavin with a magical coin she offered to flip to determine whether he’d been naughty or nice, he speculatively accepted before learning he was in fact on Santa’s good list.

After Thatcher extended the same offer to Gavin’s brother, Jax, he smiled sheepishly and looked at his parents. Though his parents teased him that he could end up with a coin that predicted coal in a stocking, they assured him he had been nice. Still, he settled on ignorance as bliss, and Thatcher told him to let her know if he changed his mind.

Thatcher, now 20, started working on the Heber Valley Railroad when she was 13. It was a year-round gig for her at the time, and in her seven years, Nelson said, she’s been a pirate, superhero and princess. Though she attends school now in Logan, Christmas brings her back to the tracks.

“It’s my favorite thing for Christmas time,” she said. “Every single year’s different. … Everybody’s happy to come on the train this time of year.”

Thatcher wasn’t alone in her commitment. Two cars back, host Sarah Wit also had seven years of railway experience under her belt. She goes to school in Southern Utah, but she hosts at least one train every day of her two-week break with two exceptions — Christmas Day and her birthday. 

“I actually started working as an elf, and I had the best experiences,” she said. “It’s the little moments that I get to spend, like talking with kids or even talking with parents, connecting with them.”

Sure, she said, there are days with throw-up or tears or rude parents who missed their train. But the better days make it all worthwhile.

Throughout the journey, visitors passed through each car. Nelson dutifully took a ticket puncher to each passenger’s riding pass, elves tried their hardest at stand-up comedy, and Santa’s daughters performed a musical number.

All the while, anticipation for the big guy himself became more and more intense, electric among the giggling and singing children.

Finally, after the emotional toll from so much singing and dancing and having to have so much fun to power the train, the moment the children waited for arrived.

Standing outside the train and waving merrily, Saint Nick himself was seen at The North Pole. Children crowded toward the windows, as did elves eager to share details about their hometown. Some pointed to their houses.

As the locomotive began its journey back to the station, Santa climbed aboard and worked his way through the train cars.

“What are you going to leave me?” he quizzed the children, testing their Santa Claus etiquette.

“Cookies!” they yelled.

“And what’s my favorite cookie?” he asked before pausing to hear myriad answers. “Well, you can say whatever you want, you’d be correct.”

He left the children with a magical gift — one that’s best explained by him and experienced on the train — and made his way throughout the cars.

For one family, the magic was a bit stronger. Levi Harris sat close to his parents, Trish and Colin, and his little kid brother, Remy. 

To get tickets for the North Pole Express, passengers typically need to sign up before Halloween. That’s what the Harris family did last year, right before Levi was diagnosed with cancer. He’s in remission now, and doing great, he said.

“They were really good, and they let us postpone them for this year,” Colin said. “Here we are. This was the trip we were supposed to take last year.”

The brothers laughed and giggled and danced, still powering the train. Each member of the family wore a Santa hat, and smiles that couldn’t go away.

At one point, when their car’s host made a plea for Christmas cheer, Levi stood in the aisle to dance. His mom held his hand and twirled him in a full circle.

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