Golden Spike Tower and Visitor Center

Overlooking Union Pacific's Bailey Yard - A one-of-a-kind experience.

The eighth floor observation deck of the Golden Spike Tower and Visitor Center offers a panoramic view of Union Pacific's Bailey Yard. The top of the tower is reached by an elevator and is complete with coin-operated binoculars and is completely enclosed from the elements.

The seventh floor observation deck is open to the air, so you can hear the rumble of the diesel engines and the clang of the box cars as they come together to make new trains on one of the bowl tracks.

Just how big is Bailey Yard?

The massive yard covers 2,850 acres, and includes one of UP's largest repair facilities, with space enough to house 3 football fields.

• Bailey Yard handles 150 trains daily bound for cities as distant as the East, West, and Gulf Coasts.
• Every 24 hours, Bailey Yard handles 15,000 railroad cars.
• 70% of train traffic through Bailey Yard is composed of unit trains (coal, auto, refrigerated, grain, etc.). These trains pass directly through the yard without being sorted.
• Classification bowls for eastbound and westbound traffic contain 114 tracks and thousands of cars.
• Over 14 million gallons of diesel fuel is used monthly.
• The car repair facility repairs 50 cars daily, and replaces 10,000 pairs of wheels yearly. Union Pacific has recently constructed a facility on the east end of the yard (adjacent to Buffalo Bill Avenue) which x-rays the wheels of coal trains on-the-fly to detect cracks.

Located at: 1249 N. Homestead Rd North Platte NE 69101 308-532-9920
Map to Golden Spike Tower and Visitor Center

Online at www.goldenspiketower.com

Hours:
May 1 - Sept. 30:
    Monday through Saturday- 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
    Sunday 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.

October 1 - April 30:
    Monday through Saturday- 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
    Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

SPECIAL RAIL FEST ADMISSION RATE AVAILABLE DURING FESTIVAL