Holiday Train begins annual journey Friday

A colorful holiday tradition is set to begin its annual journey across Minnesota on Friday.

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railway’s Holiday Train, which started more than a quarter-century ago, has 21 stops planned across the state in the coming days.

The Holiday Train — featuring brightly decorated, colorful boxcars — travels rail lines across Canada and the U.S. each November and December, with musical performances and food donation collections in communities along the way.

The train’s visit to Minnesota this year starts Friday with stops in La Crescent, Winona, Wabasha, Red Wing and Hastings. It’ll make its way through the Twin Cities on Saturday and Sunday, and then head to central and western Minnesota. Its last stop in the state will be in Elbow Lake on Dec. 17, before it travels on to North Dakota.

A complete list of stops is below.

The southeast Minnesota and Twin Cities stops will feature music by American Authors and Pynk Beard. Central and western Minnesota stops will include music by Lanco and Tiera Kennedy.

If you’re heading out to any of the stops Friday night or through the weekend, bundle up. Forecasts are calling for frigid conditions in Minnesota, with highs on Saturday struggling to climb above zero across the state.

Since its inception, the Holiday Train has raised more than $26 million and collected more than 5 million pounds of food for local food banks across the U.S. and Canada.

CPKC Holiday Train stops in Minnesota

Dec. 12

• 2:15-2:45 p.m. — La Crescent, 517 South Chestnut Street

• 3:45-4:15 p.m. — Winona, 65 East Mark Street

• 5:45-6:15 p.m. — Wabasha, Bruegger Park - Gambia Avenue

• 7:15-7:45 p.m. — Red Wing, Bay Point Park overflow parking lot

• 8:45-9:15 p.m. — Hastings, 500 East Second Street

Dec. 13

• 5:15-5:45 p.m. — Cottage Grove, 7064 West Point Douglas Road

• 7-7:30 p.m. — St. Paul, Union Depot - 214 Fourth Street East

Dec. 14

• 5-5:30 p.m. — Golden Valley, Golden Hills Drive

• 6:15-6:45 p.m. — St. Louis Park, Lake Street and Library Lane

• 8:15-8:45 p.m. — Minneapolis, 37th Avenue NE and Stinson Boulevard

Dec. 15

• 4:30-5 p.m. — Loretto, County Road 19 railway crossing

• 6-6:30 p.m. — Buffalo, Fifth Street Northeast

• 7:30-8 p.m. — Annandale, Downtown Park - Harrison Street

• 9-9:30 p.m. — Eden Valley, State Street railway crossing

Dec. 16

• 10:15-10:45 a.m. — Glenwood, 20 15th Street NE

• 11:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. — Alexandria, Eighth Avenue East and Nokomis Street

• 2:45-3:15 p.m. — Detroit Lakes, Holmes Street, west of community center

• 4:20-4:50 p.m. — Mahnomen, U.S. Highway 59 and East Washington Avenue

• 6:15-6:45 p.m. — Plummer, Central Avenue railway crossing

• 7:45-8:15 p.m. — Thief River Falls, 405 Third Street East

Dec. 17

• 4:30-5 p.m. — Elbow Lake, U.S. Highway 59 railway crossing