How A North Pole Adventure Became THE North Pole Adventure™

Every holiday tradition has a beginning.

For Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, the story began more than 30 years ago with a winter train, a few Christmas decorations and an idea that would grow into something much bigger.

It was November 27, 1992 when CVSR introduced the Polar Bear Limited, the railroad’s first holiday train. Families climbed aboard for a special winter journey through the Cuyahoga Valley. Two years later, the train took on a new story.

Inspired by Chris Van Allsburg’s beloved children’s book, The Polar Express, CVSR introduced its first Polar Express excursions in December 1994. And what had started as a holiday train ride began to become a holiday tradition.

The train cars were decorated for Christmas. There were activities for children. There were Christmas songs and treats. And, of course, there was Santa. But some of the most memorable magic was waiting outside the train at the North Pole.

A Little Piece of the North Pole in Peninsula

Back then, the area around Peninsula looked very different from the polished North Pole families know today.

Along the tracks sat Terry Lumber & Supply Co. and Peninsula Hardwoods, family businesses owned by John Lahoski. During the holiday season, John saw an opportunity to turn the businesses and the surrounding area into something children would never forget. So he and his employees, family and friends rolled up their sleeves and went to work.

They supplied their own costumes. They created characters. They decorated the buildings and filled the property with lights. There were elves, toy soldiers, fairies, Frosty the Snowman, Father and Mrs. Christmas and even the occasional “Grinch”. The lumber warehouses became workshops. Eventually, illuminated shadow scenes gave passengers a glimpse inside the elves' workshops, where they could see what appeared to be elves hard at work making toys and preparing for Christmas.

It was imaginative. It was homemade. And it was very much a product of the people who made it happen. At the center of it all was John. He didn't simply organize the North Pole. He became one of its characters.

As the “Lead Elf,” he dressed the part with an unmistakable sense of fun. His colorful costume and distinctive three-belled hat made him hard to miss. He was the kind of person who didn't just tell people Christmas was magical; he got right in the middle of making it so. For the children looking out the train windows, Peninsula really did seem to become the North Pole. And for the people who helped create it, it was a labor of love.

The Man Behind the Magic

John Lahoski's connection to the Christmas train became an important part of its history.

Sadly, on December 19, 2005, John collapsed and died while tending to holiday lights near the Cuyahoga River. He was 63. The loss was felt throughout the community. On the final night of that year's holiday train season, nearly 350 people gathered to remember John and the role he had played in creating the North Pole experience.

His legacy wasn't simply the decorations or the characters or the lights. It was the idea that a group of people could take an ordinary place along the railroad tracks and, for a few weeks each year, make it feel extraordinary.

That spirit would continue.

The Tradition Grew

Through the years, the Polar Express has become one of the most anticipated times of the year at CVSR. Families come back every Christmas. Some come because they remembered riding the train themselves as children. Then they bring their own children. Eventually, some bring grandchildren. The experience becomes less about a single train ride and more about a family tradition. For many families, Christmas isn’t quite Christmas until they have boarded the train.

The final Polar Express season began in November 2020, closing a chapter that had begun more than 25 years earlier.

Then came an unexpected pause.

The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the holiday tradition, as it did so many others. But the story wasn't finished.

A New Name. A New Chapter.

In August 2021, CVSR announced that the holiday experience would return under a new name:

North Pole Adventure™.

The change meant leaving behind the licensed Polar Express name and creating a Christmas experience that belonged entirely to CVSR. That opened the door to something exciting.

The railroad could take the pieces families loved; the train, the North Pole, the elves, the letters to Santa, the cookies and milk, the anticipation and build its own story around them.

The first North Pole Adventure™ season began in November 2021. And just like that, the tradition had a new name.

But it still had the same heart.

And the Story Continues

Today, North Pole Adventure™ carries pieces of all those Christmases with it. The train is decorated for the holidays. Elves welcome families at the North Pole. Children enjoy milk and cookies and have the chance to send their letters to Santa. And, eventually, Santa himself arrives. Children still press their faces to the windows. Parents still take too many pictures.

And every year, there are families experiencing it for the first time and families who have been coming for years. That's what makes the history of North Pole Adventure™ so special. It was never created by one person or in one particular year.

It has been built over time, by employees and volunteers, by families and community members, by people who dressed up as elves and people who worked behind the scenes to make everything run just right.

People like John Lahoski helped give the North Pole a sense of wonder. Generations of families gave the tradition a reason to continue. And each Christmas, a new group of children becomes part of the story.

The name has changed.

The train has changed.

The experience has evolved.

But some things haven't changed at all.

There is still a Christmas train. There is still a North Pole. There is still a little bit of wonder waiting at the end of the tracks. And there are still families making memories they'll remember long after the train has returned home.

That's how North Pole Adventure™ became North Pole Adventure™.

Not all at once. But one Christmas, one family and one memory at a time.

Make Magic This Season