Author: steamup@zaphod.com

National Steamup Symposium 2024

Lodi Grape Festival Grounds, Lodi, Calif.
Date October 9 – 13, 2024

For its 27th event, the world’s best summertime small-scale live steam will be in Lodi California.

Photo by Rick Parker.

The National Steamup Symposium 2024 will include clinics on small-scale live steam techniques, dealers of small-scale live steam products, door prizes and other entertainment. Live steamers from around the world will enjoy 45mm (Gauge One) and 32mm (0-gauge) live-steam operation of small-scale locomotives for four days in 2024.

This year the event will again be held in the Pavilion at the Lodi Grape Festival, 413 E Lockeford St in Lodi California.  In recent years, the National Steamup Symposium has up to seven different layouts — representing 14 loops of track for a total of more than 2200 linear feet of rail. Following a tradition established in 2015, the event will also be the host to “Stationary Saturday,” the nation’s largest collection of operational steam toys (bring ’em if you’ve got ’em).

Event hours will be Wednesday, 6 p.m.-midnight; Thursday through Saturday, 7 a.m.-midnight; and Sunday, 7 a.m.-Noon. If you would like to help setting up on Wednesday, please arrive by 3 p.m. Do not plan on being able to bring your trains or equipment into the Pavilion until after 6 p.m. Those who would like to tear down should expect to be finished around 3 p.m. on Sunday.

Important dates:

  • A bit over a month before the event: Deadline for ordering clothing.

Feel free to contact steamup -at- steam-events -dot- org if you need more information.

Hotel and nearby attractions Information 2024

Hotels near Lodi Grape Festival Grounds, Lodi, Calif.
October 9 – 13, 2024

Hotels that offer NSS Discounts: (3 Miles)

Holiday Inn Express:
209-210-0150
40 room block, 38 double queen, 2 king
Reservation Code: NSS

Hampton Inn & Suites:
209-369-2700
15% off the Base Rate
Reservation Code: NSS

Candlewood:
209-483-6056
10 room block, 5 double queen, 5 king
Reservation Code: NSS

Other Hotels at Interstate 5 & E. Kettleman Ln: (10 Miles)

Microtel Inn & Suites: (209) 367-9700
Best Western I-5 Inn & Suites: (209) 367-3000

RV Camping on site at the Lodi Grape Festival Grounds:

Some RV spots at $35 per night are available on a first come first served reservation basis:
water and electric hook-ups only (electrical 30 & 50 amp); dump station on site
restrooms and showers ADA access
pets and children welcome
WiFi is not available
No Tents

Lodi is 41 minutes from the Sacramento International Airport and is eight miles from Interstate 5, making driving from the north or south easy.

For those interested in other aspects of the railroad hobby, Northern California provides a variety of unique rail and live steam experiences:

♦The California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, home to live-steam artifacts as well as a provider of live steam rides (weekends only) is a 40-minute drive.

♦In Alameda County, the Pacific Locomotive Association operates standard-gauge live steam locomotive rides every Sunday throughout the summer. It’s a 1-hour drive to the Niles Canyon Railway.

♦For narrow-gauge live steam enthusiasts, the Roaring Camp and Big Trees Railroad operates one of two Shays or a Heisler five times a day on weekends and four times weekdays; Roaring Camp is in Santa Cruz County, a 2-hour drive.

♦Another for narrow-gauge enthusiasts, the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum operates a Railbus on Saturdays; Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum is in Nevada County CA, a 1½-hour drive.

♦The Golden Gate Live Steamers, with 2½- to 7½-inch tracks, run every Sunday in Oakland’s Tilden Park. In addition, the 15-inch gauge live steam Redwood Valley Railway is also in Tilden; on Sunday it will operate 11 to 6 and during the week 12 to 5. Tilden Park is a 90-minute drive.

Good News for 2021-2025

Good news to all, we found a location to hold the National Summer Steamup after 2020 and signed an agreement booking the dates for July 2021 through 2025. Stay tuned for more information and details as they become available.

The location is in Lodi California a little ways south of Sacramento off of I5. It is called the Lodi Grape Festival and Events Center more information on line at https://www.grapefestival.com

  • Yes it is air-conditioned.
  • There are some on-site RV hookups.
    •

    Presentation from NSS2017 Clinic on 3D printing.

    Sorry it took me longer to get around to posting this. Here is the presentation I gave on 3D printing.

    In case you are having issues with the power point or PDF here are the links that are in the presentation.

    Highlights from previous years.

      • Rick Parker’s photos of the 2013 event are on his DotPhoto site. Mike Martin has his 2013 photos on this personal site.
      • For 2011, Rick Parker has done another admirable job with a slide show on his DotPhoto web site; check it out. Mike Martin also posted wonderful photos from the event.
      • Rick Parker has provided a slide show of his photos from the 2010 event; here are Mike Martin’s pictures and videos from the event.
      • Here are Dave Cole’s photo pages from the 2009 event, and here are Mike Martin’s pages.
    • Longtime former Summer Steamup organizer Sonny Wizelman is profiled by a Los Angeles blogger.