Colt Stewart throws a water hose to train engineer Bill Piche aboard the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad’s Polar Express steam train on Friday in Portland. The holiday-themed train started its annual run ten years ago. (Troy R. Bennett | BDN)

The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum’s last Polar Express trains of the year rolled through a snowstorm on Friday night in Portland. Saturday’s scheduled trains were cancelled due to the stormy weather.

Ticket holders can contact PortTix for ticket accommodation before Jan. 9.

The Polar Express trains, now in their tenth year, are inspired by the children’s book of the same name. The book, written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, was published in 1985. It tells the story of a boy’s trip to the North Pole at Christmastime.

The Maine Narrow Gauge version features hot cocoa, a reading of the book and a visit from Santa Claus. The cars are pulled by one of the museum’s real steam trains. The locomotives take passengers on a three-mile, roundtrip journey from Commercial Street to the East End waterfront.

Santa Claus waves to passengers aboard the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad’s Polar Express train in Portland on Friday. Colt Stewart (above left) and engineer Bill Piche wait to get underway in the engine cab. (Troy R. Bennett | BDN)

The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad is dedicated to the preservation and operation of Maine’s two foot gauge railway equipment. Starting in the latter part of the 19th century, Maine had a system of railroads that ran on rails only two feet apart. From the 1870s until the 1940s, some 200 miles of narrow gauge lines served many of Maine’s smaller communities. Eventually there were five of these railways.

The museum has operated on Portland’s waterfront since 1992. However, its in the process of relocating to Gray.

A child looks through a window aboard the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad’s special Polar Express train in Portland on Friday. (Troy R. Bennett | BDN)

A child looks through a window aboard the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad’s special Polar Express train in Portland on Friday while trainman Tim Hendrix mans his post aboard the caboose. (Troy R. Bennett | BDN)