Dinosaurs, Rail Cars and More at Depot at Dolittles!

What place offers food (both fine dining and “diner style”), a pizzeria, a brewery where you can sample craft beers, miniature golf, animatronic dinosaurs, and trains, both real historic train cars and a variety of models?

There’s only one place in the mid-Atlantic region that I know of that has all these things: Depot at Doolittles. Did I mention you can spend the night in a real caboose or Presidential Palace car?

Go back in time with Doolittle’s dinosaurs. There’s a variety of interesting concrete dinosaurs on the miniature golf course, but fun as they are, those aren’t the ones you really need to see. Over the past several years, Dr. Rice, the owner of Depot at Doolittles, has installed a variety of dinosaurs in an exhibit hall for kids of all ages to enjoy.

These wonderful creations are very realistic looking, and move and roar, as appropriate for their species. You can even watch them breathing.

You can even ride one of them!

Photo courtesy Depot at Doolittles

The model railroaders car is supported by the DuBois area model railroading community. With nine different layouts, you’re sure to find one that will tickle your fancy. The centerpiece of the collection is a three-tiered, 66 foot HO layout.

Photo courtesy Depot at Doolittles

With five restaurants on site (Railcar Pizza, Boxcar Brew Works and Boxcar Food Works, Fine Dining in the Parlor Car, the Diner Car, and the Roadside Cafe) and each one of those restaurants in a very cool historic railroad car, caboose, or box car, eating at Doolittle’s is not just a restaurant experience — it’s like stepping back in time, a time that you chose.

The rail station, The Depot, was built from the modified plans of an 1890 B&O station. Dr. Rice tried to use salvaged materials from that period, including lighting, or he had exact replicas created.

The Depot at Doolittles complex currently contains amicrobrewery, a fine dining restaurant, a 50s-era diner, a creamery, a Party Barn, and the Little Caring Caboose.

A great place to spend the night!

Play all day, and then spend the night in an historic 1901 Pullman Presidential car, and sleep in the bed where Teddy Roosvelt slept in. Before it was loaned to Teddy Roosevelt, this luxurious car, literally a palace on the rails, was the private transport car for the president of the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway.

Or sleep in one of the refurbished cabooses. Cabooses served as living quarters and cooking facilities for train crews and were in use up to 1980.

Photo courtesy Visit Clearfield County; interior of one of the cabooses.

Of course, I’ve visited this place multiple times, and it’s a place I plan to return to, with friends in tow. It’s a great place to stay if you are in the area to hear the elk bugle or enjoy all the other fun things to do in Clearfield County.

Getting there: 1290 Rich Hwy #200, DuBois, PA 15801

Hours: The hours for the various options varies. Call or check the website, below.

Website: http://doolittlestation.com/

For other articles on what to see and do in Clearfield County: