SCRANTON, Pa. – It’s the moment train enthusiasts have all been waiting for: the Union Pacific Big Boy 4014 is going all speed ahead to parts of our area including Berks and Montgomery counties.

69 News Reporter Sydney Kay stopped by Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton where the train departed for Jim Thorpe.

You’ll hear it and you can’t miss it, the Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 is on the East Coast and it’s moving through our region.

“Absolutely gigantic,” said Wesley Billou, from Massachusetts.

“It’s enormous. It’s immense. It’s 132 feet long and it weighs a million pounds. It’s just incredible to see something like that actually ride on the rails,” said Tom Wissmann, visiting from New York.

A crowd gathered in the sweltering heat to see the iconic steam locomotive depart the Steamtown National Historic Site for Jim Thorpe Wednesday morning.

“You can’t miss stuff like this, this is historical,” said Nick Novack, from New Jersey.

The train has been parked in Scranton for the last two and a half weeks, drawing in crowds to see it alongside its sister engine.

“Over 110,000 people have come to Steamtown to see the Big Boy reunion. It’s just something that I don’t think anybody here couldn’t even really put into perspective,” said Jeremy Komasz, the superintendent of Steamtown National Historic Site.

Being the only operational Big Boy, it was rebuilt and put back on the tracks to commemorate America 250.

“We started this on April 10th in Sacramento, California. We’ve traveled 4,500 miles to get to Steamtown,” said Maureen Halbur, the general director of Union Pacific.

Chugging along to parts of Berks and Montgomery Counties Thursday, this train differs from high-tech engines made now-a-days.

“Lots of labor, lots of fuel, lots of water, but that’s the technology that they had back in the 1940s, the 1950s before these were replaced,” said Ed Dickens, the senior manager of heritage operations at Union Pacific.

The whistle and steam blowing in its path, an iconic spectacle.

“It’s bringing back that reminder of just the strength of our nation, the strength of the American railroad, and the strength of the Union Pacific Big Boy,” Dickens added.

The train will be in Jim Thorpe until 9 a.m. Thursday, where it will then head to Reading and Northern Outer Station from 1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. and then head to Pottstown from 3:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.

As it makes stops through Hamburg, Leesport, and Muhlenberg Township, Union Pacific officials want to remind those trying to see Big Boy to remain 25 feet from the tracks, be mindful of those around, and to stay hydrated.

You can track the Union Pacific Big Boy’s movements here: https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/track