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Later this month, Union Pacific Railroad’s “Challenger” steam locomotive, which is considered the world’s largest operating steam engine, will launch a six-state, 2,200-mile tour that will run from Cheyenne, Wyo., to Gorham, Ill., to commemorate railroad heritage.

To kick-off the tour, the 67-year-old Challenger will pull the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® circus train between Speer, Wyo., and Denver on Sept. 28.

“History will be made that day when No. 3985 will pull a 65-car train that [weighs] more than 6,000 tons and is nearly 6,100 feet long, the most for a steam locomotive in the 21st century,” said Dick Hartman, UP’s director of public affairs for Colorado and Wyoming, in a prepared statement.

Next month, the Challenger will be on display in Kansas City, Jefferson City and St. Louis, Mo. The locomotive also will stop overnight in Denver; Cheyenne; North Platte, Neb.; Marysville, Kan.; St. Louis; and Sedalia, Mo.

Built in 1943, retired in 1959 and restored in 1981, the 122-foot-long, articulated locomotive features a “hinged” frame to negotiate curves. It weighs more than 1 million pounds and can reach a top speed of 70 mph. The tour will be the locomotive’s first extended trip after undergoing maintenance work the past two years, according to UP.