A trio of CN pullers heads up a mixed merchandise train headed east on the old CP line. The bridge pillars were originally constructed in 1884. Above and to the rear is the CN line, handling westbound traffic on a bridge built in 1915. The scenery is just breathtaking.
After the fashion of railroads, another one set out to compete for this lucrative freight and passenger business. As often happens, the first railroad got the best geography, while the next one had to make do. Nowhere was this more evident than in the canyon of the Thompson and Fraser rivers, where the adjacent mountains are otherwise impenetrable. So each side of the canyon has its own track line. Sometimes they swap sides, and sometimes they are forced to share the same side.
I spent a week with Nils Huxtable in his West Vancouver home, delightfully hosted by his mother. While Mrs. Huxtable stayed home, we picked up friend Ray Cherniak, and off we went up the Fraser River Canyon. The vehicle we used is Nils’ 1986 Toyota Corolla, an amenable and reliable beast but nothing fancy. Nils knew all the spots; he mostly led us to the easier ones near the highway. An avid hiker, he knows of some others that require considerable work to reach. He maintains that this is the only way to view some of the more interesting spots.
At Cisco, for example, a small hike got us to where we enjoyed a spectacular view of two bridges, one belonging to CP and the other to CN. The concrete pillars supporting the CP bridge were constructed in 1884; the CN bridge was built in 1915. Today’s operation finds CP and CN cooperating through the canyon. While the canyon runs generally north and south, the trains are timetable east and west, and both railroads have increased their track capacity by making the tracks one way between a spot near Mission and another near Ashcroft. CP track handles both railroads’ eastbound traffic while CN track handles all of the westbounds. We captured images of CP and CN trains hauling coal, grain, containers, and general merchandise.
However, with gas prices in Canada soaring to over C$1.10 per liter (approximately equal to a quart in US measure or around US$4.00 per gallon), we chose to spend some time chasing trains closer to home. In this case, we found fertile fields with the Southern Railway of British Columbia, one of the Rail Link subsidiaries. Working with Nils was pure fun because he did it right. When we were near one of their offices, he’d pop in, introduce us, ask permission, get information about train movements, and give them copies of one of his calendars. I teased him that he published calendars just so that he could give them out to gain him access. Laughing, he sort of admitted the charge.
Southern Railway is a real kick for a model railroader. They have numerous first generation diesels: GP9s, SW900s, and Canadian-specific GMD1s. We watched a five-unit lashup led by a SD38AC pounding up a two percent grade in suburban Surrey on former interurban trackage. Finished lumber and empty center-beam flats dominated the consist, which was capped with a caboose!
At the foot of Nils’ hillside neighborhood runs the former B.C. Rail line, now Canadian National and the home of the Whistler Mountaineer passenger train, introduced May first of this year. Rocky Mountaineer Rail Tours operates these delightfully comfortable excursions as well as the ones we photographed in the Thompson River Canyon.
All of which brings us full circle back to trainchasing with a camera. I’m sure I’d have gotten some interesting shots on my own, but nothing compared to the cornucopia collected from the experience of a veteran around the place. He knew where the light was right for a particular time of day, where to find the trains, and how to get the right angles. His knowledge of train movements allowed us to identify the CN track which was westbound and the opposite direction for CP. This wasn’t always convenient, but I quickly adapted.
I had never seen rock sheds before, but comprehended their necessity; without them, year-round rock slides would quickly render both lines inoperable. The sheds would also make a fascinating feature to model on a layout. More than anything else, I came away with a great appreciation for Canadian railroading. British Columbia is a very civilized place where a polite attitude can help you into all sorts of railfanning without people yelling at you. Makes you want to come home and model something!