Hiawatha Pete
Hiawatha Pete's JournalWorkin' on the Railroad - Attempting to model accurate passenger train consists in O gauge
Good evening DU'ers,
Hope everyone is keeping safe.
With parts of Canada going back into lockdown and with my wife & I trying to stay hunkered down ourselves, as a distraction I've been able to find some more time to enjoy my hobby of model railroading, in particular O-gauge model railroading.
One of my main areas of interest is passenger trains and I've taken on the challenge of attempting to recreate reasonably realistic representations of passenger train consists in O gauge, trying to recreate in miniature some of the great trains of yesteryear based on information & pictures I've found in books and on the internet.
Traditionally, one of the biggest challenges to doing so in O gauge is the availability at any one time of the correct combination of engines & rolling stock, especially in Canada - a situation that has been made somewhat easier in recent years thanks to the internet & mail-ordering, and also helped by no small degree of patience and the fact that for me model railroading has been a lifetime hobby.
Along those lines, I thought I'd post some pics of just a few of my passenger train consists along with some pics I found on the internet of the full-sized prototypes that they represent.
The pics of the models are mine, the full-sized ones are the work of other photographers.
More pics and a video of my layout & collection can be seen on my website at: https://northamericabyrail.info/model-railroading/
Hope you enjoy!
Canadian Pacific Railway's 'Canadian' - Lionel/MPC F3 & GP9 diesel locomotives & express boxcar with K-Line passenger cars
A pic of the prototype's motive power from the Joseph Testagrose collection
VIA Rail's 'Skeena' - Custom-painted MTH F3 diesel locomotives and Ready Made Trains passenger cars
A pic of the prototype 'Super Continental' which used the same equipment as the 'Skeena', by Kevin Dunk
Chicago Burlington & Quincy's 'Denver Zephyr' - Williams E7 diesel locomotives & Lionel passenger cars
The prototype, by Marty Bernard
Canadian Pacific Railway's 'Dominion' - Weaver Class H1B 'Hudson' steam locomotive & passenger cars
The prototype, by Edward J Ozog
Grand Trunk Western's 'Maple Leaf' - Lionel GP7 diesel locomotives & MTH passenger cars
The prototype, by Donald Haskel
Penn Central's 'Broadway Limited' - Williams GG1 electric locomotive, MTH express boxcar, Williams passenger cars
The prototype, by Thomas C Ayers
Southern Pacific's 'Coast Daylight' - Lionel Class GS4 steam locomotive & passenger cars
The prototype, by John West
Erie Lackawanna's 'Phoebe Snow' - Lionel Alco PA1 diesel locomotives & passenger cars
The prototype, photographer unknown
Across Canada by Train on VIA Rail's "Canadian" - Another Look
Good Morning DU'ers,
Hope everyone is keeping safe. Thought it might be time for another weekend distraction.
Back in March I had posted some pics from the route of VIA Rail's legendary transcontinental passenger train, 'The Canadian', which runs from Toronto to Vancouver. In this post, I attempt to take a more detailed look at the Canadian by including some scenes not shown in my prior post and also attempt to include more pics with human interest as well.
The pics are a composite of several trips aboard the Canadian in 2017 & 2019 and are from the following pages from my website at:
https://northamericabyrail.info/a-trip-on-via-rails-canadian-2017-toronto-on-jasper-ab-banff-ab-vancouver-bc/
and:
https://northamericabyrail.info/a-trip-on-via-rails-skeena-jasper-ab-prince-rupert-bc/
So without further ado, for those interested in taking another scenic land cruise across Canada from the comfort of your computer or smartphone let's pack our bags, grab our tickets and hop aboard for a trip into the vast Canadian wilderness, past sprawling prairies, glimmering cities, and through the majestic peaks of the Rockies.
Hope you enjoy!
Toronto Union Station & CN Tower
Toronto Union Station's great hall
By train along Lake Simcoe near Washago, Ontario
In the dome car, passing sunken telegraph poles, west of Parry Sound, Ontario
View from rear of train west of Parry Sound, Ontario
Through the muskeg & lake country of the Canadian Shield near Hornepayne, Ontario
Refueling stop at Sioux Lookout, Ontario
Entering a tunnel near Canyon Lake, Ontario
Boaters waving to the train at Redditt, Ontario
One long train. Redditt, Ontario. The consist, swollen by the "Canada 150" traffic in 2017, was 25 cars. Another 5 cars were added to the train at Edmonton, Alberta for a total of 30 cars, making the train a half-mile long!
A friendly attendant welcomes us to dinner in the Dining Car on VIA's Canadian
Coffee Shop in the Skyline Dome car on VIA's Canadian
Passengers enjoying the view from the Scenic Dome section in the Skyline car on VIA's Canadian
Lounge in the Skyline Dome car on VIA's Canadian. VIA Rail sponsors a residency program for young musicians who perform at certain times in one of the train's dome cars and at the stations.
Sleeping Berth Section on VIA's Canadian - Daytime setup
Sleeping Berth Section on VIA's Canadian - Night time setup
Prairies & Red River floodway east of Winnipeg, Manitoba
Winnipeg Union Station. Winnipeg is a long crew change, refueling & resupply stop allowing passengers to detrain & explore.
Winnipeg Union Station's main hall
Folk artists Piper and Carson performing at Winnipeg station, part of VIA's resident program for musicians
Winnipeg nocturne with Train number 1
Downtown Winnipeg as seen from the train
The Canadian rounds a bend east of Manitou Lake, Saskatchewan
The Canadian crossing the high trestle over the Battle River near Wainwright, Alberta
Onboard the Canadian, rolling along the Athabasca River in the foothills of the Rockies at the Entrance to Jasper National Park, Alberta
Along the Athabasca River, Jasper National Park, Alberta
Canadian Rockies near Devona, AB
Passing Roche Miette, Jasper National Park, Alberta
Crossing the Snaring River at Henry House, Alberta
Along the Athabasca River passing Roche à Perdrix, Jasper National Park, Alberta
The Canadian rolls through a cut at English, Alberta
General Motors F40PH-2 diesels on the point of VIA Rail's Canadian during it's station stop at Jasper, Alberta
Dome car window wash. Jasper, Alberta
Jasper Heritage Railway Station
Canadian National Railway steam locomotive on display at Jasper Heritage Railway Station
Back on the train, entering a tunnel near Wynd, Alberta
Onboard the Canadian roaring through Yellowhead Pass and over the Great Divide
The Westbound Canadian east of Fitzwilliam, British Columbia
Passing Mount Fitzwilliam, British Columbia
Along Moose Lake, British Columbia
Mount Robson Provincial Park, British Columbia
Passing Mount Robson, highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. The summit is only visible on average 16 days per year.
Exiting a tunnel near Tête Jaune Cache, British Columbia.
In the Thompson River valley east of Kamloops, British Columbia
In the Panorama car rolling along the Thompson River Canyon outside Kamloops, British Columbia
The Canadian in the Fraser River Canyon at Cisco, British Columbia, at dusk
Hells Gate Canyon, narrowest & fastest flowing part of the Fraser River
Onboard the Canadian, approaching Agassiz, British Columbia
The Canadian crossing the Fraser River into Vancouver, British Columbia
Park-series dome-observation car on the tail end of the Canadian at Pacific Central Station
Pacific Central Station, Vancouver, British Columbia
Lion's Gate Bridge, Vancouver, British Columbia, as seen from Stanley Park after detraining
Trying to channel my inner O. Winston Link
Good Saturday afternoon, DU'ers
Hope everyone is keeping safe.
Thought it might be time again to make a short but sweet submission to the DU photography group.
Having since converted in 2005 to digital from my old 35mm Nikon N2020 SLR, I haven't been taking as much B&W photos as I used to (not that I took very many in the first place).
However thanks to the magic of programs like Photoshop and PIXLR, I have converted a few photos from color to B&W that I think came out not too bad.
Title of my OP notwithstanding, I know they are nowhere near the same calibre as the venerable American photographer who took many photos at night and was a master of painting with flash, but here are a couple of pictures from my collection on Railpictures.net.
Hope you enjoy! Cheers, Pete
For those interested, there are more pics from my collection on Railpictures.net at: https://www.railpictures.net/showphotos.php?userid=63021
And on my website at:
https://northamericabyrail.info/
Nickel Plate Road #765 on the point of the Erie Limited. Buffalo, NY
Milwaukee Road E70 on display in Deer Lodge, MT
Canada By Train - A Short 7 Minute Video
Good Morning DU'ers
For those interested, I thought it might be time for another weekend distraction. My wife and I often travel by train and over the last few months I've posted some pictures of our trips in the photography and DU lounge sections here on Democratic Underground.
This time instead of showcasing still images shot by myself, I thought I might pay homage to some of my wonderful wife's work with a video shot by her, taking the viewer on a scenic land cruise across Canada aboard VIA Rail's transcontinental passenger train, 'The Canadian', which runs from Toronto to Vancouver.
This video is a composite of several trips aboard the Westbound and Eastbound Canadian taken in the summer of 2017 and the fall of 2011. The locations are shown in geographical order from east to west.
For more videos & pics, see our website at https://northamericabyrail.info/
So a big shout-out to my wonderful darling wife, who had the good sense to film some motion pictures while I was taking still images - Thanks HunnyBunny!
[P.S. I moved this video to the DU Lounge from the Photo group as I thought it might be a better fit here since it is a video rather than a still image]
Video Contents:
0:00 Night departure from Toronto onboard VIA Rail's Westbound Canadian
0:16 Bedroom in Prestige Class sleeping car
0:32 Bullet lounge in Prestige class 'Park' Car
0:42 Dome in Prestige class Park car
0:49 Station stop at Sioux Lookout, Ontario
1:06 Through the lakes and muskeg country West of Canyon, Ontario
2:20 Passing prairie grain elevators West of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
2:41 Passing Wabamun Lake, West of Edmonton, Alberta
2:59 Station stop at Jasper, Alberta - Jasper National Park in the Canadian Rockies
3:45 Passing Mount Robson, highest peak in the Canadian Rockies
4:58 Yellowhead Pass, Mount Robson Provincial Park, British Columbia
5:34 Redpass Junction,British Columbia
5:44 Tête Jaune Cache, British Columbia
6:05 Passing the town of Valemount, British Columbia
6:32 Albreda, British Columbia
6:50 Passing the BNSF freight station in Vancouver, British Columbia
A trip on the Agawa Canyon Tour Train
Good Morning DU'ers,
Hope everyone is doing well and keeping safe.
I thought it might be time to post some pics from another train route, this time from my home province of Ontario, Canada.
Back in 2015 my wife and I had the pleasure of riding the Agawa Canyon Tour Train, which runs on a day trip from from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario (just across the border from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan) to the Agawa Canyon in Ontario's northern hinterland and thought we might share some pics.
The Agawa Canyon Tour Train began operation in 1964, carrying tourists to the scenic & popular Agawa Canyon. The train operates on the tracks of the Algoma Central Railway (ACR), now owned by Canadian National Railways (CN). The Algoma Central was a regional railway operating in Northern Ontario and when CN took over the line, it inherited the ACR's passenger service.
The pics are from our website at https://northamericabyrail.info/
Hope you enjoy!
Cheers, Pete
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN AT THE STATION IN SAULT STE MARIE, ON. THE STATION AND PLATFORM ARE LOCATED IN THE PARKING LOT OF A SHOPPING MALL IN DOWNTOWN SAULT STE MARIE
ONBOARD THE AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN, DEPARTING SAULT STE MARIE, ON
TICKET TO RIDE. IN A STRANGE TWIST OF FATE, CN (WHICH SOLD OFF ITS PASSENGER SERVICES TO VIA RAIL CANADA IN 1976) IS ONCE AGAIN CARRYING FARE-PAYING PASSENGERS.
PASSING THE INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE TO SAULT STE MARIE, MICHIGAN
ALGOMA CENTRAL YARDS & SHOPS, STEELTON, ON
SOMETHING MUCH-NEEDED FOR NORTHERN ONTARIO WINTERS. ALGOMA CENTRAL PLOW #10105 AT STEELTON, ON
SOMETHING YOU DON'T SEE VERY OFTEN (ANYMORE). ALGOMA CENTRAL EXTENDED-VISION CABOOSE #9609 ON THE PLOW TRAIN AT STEELTON, ON
CROSSING THE TRESTLE AT BELLVUE, ON
OLD RAILROAD BUNKHOUSE AT ACHIGAN, ON
ACHIGAN LAKE
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN SKIRTS ACHIGAN LAKE
VIEW FROM REAR OF TRAIN NEAR SEARCHMONT, ON
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN SKIRTS TROUT LAKE
CABINS AT TROUT LAKE, ON
SPRUCE LAKE
CN MAINTENANCE-OF-WAY CREW AT SUMMIT, ON
MONGOOSE LAKE
BATCHEWANA RIVER
CABINS ALONG THE BATCHEWANA RIVER
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN SKIRTING RAND LAKE
DINING CAR ON THE AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN DINING CAR MENU
HOT BEEF SANDWICH WITH GRAVY, MASHED POTATO, & VEGETABLES
CAFE CAR ON THE AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN CROSSING MONTREAL RIVER TRESTLE & DAM
AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN CROSSING MONTREAL RIVER TRESTLE & DAM
VIEW OF GENERATING STATION FROM MONTREAL RIVER TRESTLE
LAKE NEAR HUBERT, ON
ALONG THE NORTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR
HIGHLANDS OUTSIDE AGAWA CANYON PARK
ENTERING THE AGAWA CANYON
TRAVELLING THROUGH THE AGAWA CANYON
BRIDAL VEIL FALLS
TRAVELLING THROUGH THE AGAWA CANYON
ARRIVING AT AGAWA CANYON PARK, PASSING OLD RAILWAY CARRIAGE NOW PART OF A GIFT SHOP
CN F40PH #106 ON THE POINT OF THE AGAWA CANYON TOUR TRAIN, AGAWA CANYON PARK, ON
PLAQUE COMMEMORATING CANADA'S 'GROUP OF SEVEN' ARTISTS WHO FREQUENTED THE PARK
AGAWA CANYON PARK
Los Angeles to Chicago on Amtrak's "Southwest Chief"
Good Morning DU'ers,
For those interested in taking a virtual journey across the Southwestern US, in better times my wife & I often traveled by train (and plan to do so again once the current global health crisis has passed) & thought we might share some pics from the route of Amtrak's Train #4 - The 'Southwest Chief' - which runs on a very picturesque route from Los Angeles, California to Chicago, Illinois.
The pics are a composite of several separate trips that we took on Train #4 and attempt to show some of the regions traversed, in geographical order from west to east.
The pics are from our website, https://northamericabyrail.info/
Stay safe & hope you enjoy!
Cheers, Pete
FIRST A PIC OF AMTRAK P42DC #153 ON THE SOUTHWEST CHIEF AT THE ALBUQUERQUE, NM, AMTRAK STATION
NOW FROM WEST TO EAST:
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES A SEEN FROM OUR HOTEL
ON AMTRAKS EASTBOUND SOUTHWEST CHIEF, NEAR GALLUP, NM
PASSING FREIGHT LED BY SANTA FE GP60 #8729, GALLUP, NM
MESAS EAST OF GALLUP, NM
ADOBE STYLE HOUSES EAST OF GALLUP, NM
MOUNTAINS WEST OF ALBUQUERQUE, NM
HAD TO GET A PIC OF AMTRAK HERITAGE UNIT #822 ON THE POINT OF THE SOUTHWEST CHIEF AT ALBUQUERQUE
RAILRUNNER COMMUTER TRAIN, ALBUQUERQUE, NM
MOUNTAINS EAST OF ALBUQUERQUE, NM
MEET WITH WESTBOUND SOUTHWEST CHIEF LED BY AMTRAK P42DC #162, LAMY, NM
HORSEBACK RIDING NEAR THE TRACKS, LAMY, NM
LAMY, NM, AMTRAK STATION
SOUTHWEST CHIEF CLIMBING GLORIETTA PASS
GLORIETTA PASS
SANTA FE NATIONAL FOREST
HARVEY HOUSE HOTEL, LAS VEGAS, NM, WHICH ONCE HOSTED THEODORE ROOSEVELT
ANTELOPE NEAR LAS VEGAS, NM
APPROACHING RATON TUNNEL, NM
RATON PASS, CO
KANSAS CITY, MO
STEAMBOAT ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER, FORT MADISON, IA
SOUTHWEST CHIEF CROSSING THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER AT FORT MADISON, IA
ENTERING CHICAGO UNION STATION
Seattle to L.A. on Amtrak's "Coast Starlight"
Good Morning DU'ers,
Happy 4th of July!
Hope everyone is enjoying themselves and keeping safe.
Once again as a weekend distraction my wife and I thought we might share some pics, this time from our journeys years back on Amtrak's Train #11, the "Coast Starlight", which runs on what we found to be an incredibly scenic route along the Pacific Coast from Seattle, Washington to Los Angeles, California.
The pics are a composite of several separate trips that we took on Train #11 and attempt to show some of the regions traversed, in geographical order from north to south.
The pics are from our website, https://northamericabyrail.info/
Hope you enjoy!
Cheers, Pete
FIRST, A PIC FROM ONBOARD THE 'COAST STARLIGHT' CROSSING THE TRESTLE AT GAVIOTA, CA
NOW FROM NORTH TO SOUTH:
KING STREET STATION, SEATTLE, WA
ONBOARD THE COAST STARLIGHT PASSING THE 'NEW' TACOMA NARROWS BRIDGE [NOT THE OLD INFAMOUS GALLOPING GURDY]
ALONG PUGET SOUND
PACIFIC PARLOR CAR ON THE COAST STARLIGHT
PORTLAND UNION STATION
WILLAMETTE FALLS, OREGON CITY, OR, AS SEEN FROM THE COAST STARLIGHT
UNION PACIFIC YARD AT EUGENE, OR
WILLAMETTE PASS, SPRINGFIELD, OR
KLAMATH FALLS NOCTURNE WITH TRAIN #11
ONBOARD THE COAST STARTLIGHT, PASSING SUSPENSION BRIDGE OVER THE CARQUINEZ STRAIT
ON THE COAST STARLIGHT, STREET RUNNING THROUGH OAKLANDS JACK LONDON SQUARE
PASSING THROUGH THE SANTA CLARA VALLEY
ENTERING A TUNNEL ON THE CUESTA GRADE AT PASO ROBLES, CA
CUESTA GRADE, PASO ROBLES, CA
THE COAST STARLIGHT DESCENDING THE CUESTA GRADE
FRONT OF OUR TRAIN, PASO ROBLES, CA
WINDING THROUGH THE HORSESHOE CURVES AT PASO ROBLES, CA
AMTRAK P42DC #189 ON THE POINT OF THE COAST STARLIGHT, SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA
SAN LUIS OBISPO AMTRAK STATION
NEAR PISMO BEACH, CA
PACIFIC COAST, SANTA BARBARA, CA
THE COAST STARLIGHT TRAVELLING ALONG THE PACIFIC COAST, SANTA BARBARA, CA
PACIFIC COAST SOUTH OF SANTA BARBARA, CA
LOS ANGELES UNION STATION
A Ride in the Cab of a Steam Locomotive
Several years ago while vacationing on Vancouver Island, I was offered the opportunity to ride in the cab of a steam locomotive. My wonderful & extremely supportive wife agreed to incorporate the opportunity into our travel plans so that I would have the chance to ride and photograph the experience.
The Canadian Pacific Railway's 'Esquimalt & Nanaimo' subsidiary once had an extensive network of lines serving Vancouver Island supporting freight and logging operations and even ran a passenger service of sorts. One section - the Canadian Pacific's Alberni Subdivision which once crossed the island from east to west - has been mostly abandoned except for a stretch running from Port Alberni to McLean Mill which is today operated as a tourist railway known as the Alberni Pacific.
It is this tourist railway that is documented in the pictures below from our website: https://northamericabyrail.info/
Hope you enjoy!
Cheers, Pete
Alberni Pacific #7 simmers at the end of the line at McLean Mill, Vancouver Island:
At the railway station in Port Alberni, British Columbia:
Alberni Pacific #7, an oil-fired 2-8-2 'Mikado' type engine, steamed up and bell ringing. At the engine house in Port Alberni, before being coupled to her train for the journey to McLean Mill:
Engineer working the Johnson Bar in the cab of #7:
View over the fireman's shoulder, departing the station and railroad yards in Port Alberni:
#7 charges past a grade crossing.
View from the cab window, going over a trestle:
#7's stack blasting into the cool morning air, reminding the good people of Port Alberni that the Alberni Pacific is passing through:
Oil in the firebox. No hand-bombing coal on this iron horse:
View past the boiler and on down the line, through the Vancouver Island rainforest.
A young couple pays homage to steam's magic at the end of the line at McLean Mill, British Columbia:
McLean Mill historic site, last operating steam-powered sawmill in North America:
Taking the return trip in one of the coaches:
Our journey comes to an end as we pull into the yards at Port Alberni:
A Trip on The Rocky Mountaineer
Since my very first 'Canada by Train' post documenting our journey on VIA Rail seemed well received, I thought I might post some pics from a different train route through Western Canada.
Canada has two major Class 1 transcontinental railroads - Canadian National (CN) & Canadian Pacific (CP). CP was the first to be built through Canada and was a major factor in the creation of Canada as a country, as completion of a transcontinental railway was a condition of British Columbia joining the new Confederation of Canada.
Of the two railroads, only the CN line still has transcontinental passenger service in the form of VIA Rail Canada's 'Canadian' which traverses the country and the Canadian Rockies on the northern route through Jasper, Alberta.
The CP route, which runs through the Rockies further south through Banff, Alberta has no transcontinental passenger service. However there is a seasonal, regional tour train named the 'Rocky Mountaineer' which runs through the Canadian Rockies from Calgary, Alberta to Vancouver, British Columbia over the tracks of the Canadian Pacific and is the only way for tourists to travel on the CP line through southern Alberta and British Columbia.
A few years back, my wife & I decided to book a trip on the Rocky Mountaineer and thought we might share some pics.
So without further ado, for those interested in taking another scenic land cruise, here are a few pics from our website, https://northamericabyrail.info/
Hope you enjoy!
FIRST, A PIC OF THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER RUNNING ALONG THE KICKING HORSE RIVER, NAMED FOR THE PACKHORSE THAT KICKED & KNOCKED UNCONSCIOUS JAMES HECTOR OF THE PALLISER EXPEDITION WHILE SEARCHING FOR A ROUTE THROUGH THE CANADIAN ROCKIES
NOW FROM EAST TO WEST: CALGARY, AB, STARTING POINT FOR THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER TOUR TRAIN
CANADIAN PACIFIC 2-10-4 'SELKIRK' TYPE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE #5931 ON DISPLAY IN CALGARY, AB
ONBOARD THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER, PASSING THE THREE SISTERS AT CANMORE, AB. AS SEEN FROM THE OPEN-AIR OBSERVATION PLATFORM OF THE DOME CAR
TRAVELING ALONG THE BOW RIVER WEST OF BANFF, AB
ROCKY MOUNTAINS EAST OF LAKE LOUISE
CANADIAN PACIFIC STATION AT LAKE LOUISE, AB
VINTAGE HEAVYWEIGHT PASSENGER CARS AT LAKE LOUISE STATION
ROCKY MOUNTAINEER NEAR STEPHEN, BC
PASSING THROUGH THE YOHO VALLEY
TRAVELLING THROUGH THE KICKING HORSE PASS ON THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER
MOUNT STEPHEN TO THE LEFT
PASSING DEMOLISHED ROAD BRIDGE, KICKING HORSE CANYON
CANADIAN ROCKIES AT LEANCHOIL, BC
THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER IN THE KICKING HORSE CANYON
PASSING THROUGH THE SELKIRK RANGE AT GLACIER, BC
MEET WITH A CP FREIGHT LED BY CEFX AC4400CW #1057, REVELSTOKE, BC
MEET WITH THE CANADIAN PACIFIC EXECUTIVE TRAIN LED BY CP FP9 #4107, REVELSTOKE, BC
CP CABOOSE AT REVELSTOKE, BC
CROSSING THE COLUMBIA RIVER LEAVING REVELSTOKE
BAR AREA IN THE FRONT OF THE DOME CAR. NEAR SHUSWAP LAKE, BC.
BACK ONBOARD THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER LEAVING KAMLOOPS, BC, AFTER AN OVERNIGHT STAY
PASSING THROUGH THE ARID THOMPSON RIVER CANYON NEAR ASHCROFT, BC
BIGHORN SHEEP
COYOTE, LEFT OF CENTRE IN PHOTO
BALD EAGLE
VIEW FROM BACK OF TRAIN AT A ROCK SLIDE DETECTOR FENCE IN THE THOMPSON RIVER CANYON.
ROCKY MOUNTAINEER IN THE THOMPSON RIVER CANYON
VIEW FROM REAR OF TRAIN PASSING THROUGH A TUNNEL AT LASHA, BC
PAINTED CANYON REGION OF THE THOMPSON RIVER CANYON
CISCO, BC, IS WHERE THE CANADIAN PACIFIC & CANADIAN NATIONAL LINES CROSS EACH OTHER
IN THE ROCKY MOUNTAINEER DOME CAR, TRAVELLING THROUGH THE COAST MOUNTAINS NEAR BOSTON BAR, BC
CROSSING THE FRASER RIVER AT VANCOUVER, BC
ROCKY MOUNTAINEER PULLING INTO THE STATION AT VANCOUVER, BC
A Rare-Mileage trip on the 'Montana Daylight'
Years ago, I had the opportunity to ride a passenger train on a route that today would be considered "rare mileage" by railfans and thought I might share some pics.
From 1995 until 2004, a tour train known as the Montana Daylight used to run over a portion of the old Northern Pacific Railway's (now Montana Rail Link) mainline on a 2-day journey from Sandpoint, ID to Livingston, MT, via Missoula, MT, where an overnight stop-over was made (passengers could overnight in one of the local hotels which along with meal service, was included in the price of the tour).
The Montana Daylight ran on a section of the route of Northern Pacifics premier passenger train, the North Coast Limited, which itself ran all the way from Seattle to Chicago, as did its replacement Amtraks North Coast Hiawatha which ran until 1979.
These pics were shot with a Nikon F60 using Kodachrome 64 slide film and later "hillbilly scanned" by photographing the slide projections with my then-new Nikon D50 digital SLR.
Not my best work - but since neither Amtrak's North Coast Hi nor the Montana Daylight are running anymore, I for one will always cherish these views of a streamlined passenger train running on this now-freight-only line through southern Montana.
Pics from my website at https://northamericabyrail.info/
Cheers, Pete
FIRST, A SHOT OF MY FAVORITE SPOT ONBOARD THE TRAIN. IN THE DOME CAR ON THE MONTANA DAYLIGHT. BEARMOUTH, MT
NOW FROM WEST TO EAST. ON THE EASTBOUND MONTANA DAYLIGHT, DEPARTING SANDPOINT, ID, AMTRAK STATION
NEAR THOMPSON FALLS, MT
DINING CAR ON THE MONTANA DAYLIGHT
LOWER LOUNGE IN MONTANA DAYLIGHT DOME CAR
MONTANA DAYLIGHT DESCENDING EVARO HILL WEST OF MISSOULA, MT. DUST DEVILS IN THE BACKGROUND.
MONTANA RAIL LINK SD19 #651 ON THE POINT OF THE MONTANA DAYLIGHT, MISSOULA, MT
NORTHERN PACIFIC 4-6-0 TYPE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE #1356, MISSOULA, MT
DOME-SLEEPER-LOUNGE CAR BELLA VISTA ON TAIL END OF MONTANA DAYLIGHT, MISSOULA, MT
DOME CAR CITY OF LIVINGSTON, MONTANA DAYLIGHT, MISSOULA, MT
MONTANA RAIL LINK SD19 #652 ON THE MONTANA DAYLIGHT, MISSOULA, MT
ON THE MONTANA DAYLIGHT, LEAVING MISSOULA EASTBOUND
ABANDONED MILWAUKEE ROAD RIGHT OF WAY, RUNS PARALLEL TO MRL - NEE NORTHERN PACIFIC - MAINLINE
MONTANA DAYLIGHT CROSSING AUSTIN CREEK TRESTLE IN MULLAN PASS
LOOKING BACK AT AUSTIN CREEK TRESTLE
ALONG THE MISSOURI RIVER AT LOMBARD, MT
MONTANA DAYLIGHT PASSING UNDER THE OLD MILWAUKEE ROAD BRIDGE AT LOMBARD, MT
LOOKING BACK AT MILWAUKEE ROAD BRIDGE, LOMBARD, MT
REAR VIEW OUT OF DOME CAR, LOMBARD, MT
LOGAN, MT
MEET WITH A BNSF FREIGHT, LOGAN, MT
MODEL RAILROAD ON DISPLAY AT LIVINGSTON DEPOT, EASTERN TERMINUS OF THE MONTANA DAYLIGHT
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