Illegitimus non Carborundum

In the spirit of full disclosure, which is part of my mission as a mental health public speaker, I will share that I am once again struggling with my life as it is, mainly due to an ongoing situation in my neighbourhood where my family is still being harassed and intimidated by a local resident. Long story short, our attempts to stop this behaviour through legal means have only met with mixed success and the threat remains. We had to report this individual recently, as he shows no signs of stopping. We are also desperately trying to get the Ottawa Police Service to take ownership of its litany of mistakes (my opinion, not theirs, obviously) in (mis)handling this situation.

That brings me to this blog and my continued efforts to find new and interesting things, or possibly old and interesting things, to share about my love of railways. The title of this post is a nod to the Latin motto of the now defunct Whitehorse Star newspaper, which recently closed its doors after 124 years. The scrappy newspaper's motto roughly translates to You mustn't allow the b@stards to bring you down. I love this scrappy attitude, which seems to be right out of the Klondike era Yukon.

In the spirit of that motto, I am trying not to allow anyone or anyone's failures to prevent me from living my life. It's hard right now, when I have my family's safety on my mind and the everpresent threat from this person, but through counselling, I have been able to deal with stress and anxiety in ways I couldn't a few years ago.

Part of my therapy, quite honestly, has involved going out on Wednesdays, after dropping off my girls at dance class, and sitting trackside. In the last few weeks, I've found some new spots to shoot the evening westbound Train 59 and the eastbound Train 43. It's all therapy and if we all learn something, even better, right?

Milepost 1.63 Smiths Falls Subdivision

I'll start at Milepost 1.63 of the Smiths Falls Subdivision, which is where the tracks cross Merivale Road, one of this area's more notoriously congested arterial routes. It's a throwback to 1960s urban planning when commercial development was grouped together in an endless pattern, with little thought to surrounding neighbourhoods or some sort of natural balance. There are Merivale Roads in every city and Ottawa certainly has its share of similar areas (Hazeldean Road in Kanata, southern Bank Street in Central Ottawa, Saint-Laurent Boulevard and Innes Road in the east end).

The Merivale level crossing marks the point where the commercial properties end and the residential areas re-emerge. It's a crossing that has a wide sidewalk on the west side of the road, with clear sight lines down the arrow straight stretch of track. Two weeks ago, I took a few pictures of Train 59, just to see if this crossing had anything interesting for visual purposes.

I framed the train to the left of this shot because I wanted to capture the symmetry of the power lines to the right. That overpass in the background is the Hunt Club Road overpass, where I have taken a number of railway pictures in the past few years.

Here's a shot (above) at the Merivale crossing itself. F40PH-2 6432 leads a four-car LRC consist east toward Fallowfield Station, which is situated just past the next level crossing at Woodroffe Avenue, to the west of this spot. You can see the petroleum storage tanks at Eastway Tank to the left of the crossing signals. To the right, you can see a residential neighbourhood. This spot really is the dividing line between commercial and residential areas in this part of the old Nepean.

I waited around for Train 43 eastbound, which is scheduled to come through this area around 6:48 each evening, if it isn't running late. Lucky for me, it was on time, which meant I could catch a shot of it running eastbound. Given the shadows cast by the buildings next to the track, I had to wait until the train emerged into a sunny pocket to get this shot. Note the last car in this six-car consist. One of these things is not like the other things.

Here's a closer shot nearer to the crossing. Note the shadows from the buildings on nearby Capital Drive. You can make out the new Via scheme, the old blue-and-yellow scheme and a wrap, if you look closely.

I'm not sure why an old HEP car was added onto the end of this train, but it made for a nice little surprise. I don't think we'll see too much more of this variety in the corridor. 

So that was my late April adventure at a new spot. I'm not sure I will return to this crossing, as I don't see many opportunities for new shots, but it's always fun to capture images of places in the city that I haven't documented before. This level crossing is at an interesting spot. It is worth a try, if you are a local train enthusiast and are looking for something new.

This past week, I returned to the Rideau River bridge, to get a new angle I hadn't tried yet. I will share those images in the weeks to come. 

These Wednesdays have been therapeutic for me, because they give me an evening away from my house and allow me to be free of household concerns and chores for a few hours. I'm sure I'll grow tired of taking shots of the same train at some point, but I have already identified two new vantage points I'd like to capture in the weeks to come, so I'm hoping to continue my efforts to find new ways to capture railway images in Ottawa.

Even if I don't come up with anything new, just being trackside seems to be enough for me right now. 

Wednesdays at the Overpass (Part II)

In the last post, I explored some different ways of shooting the same train at the same spot, since I often meet westbound Via Rail Train 59 around Hunt Club Road on Wednesday evenings. Let's be honest. If you are going to take up rail photography in Ottawa, you have to be prepared to catch lots of Via Rail corridor trains and think of creative ways to mix up your images. I often see photos taken at Fallowfield Station on various social media channels and I have to say, the shots all look pretty much the same. I am as guilty of this as anybody, which is why I don't go to Fallowfield much these days, unless it's in search of Via's new Siemens trains or something unique. 

The last post covered my shots taken from the spring through to the end of July. In August and into the fall, the elements around the tracks began to change, which at least gives you something else to play with other than your angle. 

August 9

In August, I returned to a spot just east of the tracks at the edge of a plaza on Antares Drive. This time, I tried to get a shot of the train before it proceeded under the overpass. This time around, P42 911 in the Love the Way wrap is leading the charge west toward Fallowfield. The sunlight on this evening was a little harsh, as the cloud cover was almost nonexistent. But I like the lines of the overpass. Also, note the switch stand in the left of the frame. That switch stand was soon to be removed.

August 23

Okay, so this is not the Hunt Club overpass, but this flyover over Prince of Wales Drive is very close to the overpass. I chose this spot on this evening, since it allowed to assume a perch in the shade. This flyover, made of stone, is just past the point where the Beachburg Sub crosses the Rideau River. I have considered trying to get a shot of the train crossing the river, but I haven't yet found a vantage point to capture this image. Something to work on for this year. Still, I love this spot. The only downside is there are a fair number of hydro wires to work around. You can see the tip of one in the top right corner.

Sept. 14

The following week, I decided that I would try to capture an image of the train beneath the overpass, as it made its way past the concrete pillars. This experiment almost didn't work because, as you are following the train past the stationary pillars in front of it, your camera will sometimes focus in the pillars and not the train. That obstacle, combined with the harsh sunlight at this spot in the evening, made for a few wasted frames. I did manage a few frames where the F40 came into view fairly well, so I think it was worth a try. I'm not sure I would try this shot again in this spot, without a better game plan.

Sept. 20

The following week, I decided to try a wider shot from a vantage point quite a bit west of the spots I had tried before. The problem on this evening was the sun was washing out the train in most shots, especially since the consist was made up of silver HEP cars. I stuck with it since I figured I could work with some shadows. Even this shot is somewhat unsatisfying. I left this shot unedited, just to show you how difficult the sun can be at times. The sky is washed out and the only thing really saving the shot is the shadows from the nearby brush. You will notice that the spur serving Bentley Avenue is in the process of being dismantled in the foreground.

Sept. 27

I've used this angle before but my goal on this evening was to capture some of the changing colours in the leaves trackside. You can even see the signals peaking out from beyond the turnout at Federal Junction. I always like it when I can capture those signals in a shot, which is not always possible. On this evening, I made sure to set up a fair bit west so I could capture the bend on the track. I tried to get a shot of the train coming around the bend, but my focus was distracted for a moment and I didn't get the train on the curve.

Oct. 11

October was a bit of a lost month for me, due to many factors, so I wasn't really thinking of anything creative when I took this shot, although I like the colours trackside. The evening light at this hour was beginning to dim significantly, which made for less glare, but the trackside colours hadn't really changed the way I wanted to them to change, since the warm summer seemed to delay the colours in the Ottawa region. The P42's headlights also didn't help.

Oct. 18

Note the difference in daylight from the last shot. This was my first attempt at getting a vertical shot at the overpass, although I was in a familiar spot, looking toward Federal Junction, on the north side of the overpass. This shot is blurred, as I was only armed with my iPhone on this evening. I don't think I was planning on getting any shots that evening, but I decided to do something at the last minute. I don't mind a blurred shot, as it conveys speed and drama when done right. I'm not sure I achieved that with this shot, but it's different than the shots I had captured earlier that summer, so there's at least that.

Nov. 1

This was the end of the line for my experiment with Train 59. This shot does not really convey how dark it was on this evening. There was a storm cloud making the daylight disappear rapidly, in addition to it being November. I didn't do much in the way of experimenting on this final meet. I figured a shot in the evening twilight would be enough to make this shot stand out. Sadly, many of the shots didn't come out as sharp as I would have liked, so I chose this one, which was reasonably crisp, even though it has the guy wire in the way.

Now that the time change has come and gone, I have more daylight to play with, which means I am starting to think of new areas in this part of the city to get some train shots. I'm not sure I will be able to get new shots, but I'm willing to give it a try. As I said, you have to take what you can get in Ottawa, since there are few options. At the very least, you can change the background, even if you can't change the trains.

Moving the People in 1940

Twenty or so years ago, I met up with my family in the Niagara Region over the Easter weekend, as it was a reasonable half-way point between where I lived at the time (Ottawa) and where they were (Sarnia area). Over the course of our adventures, we happened across this antique shop that had items flooding every room of a somewhat dilapidated old farmhouse. I remember the uneven floorboards and endless curiosities. As antiques aren't really my thing, I spent some time going through old issues of Life Magazine. I found one of the older issues from 1940 and bough it for something like $5 or so, just for the historic value of the old stories.

There are some fascinating stories about the Second World War in the magazine, but the old relic eventually made its way onto a bookshelf and sat there for many years, untouched. Recently, as I was going through other items in the bookshelf, I dug out the old magazine and started leafing through it again. I was quite surprised to find five railway advertisements in the magazine, which was a pleasant surprise.

The ads speak of the unparalleled comforts of the passenger trains of the Union Pacific (the Challengers), the Santa Fe (El Capitan) Southern Pacific (Arizona Limited) and the New Haven (Pullman Standard streamliners). There was even an ad for Lionel Trains.

When I read the ads for each railway, there were a few things that really struck me. The first was how much description went into the ads and how important rail travel was in North America, particularly in 1940. We all know what role the railways played during World War Two in mobilizing hundreds of thousands of troops to fight on the side of the Allies in Europe and later in the Pacific theatre against the expansionist Japanese empire. 

One question you might have is why a railway would advertise in 1940, at a time of global conflict. I had to check my history to see when the United States entered in the Second World War. Sure enough, it was following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 7, 1941. War was declared with Japan on December 8, while Germany declared war with the United States on December 11, given the the Nazi-led administration was friendly with the Japanese emperor. 

By way of comparison, Canada had already been in the war since 1939, as our country was quick to support the United Kingdom.

So, given that historical context, it makes a little more sense for the Santa Fe Railway to advertise its passenger services between Chicago and Los Angeles in 1940, although even without the U.S. being at war, I still wonder about the wisdom of this type of advertising. The reason I wonder is that it was generally accepted that by November 25, 1940, when this ad ran, the country was still very much feeling the effects of the Great Depression of the 1930s.

But there are clues in this advertisement that allow you to understand the railway's thinking. The most obvious point to consider is that this is a promotion for El Capitan, the discount streamliner that often played second fiddle to the railways' Super Chief, the railway's flagship luxury passenger train, which began running in 1936. 

The difference between the two trains was the Super Chief had many amenities that El Capitan did not, including sleeping cars, which was the major difference. The running time between the two cities was quite impressive at just a shade under 40 hours for both trains. Both trains made twice-weekly departures in each direction.

Given the importance the railway placed on its passenger service, there was priority given to these trains on its fairly straight route between the Windy City and Los Angeles. And whereas the Super Chief was dubbed the Train of the Stars, as it was known to host celebrities, El Capitan was very much the People's Train, which hosted people who needed to get from Point A to Point B without much fuss. Given the economic realities of the country in 1940, the promotion of this discount train makes sense in a national publication like Life.

A few things to consider about this train. 

1. Despite its economy-based fares, the train featured a lounge and a "counter service" diner featuring Fred Harvey meals. These two amenities were a step down from something one might find on the Super Chief, but it shows you how the railways placed great importance on passenger travel in times past.

2. The railway advertised the services of a "courier nurse" on this train, whose job was not defined in the ad, but it seems this job was close to what was once known as a stewardess. There is a small photo of someone helping passengers recline their seats and sleep for the overnight portion of the journey. 

3. Going from Chicago to Los Angeles would cost you $39.50 in 1940, or $65 round trip, although the one-way fare could be augmented with a $5 surcharge for extra fare, although that is not clearly explained in the fine print. The round-trip ticket would run you $65 between these two cities.

4. The Bank of Canada inflation calculator estimates that this fare would cost the equivalent of $783 today, although I doubt those figures, since the inflation situation in Canada is likely skewing that number a little higher than it should be. Even so, $39.50 sounds like a large sum in 1940, at a time when money was scarce.

5. In 1940, the Santa Fe was clearly advertising the benefits of its streamlined FT locomotives and cars, as you can see from the prominent image of the train near the top of the ad. This would have likely been quite a novelty at the time, as the transition to diesel engines was not yet fully realized on most railways. Given the lack of servicing these diesel units required when compared to steam engines, the timing of this journey would likely have been reduced a fair bit, making it attractive to passengers.

And, in case you're wondering, a subscription to Life cost $4.45 in 1940. Stay tuned for more vintage ads from this old magazine. It turned out to be a fascinating historic find and an educational tool to explore railway history.

2023: The Year of Different

I remember not so long ago that my fellow blogger Eric Gagnon dubbed 2015 the Year of the Mundane, as he felt that we railway shutterbugs would be well served to start paying better attention to the small details trackside (the treasures, as it were, Eric?). In that spirit, I am hereby challenging all my fellow rail enthusiasts to get out there and find something different in 2023. I haven't really realized it until now, but I have been taking every opportunity in the last six months to get a rail shot that is different. I have been exploring new areas of the city and trying to get shots with new sightlines, just for the sake of finding new ways to capture railway action.

So, let's make 2023 the Year of Different.

For me, it's partly a necessity. I have not been far afield from Ottawa lately, which means my choices are pretty slim. It's either Via Rail in the west end of the city (Nepean, in my case) or a weekly crapshoot to try and catch up with CN 589 when it makes its way to Arnprior. I wish I could catch it on one of its runs to or from Coteau in the east end, but that's going to require a fair bit of planning one weekend and some help from my fellow railfans here in the city.

So, if my choices are Via Rail or the Arnprior Turn, then my challenge will be to find new ways of shooting the same trains. To be honest, I've grown a bit tired of the Arnprior Turn. I realize it's the only game in town for most of us, but I find that it tends to dominate our energies in this area at times, to the detriment of other trains, sightlines, areas, discussions and topics of concern.

A good example of this desire for different is the recent shots I have taken near Federal Junction. This is an area of the city with some fascinating rail history. It's where the Beachburg Sub meets the Smiths Falls Sub. In the area of the Colonnade Business Park, there are a number of dormant and partially buried old tracks that once served this industrial park. You don't need to venture far into the rear parking lots of businesses to see these tracks. Given that I am in this area every week, I am now regularly getting shots of Via's evening westbound Train 59. Last week was no different as I climbed onto the Hunt Club Road overpass and took this shot from the north sidewalk. 

This was my favourite shot of the all HEP consist, with a familiar F40PH-2 on point. That business to the right is the HLS Linens facility at the end of Gurdwara Road. You can also just make out the signal tower peaking out from around the bend in the tracks. Given the strong sunlight at 6 p.m. when the train goes by, I had to make sure I was on the sunny side of the train to get the best shot. I had to crop the image a fair bit to remove the wires from the image, which tend to frustrate my efforts at this location. I did keep the hydro towers visible in the shot, however, as it gives the image context.

This past weekend, as my family was recovering from a housewide outbreak of COVID, I found myself going a bit stir crazy, so I ventured out to take some train pictures in the fresh air, since our Mothers Day plans were essentially grounded. I went to Fallowfield Station and saw a typical corridor train approaching and sighed. An F40 and four LRC cars. I wondered whether I needed another set of shots of this train. I actually barely stayed at the station once the train arrived, since I couldn't think of anything creative to do. But then I had an idea.

Just down the road from the station is a recently constructed flyover on Greenbank Road, which replaced a level crossing in 2016. I have been wanting to shoot a train on that bridge since it became operational, but I have never been in a position where I could. So I left the station as the westbound took on passengers and set up at a vantage point on Greenbank Road to get a shot of the train crossing the flyover. Again, given the sun, I had to make sure I was on the sunny side of the bridge and at a vantage point free of major obstructions. With about a minute to spare, I set up and the train arrived.

I wasn't completely happy with this shot, but I think it turned out reasonably well. The sunlight was surprisingly tricky and the trees behind the bridge tended to darken the image a bit. I did want to be far enough away that I could shoot the train from a level perspective or somewhere close to level. I decided not to zoom in, because without the road in the picture, the shot would have lost some of its context. I wanted a shot of a train as part of the cityscape. That's a big priority for me right now. I want to shoot trains in the context of their surroundings, rather than isolating them in a shot where you have no idea where they are.

This shot when the train is a little further along turned out a bit better, simply because the light was more favourable a second later. It's amazing how quickly the natural backlighting can change in a series of shots. 

Even when I was at the station, I tried to incorporate a few elements into my shot, to make it a bit more interesting. This shot below incorporates the safety fencing at the end of the parking lot. It's nothing special, but it's something different to look at anyway.

One final example. As I was waiting for the westbound to show, I noticed a farmer in his field on the other side of the tracks. Given the wind was whipping up the dry soil, I thought it would make for an interesting shot while I was waiting.

So here's my challenge to you. Get out there and find something different. It could be different angle, a different spot to shoot or a different trackside element. Let's expand our horizons and make things a bit more interesting.

Highlights amid the lowlights

I am so glad April is over. It was an absolutely awful month for me, to be honest. It started with an ice storm that knocked out our power and caused large damage to the trees on our property. That required a great deal of effort just to get things cleaned up. Later in the month, my union went on strike for the first time in 30 years, which left me somewhat stuck. I was ambivalent about a strike, since I have my own ideas about a fair collective agreement and they don't necessarily align completely with my union or my employer. But a strike was the decided course of action and I felt compelled to support my union, as it was looking out for my best interests. It's been an exhausting few weeks of constant walking, a few close calls with angry motorists, some pushing and shoving (nothing involving me) and general upheaval at my house. (Ed. note - The strike is now mercifully over)

This required a lot of sacrifices in our family, but life rolled on, so there were some things that continued on as normal, like my daughters' evening dance classes, which take place near the Federal rail junction in the Colonnade Business Park. Since I usually have time while they are in class (no parents are allowed in the dance studio), I headed to a spot near the junction, where I can take a shot of the evening Via Train 59, which usually passes by Federal around 6 p.m. 

At the beginning of the strike, I headed to a spot off Antares Drive, where you can take a shot of the evening westbound as it crosses under Hunt Club Road. This train featured P42s in the fall when I last took pictures of it, when there was enough daylight. The train now seems to have some dedicated F40s as its power.

On April 17, 6436 was the featured power, with the Via wrap scheme. As per usual, this train usually sports a consist of old silver HEP cars, complete with the buffer cars. There really isn't much more to say about this meet. I had just completed my first day of picketing and was a little shell shocked by the entire experience. Being able to lean against a fence by myself was good therapy. I needed some time away from the recent madness. The final car was 8125. Since my vantage point was partially obscured by trackside brush, I couldn't get a good going away shot, but I thought the shot below was okay. I was hoping to see a more exotic buffer car, as I saw more recently at Ottawa Station, but this was fine.

A small piece of information about this car, courtesy of my friend Eric Gagnon at Trackside Treasure. When I looked at the car, I noticed its car number on the stainless steel plate was listed as 8125. However, you can also see a small lit-up sign in the window next to the coach's door. When I zoomed in on the photo, I noticed it read 2904. I wasn't sure why this number was different from the car number.

Eric explained that the number is a designation used by passenger railways to alert people to their car. So, if it reads 2904, it would be the fourth coach on Train 29. Although in this case, as it is a buffer car on Train 59, it's a meaningless designation. Eric said that these small analog number boards were used by CP for its passenger trains, which makes this coach an ex-CP HEP coach. You will notice if you have been on an LRC coach or a former CN stainless steel coach, these numbers are lit up inside the coach near the vestibule. Unlike the CP coaches, the numbers are digital. I learned something new. Thanks to Eric for this information.

This past week, I decided to return to the same spot, since I once again needed a break from the pressures of the strike, which has gone on a lot longer than anyone imagined. I know from my conversations on the picket line that many thought the strike would wrap up in less than a week. This was not the case, unfortunately. Once again, I caught up with the same train, in need of some railway therapy.

This time, it was F40 6407 doing the honours with a very similar consist in tow as the train made its way westbound to Fallowfield Station. I do like this spot a fair bit, if it's Via Rail you are looking to capture. I would imagine that this would be a good spot if something out of the ordinary came through town and I was looking to get a shot in a spot where others wouldn't think to set up. Call it a secret spot. Locals can pretty much figure out where it is, but I still won't say anything about its specifics.

This time, I tried to get a going-away shot but this was the best I could do, given the trackside growth. You can see it in this shot. Upon inspection of my photos, it appears this is the same consist that was used in my earlier shot. 

Also in the past week, our union advised me to head to Parliament Hill to gather for a large combined demonstration. There were about 10,000 people who turned out throughout the day, of which I was one. That meant I took the O-Train for the first time since before the pandemic started in early 2020. The trains were in reasonable condition, but I did notice the effects of the track defects were certainly making their impact known. As many locals know, the O-Trains on the Confederation Line have speed restrictions on curves, since there is debate about whether the track was installed correctly. I did notice that our train slowed down noticeably on a turn in the western portion of the downtown tunnel. This was the case in 2020, but the slowdown seemed much more pronounced this week. That's what it seemed like to me, anyway.

On my way back home from the downtown protest, I took a quick snap of the train that brought me back west. On this day, the trains were working normally, but I should note that the line was shut down yet again to allow crews to find the source of water leaks at Rideau Station in the downtown tunnel.

And so it goes in Ottawa.

Capture Via's rainbow era while you can

On Jan. 12, I found myself trackside at Via Rail's Tremblay Road station east of downtown Ottawa. I didn't really have a goal in mind, other than to see what was coming and going. I was hoping to maybe catch a glance at the new Siemens Charger trainsets, but none were in operation that day. 

As is the case in Ottawa, Via Rail is often the only railway to observe some days. My first stop was the Belfast Road overpass, which gives you a great view of the station yard to the west and the Alexandria Subdivision to the east. Of course, the view of the station is obscured by a number of hydro wires, but you can work around them with some creative camera positioning and zoom. If you are hoping to catch a westbound train coming from Montreal, the Belfast Road overpass is an ideal spot to shoot facing east, as long as the east sidewalk is cleared, which is not the case in the winter. On the day I was there, a corridor train from Montreal was making its way to the station, but I could only capture it from the west sidewalk, through the traffic. Not an easy task.

Led by P42 918 in a wrap, this train featured a full consist of silver streamliner cars, complete with the requisite buffer cars that sandwich the operational coaches, thanks to a mandate from federal safety officials. 

The buffer car behind the engine was 8103 long distance coach in the traditional Via blue and yellow colours. This was originally a CP coach, and is designated by Via as an HEP1 coach. 

The last buffer car in this train is Via Rail 8318 Manor-class sleeping car, which was also a Canadian Pacific car prior to Via. The nameplate on the side of the car did not carry a name, but research showed that 8318 is officially listed as Craig Manor. This car was also still carrying its original blue and yellow Via Rail colours dating back to the late 1970s. I mention these cars in particular because I really do think we are living in a rainbow era of Via, where many different paint schemes and wraps are vying for a railfan's attention. I wonder if a day will come when we look back fondly at this point in Via's history.

Once this train had tied up, I made my way to the station to take a peak at the schedule. Given the number of people in the station, I assumed more trains were coming or going. While there, the Ottawa Valley NTrak railway club was showing off its prowess in a combined display. I took a quick peak at this model train setup, in between all the fascinated kids. I took a shot at what I assumed was an approximation of CN's Super Continental. Love those old F units!

While I was there, I decided to get a shot of the main entrance to the station. This is kind of an iconic place for me, as it was how I arrived in Ottawa to return to university or the final place I saw before heading home to visit family in the Sarnia area. The Ottawa train station is a very difficult building to capture an image of, given there aren't many good vantage points in the area where you can get the entire building in a shot. But the entrance gives you an idea of the architectural design of the station, which has won awards. Once inside the building, you can certainly appreciate the floor-to-ceiling windows, as it is a very warm, welcoming place.

Before calling it a day, another westbound made its way to the station, this time being led by another P42 (902) in its original Via paint scheme. I tried to get the train as it rounded the curve, for the sake of getting a different shot. I like this one below the best.

Once again, you can see the two buffer HEP1 cars sandwiching the cars in revenue service. This at least adds a little bit of colour to the corridor, allowing those along the rails to see cars (like the Manor sleepers) that don't often grace the rails between Windsor and Quebec City. In this case, the first buffer was HEP1 Business Class car 4000 in the updated business class grey and yellow scheme.

The rear buffer car appears to be Via Rail 8307 Blair Manor sleeping car, once again in the original Via blue and yellow scheme from the late 1970s. It was fun to see some of these cars that very rarely made it through Ottawa before the mandated buffer car order came down from federal safety regulators. I wonder how long this policy will be in place, given the outcome of the tests being done on these cars. I suppose it's a reminder to capture some rail history trackside while you can.

While I was capturing the incoming consist from Montreal, I noticed an eastbound corridor train making its start for Montreal. This consist was a little more standard with an F40 leading a typical LRC consist.

My original goal with this post was to provide a little bit of trackside commentary on winter railroading in Ottawa but I realized that the photos I took tell the story of the many faces of Via Rail right now. There are many different colour schemes at play these days, including the newest scheme in the Siemens trainsets. This seems to be the direction that all of Via's equipment is heading in, or at least the equipment that will remain in use in the years to come. A look at the HEP1 4000 Business Class buffer seems to be a decent match for the newest Via equipment.

But it's interesting that you can see the original Via blue and yellow colours on both the HEP1 and LRC cars, not to mention the various updates and wraps from the Canada 150 and Via 40 years. Then there's the Love the Way wraps, which carried over in recent years. I'm not even mentioning the slightly iridescent scheme on the Renaissance equipment. Put it all together and you have a lot of interesting design elements worth capturing while you can. What seems mundane today might seem fascinating in the years to come. So go ahead and take that additional shot. You'll be happy you did.

30 for 40: A lifetime of Via Rail memories (Part III)

This week marks the third and final installment of my favourite Via Rail memories from my lifetimes either riding the train or standing trackside. You can read the first post here and the second post here. I would love to hear some of your favourite Via Rail memories out there as well.

21. In the early 1990s, my sister went away to university in Waterloo. As is the case with many students, the train becomes the primary source of transportation when your hometown is more than a few hours away. One of the benefits to my sister being away from school was that she often would arrive home for visits in an Amtrak train, which was an exotic site, even in a border town like Sarnia. The reason why she would often come home in an Amtrak consist was that Via and Amtrak still operated their Toronto-Chicago service, which would involve Amtrak trains operating between Sarnia and Toronto with Via Rail crews aboard. I was lucky enough to capture one of those trains shortly before Amtrak ditched its F40s in favour of its ubiquitous and impossibly ugly fleet of P40s and P42s.

22. Staying with Amtrak, I once had the pleasure of boarding one of those Amtrak trains with Via crew in Sarnia when I boarded a train for Kitchener to visit my sister for the weekend when she was away at school. Cooler still, the train I was riding featured Amtrak Superliners. This was only possible shortly after the new St. Clair River railway tunnel was completed beneath Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia. Up until that point, the old tunnel could not accommodate Superliners, autoracks or double stack container cars. Not many people can claim to have taken the Superliners from Sarnia. The international service between Chicago and Toronto was terminated in 2004.

23. Once in a while, you capture magic. I am by no means an expert at photography. And to be honest, I don’t often go trackside to capture Via Rail corridor trains these days, because I have so many shots of them already. But on this day after a snowfall, I captured this image near Cedarview Road that ranks among my favourite railway photos.

24. When I was young, my grandparents would sometimes travel to their hometowns in Eastern Quebec (Le Bic and Padoue) via the formerly branded Chaleur. One weekend they had a surprise for me. It was a full-size Via Rail Chaleur poster with a stunning image of a Via blue and yellow F unit pulling a string of silver Budd coaches across a bridge somewhere in Eastern Quebec. Sadly, that poster has been lost to time. Does anyone remember a time when you could buy Via Rail branded posters? Am I dating myself right now?

25. I remember passing endless hours playing with those LRC cardboard trains that you can still get on a Via Rail train. Whenever someone in my family rode the train, they would usually bring home a small cardboard train for me. I was happy to hear that Via Rail still gives those away on the train. A nice touch.

26. Perhaps my greatest Via Rail memory was when I had my one and only encounter with the legendary Canadian at Banff station. It was the summer of 1986 and the train had just staggered into the station, being led by a CP Rail SD40-2. Obviously, the F units pulling the train had run into trouble somewhere between Vancouver and Alberta. My family was visiting our extended family at the time and someone (I’m not sure who) convinced the CP Rail engineer to let my brother and I climb on board that mammoth machine. The engineer, Rick, was nice enough to show us the basics of the engine, including what he called “the robot,” which made no sense to me at the time. Somewhere in my family archives are photos of that encounter, including a shot of my brother and me on the walkway of the SD40-2. There is also a shot of the full consist. I have been bugging my siblings to search for them, but no one has been able to locate them. I once had copies of these photos but those images have long been lost. Sigh.

27. I’m trying to remember how I ended up getting this shot, which was taken somewhere near the Moodie Drive crossing. There’s nothing spectacular about this image, but I have always liked it for some reason and have ranked it among my favourite Via Rail shots.

28. Once in a while, you see something odd at Ottawa Station. I always love it when I catch something odd. This consist might be one of my all-time favourites. I love the weird rainbow consists.

29. Many people didn’t like the Canada 150 wraps, but I thought it made for a fun year trackside. This was the first time I captured a wrap.

30. I am dating myself again, but I remember being able to go to the “snack car” when I was aboard a Via Rail train between Sarnia and Quebec City. It was when my family went to Quebec City in the summer of 1983. To a young railfan, being able to get up and walk through a moving train was the pinnacle of adventure.

So those are the Via Rail memories, both distant and recent, that stand out to me. Although the company often finds itself the target of criticism and funding constraints, I think we should all be very proud of this service. I only hope that, one day, its political masters will build the railway back up to the national carrier it should be.

Stay tuned for a bonus Part IV of this series, featuring a guest blogger.

Via Rail's 40th anniversary special in Sarnia

My brother Marc recently took his son to see Via Rail Canada's 40th anniversary special. I'll let my brother take it from here - Michael

There was a low-key Via Rail visit in Sarnia this past August. Via had planned to make stops in various communities to showcase their service, which provided a great opportunity to re-familiarize myself with rail travel.

Via also made this a community-minded event, by holding a ceremony in partnership with Sarnia’s RAIL (Rail Advocacy in Lambton), a grassroots lobby group, whose purpose is to increase and improve the level of train and bus service in Sarnia-Lambton. Via’s staff donated and planted seven trees in Centennial Park, where CN’s lightly-used Point Edward Spur runs through, servicing Sarnia’s harbour and docks. (The last time Via ventured onto this spur was when the Grey Cup Centennial train visited Sarnia in 2015 - Michael).

The RAIL group is credited for several improvements in the area. They brought attention to the neglected train station (since restored), and had passenger service reinstated at the Wyoming passenger station.

Via’s staff hosted tours in Centennial Park on a rainy summer day. Friendly staff greeted guests, showing off the dome car, a coach car, and a lounge car (Via's Glenfraser).

Engine 6454 idled for our event, sporting the 40th livery. This train usually operates the Halifax run, according to the engineer. Waterfront condos are seen in the background, along Sarnia’s Front Street.

The staff kept kids busy with the cardboard Via trains I remember getting as a kid in the 1980s. There was an entertainer for them too, making balloon animals and telling jokes. He was a real hit with the kids. In the dome car, a young staffer answered questions and took pictures.

I am used to traveling by air, so it was a bit of a surprise to see how dated the coaches are inside. They are clean and in a good state of repair, so it’s not a criticism. I can imagine this is a very nice way to travel, taking in the scenery. Certainly more room than an airline seat.

Sarnia’s Historical Society took advantage of this gathering to show off Bullet Nosed Betty, on static display at Centennial Park. 6069 has been under restoration for several years by a dedicated group of volunteers. The gates were open, and guests were allowed to check out the inside. This was the first time in ages that the inside of this steam locomotive was accessible to the public.

My son loves checking out trains, so this was a thrill. A rainy day was not stopping him!

A CN retiree was on hand to talk about 6069. He was one of the last engineers to operate this old workhorse.

He was very kind to my son, and let him wear his hat. He gave us a tour, showing us the basics of steam operation.

Thanks to VIA for bringing this tour to Sarnia. It was well attended by kids and adults alike, with politicians mingling in. Note Sarnia Bay and the Government Docks in the background (top left). This spur terminates at the waterfront.

Thanks to my brother for the recap. It sounded like a fun event. Certainly it might prove useful in helping RAIL secure another passenger train for Sarnia, which now has only one arrival and departure a day. -Michael

40 Shades of Via Grey

I recently caught up with a few Via Rail corridor trains. I have been meaning to get out and get some shots while there was still snow on the ground. It's been a busy winter with precious few chances to catch anything trackside with a little snow in the shot. Luckily, I was able to make the most of my chances.

One of my meets was lucky. I was driving home and made sure to check out a few trackside spots long the Smiths Falls Sub. When I was driving north along Moodie Drive, the crossing barriers came down. The road was empty so I slowed down and tried to set up a quick shot of an eastbound P42 makings its way to Fallowfield Station. P42 911 still had its Canada 150 wrap minus the Canada 150 logo. Not the best shot in the world, but it was the best I could do in a rush.

The next day, I dropped by Via's Central Station on Tremblay Road to check out if anything was worth shooting. This was the first thing I saw when I arrived.

A Via crew was inspecting another wrapped P42 on a stub-end spur. This was the first Via 40th anniversary wrap I have seen. It makes this unit look brand new. My plan when I arrived at the station was to get a shot of the departing Train 24, which was about to leave for Montreal. I also wanted to catch a glimpse of Train 45, which was scheduled to leave 11 minutes after Train 24. But, given the construction on the new platforms around the west end of the station, there was no space to stand trackside. So, I made my way to the Belfast Road overpass to set up for Train 24's departure.

Before the Montreal train left, I got a quick shot of two parked trains parked on the south track end to end. One train had an LRC Business Class car hooked up to three of the old streamliners. Nice mix of equipment. You might notice a bit of wire in the bottom of this shot. Getting clean shots of the Via station from the Belfast overpass is next to impossible. I tried to shoot between the wires a few times, but I never could seem to get them out of the frame.

Here's Train 24 with an F40PH-2 leading a consist of the Renaissance equipment. Those who know this stretch of track might wonder why there is such a long shadow on the south side of the track. That shadow is cast by a long sound barrier that was erected as part of the construction of the O-Train Confederation Line Belfast Yard. More on the O-Train next week. But, by way of comparison, here's a post that shows you what this stretch of track was like before that long sound barrier was put up.

I snagged a few shots of Train 24 as it gained speed and the F40 let out a bit of smoke. The long shadow of the sound barrier is really noticeable in this shot. I really like this shot, especially the smoke coming out of the F40.

Back to that newly wrapped P42. Right after Train 24 cleared the scene, the P42 backed out of the stub-end spur and backed up below the Belfast overpass, which allowed me a great opportunity to get this unit in full sunlight. This was Train 45. Soon after, a switch moved, this train took over the main track next to the station and began to board passengers for Toronto. I was happy to get a look at Train 45, which I had not expected. Nice little bonus.

I snapped a quick shot of the new raised platform. Work is still ongoing, but you can see that some of the newly raised platforms are done.

And here's one last shot of Train 45 before it gains the main track next to the station. All in all, it was a productive couple of meets for me. I did manage to see a bit of a 40th anniversary wrapped LRC coach but was not able to get any quality shots of it. Something to look for the next time I am trackside.