Trains and Photography
I’ve been wanting to fly my drone near some grain elevators in western Manitoba for a while now. Followers of this blog may have noted that I’ve recorded some aerial views of elevators like Barnsley and Elie, but I haven’t been back to western Manitoba for “vator fanning” since my two day trip in 2014. … Read moreIncidental Railfanning
On Labour Day, 2019, I went out in the morning with the intention of catching a few trains along the CN Rivers subdivision. I only had a couple of hours so I decided on the Rivers to maximize my chances of seeing a train (or two). As I drove around the Perimeter Highway, I saw … Read moreA Branch Line Chase
My friend Jason Paul Sailer was in Winnipeg in July on vacation. You may remember that I toured the CP Stirling subdivision with him in 2016 and went rail/elevator fanning over Christmas 2018. First Try I picked him up before 6 AM to get the sunrise photos. We started out on the CN Redditt subdivision. … Read moreA Morning With Jason
One day early in August, I opened my email to see an invitation from blog reader and commentor Sheldon Hildebrandt. They were starting to harvest wheat and he was wondering if I’d like to ride along in the combine. He knew my interest in grain elevators, and this is where the grain comes from! I … Read moreRiding a Combine
Here are some trains I saw during two days of railfanning in early April 2019. I was out on April 2 and April 6. Keep an eye on the amount of snow on the ground! It’s surprising how much it varied by location and by day. April 2 On April 2 I was out along … Read moreEarly April Railfanning
The book “Barns of Western Canada: An Illustrated Century” by Bob Hainstock is a great review of many of the most interesting barns in the area. The photos are great and the captions really tell the story. I’m not really a “barn guy” but I do see a lot of barns while I am driving … Read moreBook Review: Barns of Western Canada
It was a frosty and foggy morning when I set out from Winnipeg in search of trains. The date was March 17, 2019 and I had a few hours to get some trains and maybe fly my (relatively new) drone. As soon as I stepped out of my house, I saw the fog and I … Read moreFrost and Fog
Monday, August 5 was a holiday here in Manitoba. It was Terry Fox Day, a provincial holiday to honour the heroic runner who attempted to run across Canada in 1980. See below for more information on Terry. I noticed that VIA 2, the eastbound Canadian, was late again and was set to depart Winnipeg shortly … Read moreA Southern Tour
Most of my railfan posts tend to be long stories of what I saw when I was out railfanning. Sometimes, though, I just see a train while we’re out doing something else. I thought I’d share a few of those here… call them “short stories” instead of novels or novellas. A Real Branch Line Train … Read moreShort Stories
I went up to the Prairie Dog Central early Saturday morning (August 3). I wanted to make a donation to help support the PDC and its operations, so I arranged to meet with the General Manager, Paul Newsome. We ended up sitting in the office with Jeff Livingstone, the Operations Manager, and I (re)joined the … Read moreSunflowers and the PDC