When I first visited Winnipeg in the early 2000s, I went up the short tower in the Forks and photographed a train at nearby Union Station. Recently I decided to try that again.
VIA was still positioning their train when I arrived. I watched them pull ahead then back into the station.
The odd thing was that there locomotives on both ends- 6452 and 6435 pulling, with 6418 on the other end. I wonder if that was done to bring a spare locomotive out for the Canadian that would be coming later that day.
While I waited for them to finish their switching, I walked under the Assiniboine River bridge. The ties caught my eye with their irregular lengths.
Soon it was time to ascend the tower. This is what it looks like from the river area.
There’s an elevator as well as stairs.
Here’s the wide angle view of the area.
The roofs of the main Forks building really dominate the photo, alas.
A telephoto lens is useful for peering into the train shed. The blocked off wall beyond the locomotives is one end of the Winnipeg Railway Museum.
While I was up there, a westbound train went by.
I think an eastbound train would photograph well here.
Going back to December 28, 2004 here are a few shots of the east facing Canadian at the station.
Assiniboine Park was fully out of the west end of the shed, and only a few kilometres away from its namesake.
Overall, I am not terribly impressed with this location, but it is something different!
That is a challenging spot, but I appreciate your efforts under the bridge. I find that I am actively trying to find new spots and new angles, even if the end result isn’t what I hoped it might be. Eventually, these experiments will lead to a breakthrough. Your shots at least give me a better idea of the Forks area and the way the railways are folded into the cityscape. Nice work.
Good Work Steve.
It’s not always the rail related portion of the shot that’s important for later viewing, it’s the surroundings and the likes of buildings, landscapes, and other stuff that changes over time. Good for the history buffs.
Cheers
AC