steveI just finished the book “Southern Pacific Railroad“, another fine work by Brian Solomon. This is part of the MBI Railroad Color History series, published by Voyageur Press in 2007 as the second edition. The book covers the historic Southern Pacific Railroad, from its inception in the mid 19th century through its growth, decline and … Read more
“Every year is getting shorter never seem to find the time.Plans that either come to naught or half a page of scribbled linesHanging on in quiet desperation is the railfan wayThe time is gone, the train didn’t come,Thought I’d something more to say.” – “Time”, Pink Floyd, with a few revisions As I mentioned in … Read more
VIA Rail has resumed passenger service to Churchill, Manitoba. Service was interrupted in late May 2017 when portions of the rail line were washed out. Since the rail line was sold, repairs proceeded rapidly and now service is back to the northern Manitoba town. This article was originally published on www.traingeek.ca and is not to be … Read more
Every year, Canadian Pacific Railway runs its Holiday Train across Canada and the USA to support local food banks. This is its 20th year of operation. It actually runs two trains, one through Canada and the other through the US. I try to catch it every year, with varying success. I caught it in 2011, … Read more
I went out early in the morning of November 17th on a mission. I was looking for a new structure on CN’s main line. CN and partner Duos Technologies has been building rail inspection portals at four locations around Winnipeg. These devices will do automated rail car inspection at high speed. I’ll write an article … Read more
The Greater Winnipeg Water District (GWWD) railway is a pretty unique little railway. It was built to service the aqueduct supplying water from Shoal Lake to Winnipeg. The railway was completed in 1915 and has served the city since then. It used to carry passengers along the 102 mile route, but it has not done … Read more
I’ve completed my second book, “Passing a Half Century”! This details the trip my wife and I took through Alberta and British Columbia to celebrate turning 50. Buy paperback on Amazon.CA This book is a compilation of a blog post series that I wrote, plus reviews of the three railway museums I visited, plus additional … Read more
Back in May 2000, I was driving across half of Canada with my girlfriend (and future wife). She had been living in Regina, SK and was moving to Fredericton, NB to be with me. It was a long drive, spanning almost a week, and we were mostly just trying to get to New Brunswick as … Read more
Continuing my trend of reading old railway books, I recently read “Canadian Pacific Railway” by Patrick C. Dorin. This book was published in 1973, so it is more than a little dated. This 176 page book covers the Canadian Pacific Railway from the confederation of Canada and the tumultuous start of the CPR, through its … Read more
After more than a year, a train has reached Churchill, Manitoba. Three locomotives, a caboose and a flatcar arrived at the northern town just before 6:45 PM on October 31. This was the first train to visit the town since the rail line between Gillam and Churchill was washed out in late May 2017. Churchill … Read more
