The Victoria Pacific Railway was a short-lived tourist operation on Vancouver Island. It ran for two seasons on CN track just west of Victoria, in 1972 and 1973.
The VP had quite a motley collection of equipment:
- Ex Comox Logging #16 (Baldwin 2-8-2 steam locomotive)
- Ex Hillcrest Lumber #10 (Climax steam locomotive)
- Ex CP business car BRITISH COLUMBIA
- Ex Osborn Bay Wharf Company steam crane (Browning, built in 1912)
- Ex BC Hydro cabooses A-5 and A-13
The equipment was moved to Colwood, BC on August 4, 1971 by CN. Full credit to Ken Perry for the information on the move, which featured CN 991 (G12 locomotive) pulling the collection. This PDF by Ken Cringan shows the move over the Kinsol trestle and describes some of the cars on the train.
Hillcrest #10 was owned by Terry Fergusson, according to this page. It was operated near Mesachie Lake / Cowichan Lake in 1969 and 1970 before being moved to the Victoria area. The captions for Dave Wilkie’s photos show that #10 was in Victoria in the fall of 1970, having been transferred by CP from Lake Cowichan on September 27, 1970. Check out this stunning photograph!
CN delivered the Victoria Pacific equipment to the Colwood siding in August 1971 on the CN Cowichan subdivision.
Operation started on June 24, 1972 with #16 leading two ex CPR coaches. The grand opening was on June 30.
The train operated on a section of ex CN track that now forms part of the Galloping Goose trail.
As I said, it only ran for two seasons. According to at least one ex-member, CN cancelled their lease which forced the closure.
The equipment sat for several years, boarded up as seen in these slides from 1975.
The equipment was retrieved by CP in July 1976, using a very unusual technique. The ex CN track was well below the CP track, so CP swung temporary track down a very steep embankment and hauled the Victoria Pacific up using “idler” boxcars. This Flickr photo set shows the move, definitely not something that would be permitted today!
#10 ended up at the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad. I believe it operated for a while but it is currently dormant.
#16 returned to the West Coast Railway Association in Squamish, BC. From there it ended up in Kamloops and stayed there for years. There’s a rumor it’s now in Saskatchewan at Saturday Locomotive Services – or at least part of it.
It looks like the car BRITISH COLUMBIA is at the West Coast Railway Association.
It’s a shame that it didn’t last.
