Over the Rockies
Holiday planning season is here, so I thought I'd include a postcard from a 'far away' place - well, far away from me anyway. Thanks Rev. Mugo and I hope that you enjoyed your recent bit of 'gricing' along the Canadian Pacific yourself! Forget those elk and bison and stuff - time to find a good 'grade crossing' with plenty of trains ...
I always wanted to get a good peep at the Canadian lines. When I was a child I had ideas of going and getting a job as a 'Mountie' and watching those big Canadian 'Hudsons' with a Rocky Mountain background. I had a train book some well meaning relative gave me with sketches of men in loud check shirts waving to passing locomotives.
Also one of the Jack London stories - was it 'White Fang'? - was based near a section house somewhere along the tracks. Never mind the canines - what about the cabooses?
Actually a few years ago Julia and I did make it to the CP lineside about a hundred miles west of Vancouver at around seven in the morning. Can't even remember where now - one of those funny Canadian names that is a mixture of Qwakiutl Indian and Scots Gaelic. It was certainly raining like Scotland anyway.
posted by Iain @ 4:48 AM
1 comments
1 Comments:
Oh good. I wondered if there would be an opportunity to tell you about my conversation to-day, with a 'real' train driver.
He knew what time the train would be at Boston Bar and why the schedule for the Canadian, traveling west to east, leaves Vancouver so late in the day. Why? So you can see Mt. Robson in the morning, of course. You would love to meet this chap, both you and Norman and anybody who likes trains.
The Reverend and I hung out of the window at Valemount each time we heard a train passing. Not that we could see that much and only the West to East trains at that. So I guess I have the train bug just as much as anybody.
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