Cross Canada 2024 Part 3 - Into the mountains and through the canyons

 

Part 3: Into the mountains and through canyons

Morning views in Jasper National Park. Can't think of a much better thing to wake up to.

When people talk about taking the train across Canada, there’s one section that invariably comes up as the main event – the Rocky Mountains! Indeed, pretty much every person I talked to ahead of this trip said something along the lines of “oh, the train through the mountains!”. As I’ve tried to make clear over the last couple of posts, there is no shortage of stunning scenery all across the train’s route, through the rugged wilderness of northern Ontario, to the undulating fields and river valleys of the prairies. That said, even I won’t deny that the scenic highlight was still awaiting us on our final full day on board. What I hadn’t quite realized was that the most stunning part of that scenery would be much later in the day – more on that, of course, as we make our way along.

First, a side note about Jasper: When we made this trip, we of course had no idea of the tragic events that would unfold in Jasper barely a month later. Later in July, an enormous wildfire complex started burning in the national park, and an evacuation order of the town of Jasper went into effect on July 22^nd. Over the course of several days and weeks, an enormous part of the park burned, and close to half of the town itself would burn to the ground. Thanks to a combination of fire suppression preparations and the heroic work of firefighters on site, much of the town did survive the fire, including many critical utilities and the historic train station. But the devastation was pronounced, leaving many residents homeless, and it will take months and years to rebuild. The evacuation was successful at avoiding loss of life, though one firefighter tragically died while fighting the blaze.

As a result of the fire (as well as other fires burning elsewhere), several consecutive departures of the Canadian were cancelled between Vancouver and Edmonton, and the Skeena (Jasper-Prince Rupert) was either short-turned at Prince George or cancelled entirely. Since then, the Canadian has resumed operation, but with no stop in Jasper, and servicing and crew changes happening on either side of the area. The Skeena has continued to only operate between Prince Rupert and Prince George. It’s still not clear exactly when Jasper service will resume, but it’s clear it will be quite some time before the town is ready to welcome visitors again.

Wildfires are a very real part of life in deeply forested areas. We saw the evidence of many previous fires during our trip – the surreal view of charred trunks and swaths of dead trees, and eerie sights like the remnants of the town of Lytton, which burned several years ago and has never been rebuilt.

The fires are now controlled, but the need for assistance is still very much real. If you’d like to help, I’d encourage you to consider donating to the Canadian Red Cross through their Alberta Wildfires Appeal. 

 

Now, back to our trip…

 

On this morning, we knew that the train was likely to be close to on time, and that some of the most exciting scenery would be on the entrance to Jasper National Park. So we made a plan, along with a couple of friends we had made the previous day, to meet up in the Skyline dome early. Waking up, after another solid sleep, we realized that we had been stopped on a siding at Park Gate for quite some time, just inside the park.

Making our way to the dome around 6:30 am, with fresh coffee in hand as the train started moving, the views did not disappoint. Spectacular. Breathtaking. I’ll try to let the photos speak to it, but they don’t even capture the full extent.

The aptly named Park Gate siding, just after entering Jasper National Park.

Jasper morning.

Views that domes are made for.

Bit of bug splatter on the forward view - the window washing at our stop will be welcome!

Perfect morning.

I always love the way the sun catches some peaks while others lie in shadow, with bits of snow adding an extra highlight.

Rear views, much cleaner windows.

Capturing a moment.

Beautiful views all around.

For this day, there would be no formal breakfast service. There was a continental breakfast option in the diner, and a variety of breakfast items out in the Skyline, and then formal meal service would start with brunch after leaving Jasper, running from 9:30am-2pm, first come first served. This allows for some flexibility, and avoids having to have people on board in the diner when the long Jasper stop happens.

Jasper is, normally, a major servicing stop, where the train is restocked, watered, the head end crew changes, and dome windows are washed. During the stop, passengers are allowed off to explore the town, though if you do leave the train, you can’t return until the formal boarding call happens. Make sure you take your ticket with you!

We arrived in Jasper at 7:25am, just shy of an hour late. We were informed that the doors to the train would close at 8am, and reboarding would happen around 9am. So we found ourselves with roughly an hour and a half to explore the town. There were a handful of tourist oriented businesses open by this time in the morning, but we used our time to just wander around the town and enjoy the sights.

Jasper awaits. Tour buses stand at the ready, some of which will welcome passengers from our train in the next part of their adventure.

Jasper. I realize I didn't take any photos of the station itself in this direction.

Train lineup in the station in Jasper. They've got all the proper car magnets in the right place!

Washing the dome windows - a very welcome aid for the views to come.

Jasper in a nutshell - windows washed, freights passing by, and mountains in the background.

Park car bringing up the markers...err, red paddle?

An old steam locomotive on static display. 6015 is a CNR U-1a class 4-8-2, retired in 1960 and on display here since 1972. This, along with the station and many nearby buildings, reportedly survived the fires.

Our train on the right, and equipment for the Skeena, parked awaiting its next service, on the left.

One of several freight trains that arrived while we were wandering. Jasper is a CN crew base, so many trains swap crews here before continuing their journeys. 

Due to the location by the yard, trains often end up stopping while blocking this crossing - hence the sign! This potash train was here for a while. Fortunately, a pedestrian and bicycle underpass allows for non-vehicular traffic to get across while trains are around.

We observed the consist for the Skeena that was parked at the station – 6445, an ex-CP baggage, coach 8109 (ex-CP, in teal/yellow), Banff Park, and a spare 6455.

Reboarding took place at 9:10am. It was a bit chaotic, with the large crowd of returning and new passengers, but we got back on smoothly. We made our way immediately to the dome, settling in to enjoy the views as we headed off into the mountains. We departed at 9:32am, a whopping 2 minutes late.

The views after Jasper are very much what you would expect through the mountains – towering peaks, winding rivers, trees as far as the eye can see. We would pass the iconic Mount Robson, whose peak was just barely obscured by the relatively high cloud cover.

Back in the mountains. The wires on the left are part of a landslide/rockfall detection system. If wires are broken by falling rocks, it sends a signal to stop all oncoming trains.

Moose lake. An onboard announcement informs us that this lake is extremely deep, and according to legend, may have no bottom at all. To quote said announcer: that's pretty neat!

Skirting around Moose Lake, and contending with dome reflections.

More Moose Lake, but conspicuously no moose.

Mount Robson! (to the left) Few passengers seemed to be aware that we were passing the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies, and an announcement didn't come until about 10 minutes later, when it was long out of sight. The peak of Mount Robson is often obscured by cloud, and though we could see most of it, the very top of the peak was shrouded.

The domes are a popular place to be, though with people rotating in and out for brunch, there were often free seats.

Looking back to the mountains.

More mountain views.

One notable thing leaving Jasper was the changeover in passengers. We still had many of our compatriots who had started off in Toronto, but some had left us in Edmonton the night before or Jasper that morning, and we now had the addition of an enormous American tour group, who were travelling Jasper-Vancouver as part of a larger tour of western Canada. The group included folks from all over, with a large contingent from Lima Ohio, some from Florida, and a spattering of others. I don’t want to veer too much into stereotypes, but I’ll just say that this group fit many of the tropes of American tourists – most notably, the volume level on the train went up considerably, and many in the group seemed to treat the train as though it was entirely for them, with no interest or regard for other passengers. There were many complaints about the lack of wildlife, and quite a few in the group seemed to quickly tire of the sights, and missed many of the best views because they were too occupied with quiz sheets prepared by their tour guide (which they decided they needed to work on in the dome, while ignoring the views!)

That’s not to say that there weren’t some very friendly folks in the group – we had dinner with some later that day – but I will definitely say that the overall vibe on the train was much better for the first three days. But let’s not let that get in the way of things!

We went off to brunch around 11:45am, knowing we had an early supper and we wanted to be ready to eat again by then. The brunch options were a little odd, but still quite good! There were complimentary mimosas, but no dessert (in contrast to brunches going the other direction).

Brunch menu.

Brunch options. I don't recall what the pasta option was, and neither of us tried it.

Chicken pot pie. Not something I'd normally think of as a distinctive "brunch" dish, but it was quite good. Coffee to one side, mimosa to the other.

Back in the Skyline after brunch, we spotted the iconic Pyramid Falls, a sight only easily accessible from the train. Despite several announcements and slowing down the train, it seemed a bunch of our fellow passengers still missed being able to get a photo!

Pyramid Falls! There's really no way to get a close view except on a train, so it's a sight worth taking in.

The time change to Pacific Time, our last of the trip, happened around mid-day. Through the afternoon, we met the Rocky Mountaineer at Mile 26 (1:29pm). By Clearwater, we were running early, and then stopped to meet with a procession of three consecutive freight trains, which put us back on schedule – but even with additional meets (plus overtaking an intermodal train at CN Chu Chua – great siding name!), we got to Kamloops early, arriving at 5:48pm (40 min early).

Rocky Mountaineer, running from Kamloops to Jasper. The RMR makes the Jasper run as a 2-day all daylight trip, with a hotel stay in Kamloops - and a much, much steeper price tag. Some of the tour group on with us mentioned that they thought the Rocky Mountaineer was the train they'd be on (clearly, they didn't have great information about the trip!)

Bi-level full dome cars on the Rocky Mountaineer surely offer spectacular views, but again, at a steep cost. Their train to Banff, though, provides the only way to see that southern route by rail.

Getting further from Jasper, we're into less dramatic and more densely forested terrain.

Fewer steep peaks, but still impressive scenes.

One of a multitude of freight meets.

Furry passengers! Two dogs take a ride in the back of a pickup, pacing our train. They didn't seem the railfan type, but looked to be having a blast.

A geyser of some sort. I'm sure there's an explanation for this, but it didn't appear natural.

River views, following the North Thompson river towards Kamloops.

Cloudy skies and occasional showers, in the last bits of lush green before the scenic shift around Kamloops.

There was lots of neat equipment around in Kamloops, including some former Charlevoix railway equipment owned (but never used) by Rocky Mountaineer, and a nifty CN railbus that operated on the Kaoham Shuttle, running between Lillooet–Seton Portage. I have in mind that this has been replaced by a hi-rail school bus, but information on that service is pretty sparse online.

Entering Kamloops, the climate seems to change entirely - gone are the lush forests, replaced by more rugged and arid landscapes.

Former equipment from the Massif de Charlevoix dinner train, converted from gallery commuter cars. That train shut down and was replaced in large part by the current Train de Charlevoix, running with German DMUs. The equipment was sold to Rocky Mountaineer, but they've never put it in service. 

CN railbus from the Kaoham shuttle.

We had gone for the early supper, so we were finishing eating while stopped in Kamloops. Our last dinner on board was, like the others before, really superb.

Last dinner on board, for now. 

Butternut squash soup. This was underwhelming, a bit thin and not very punchy.

Cajun salmon - this was phenomenal! Fish was perfectly cooked, and the fruit salsa/slaw was a nice touch. 

Rack of lamb - my brother's choice - this was apparently really good too, and a surprisingly generous portion. A bit messy to tackle! Mint sauce was offered on the side.

On our last night, we decided we should both try the "VIA signature" triple chocolate cake. It was...a lot. A lot of chocolate. If you're crazy about chocolate, go for it - but we both decided it was the wrong call. We would get to try that night's other option (a sort of carrot cake cheesecake concoction) on the return trip, and would regret not getting it this time as well!

After wrapping up, we still had time to head outside for a stroll and fresh air. We tried to make the walk up to the head end for a proper photo, but were abruptly called back once we tried to walk past the locomotives. It seems the major concern there was with the noise up front, we might not have been able to hear the call for reboarding. This turned out to be a good call anyway, as we barely had time to get back to our car before we were hurried aboard. We were told that the engineers had been given a slot between freights, and they were going to take it – even though it meant leaving about 15 minutes early, at 6:47pm. Presumably, all booked passengers were accounted for.

Kamloops. There were some new CN employees training over to the left, clearly being instructed on throwing switches and switching cars.

Staff are pretty strict about this, especially at a station by an active rail yard.

Our locomotives, as close as we were allowed to get.

Kamloops North station. Not much of a building, but it's a cute design for a shelter - and more of a station building than many stops along the line have!

Heading out of Kamloops, we made our way back to the Skyline again, with space opening up as people rotated in for the second dinner. This is where the trip took a really interesting turn. When I made the trip last time, it was dark well before Kamloops, so I didn’t get to see any of this stretch in the light. With the long daylight and our early running, we still had hours of daylight ahead – and what an absolute treat that would be.

Leaving Kamloops, the train follows Kamloops Lake, snaking along the shore and through a series of tunnels. The scenery in this area shifts to an arid, almost dessert like environment. Then the line follows the Thompson River and skirts along the edge of the river canyon, winding its way along the shores of the turbulent river as it runs down towards the west coast. This eventually joins up with the Fraser River at Lytton, following that the rest of the way to the Vancouver area.

In my journal, I just wrote: “STUNNING!!” That sums it up.

This part of the trip is, undoubtedly, the absolute scenic highlight of the whole trip. Sure, the mountains are cool, but it’s the canyons that really steal the show. I didn’t know just how amazing this part of the trip even was, and my brother wasn’t expecting it – so it felt like a well kept secret surprise for the end of our adventure west!

This area is also interesting because around Ashcroft we enter a directional running zone, where all trains heading west use the CN line, and all trains heading east use the CP. This makes for a mix of different scenes in both directions, as we’d see in a few days time.

There isn’t much more I can say about this section – so let’s just show it off instead. Just know that the photos have a hard time of doing justice to this whole area; you really need to be there to take it all in. We stayed absolutely glued to the dome windows for hours on end. It would be well after 10pm when the light really left the sky.

Starting away from Kamloops, crossing the North Thompson River

Some interesting little communities lie between the rail line and the river/lake, like Tranquille.

The Thompson River slowly turns into Kamloops lake.

It was about here that we started to get a hint of the scenery that awaited us. 

Exiting the first of many rocky tunnels.

Tunnel! Another thing domes are great for.

Heading back to the light.

One of the first really stunning views - emerging from this arid rocky hillside was something to behold - and impossible to capture the scale completely!

All along Kamloops Lake, and similarly in the canyons, it feels like the railway was carved out of the side of the rock faces.

Early evening light at it's finest.

Kamloops Lake. Hard to see here, but the CP line is on the other side, cutting its way through tunnel after tunnel after tunnel.

Passing a freight as we continue our way along, one of the last meets we'd have before directional running began.

Great vistas to watch the train snake along in front of us.

Winding back and forth beside the lake. A freight we would soon meet is visible, still a few miles ahead.

Hillsides in shadow, but still impressive.

Now heading into the Thompson canyon, we saw a myriad of interesting bridges - including this pipeline bridge. 

Along the Thompson.

Moving into the increasingly rugged canyon.

With the low evening light, bits of sun catching hillsides here and there made for some very special moments. Note a little bit of rainbow popping out over the hill to the right, which is visible through several of the next few photos as well.

Lots of industry spotted along the canyon. There has historically been a lot of lumber industry on the water, where logs could be floated downstream and then processed. Much of this still exists today.

One of the many, many bridges we would cross.

A rare moment of almost complete light on the canyon faces.

The turbulent water is evident around these bridge piers, not far from Ashcroft, with the rainbow in full display.  

Starting to lose the light thanks to the steep canyon, but the views were still awe inspiring in person.

Tunnels and bridges - engineering marvels through this rugged terrain.

Sunset views - largely shadowed, but beautiful skies.

CN train on the CP line, running east. We would take that route on the return trip. 

A look at one of the many impressive bridges built into the cliff face to fill in gaps for the railway.

Another style of bridge on the cliff. Really incredible architecture.

As the light dropped away, the train lighting up the canyon walls and tunnels ahead was really something to behold.

Lowering light, but still impressive sights.

The combination of the locomotive lights on the rocks ahead and the signals reflecting on the stainless steel of the train is one of my favourite things to watch - mesmerizing as the light fades, but difficult to capture in a photo.

One last look at the dying light and stainless steel reflections, as we cross the river near Lytton. 

A final look at the Skyline café, with puzzles nearly completed.

Leaving the dome for the night. It's hard to do, because with the ceiling lights off, you can still enjoy views outside late into the night.

Eventually, with all light gone, we made our way off to bed. We had been informed that the estimated arrival time in Vancouver was between 5 and 6am – 2-3 hours early, thanks to copious padding in the schedule – but there would be no need to get off the train that early. In fact, the station doesn’t even open that early, so no one would be allowed off until it did.

For those of us in the sleepers, we would be offered breakfast started at 6:30am, with an expectation to be off the train by 8. So, off to bed we went, one last time!

Our final morning on board felt a little strange. The train had come to a stop in Vancouver’s Pacific Central station at around 5:11am, just shy of three hours early, while we were sound asleep – so the last few hours were spent sleeping comfortably on the stationary train. Peeking out my window, I could see the station platform, under a generally gloomy and rainy looking sky. Ah, Vancouver.

Yep, that's Vancouver alright. Spare equipment on the next track over.

We got up around 7am, and made our way towards the dining car for breakfast. There was a crowd in the Skyline café and a waiting list to get in to the diner. We gave our names to Larry, and then grabbed coffee and headed up to the dome to relax and chat while we awaited our turn. The views weren’t nearly as exciting as the last 4 days…

We would be let into the diner at around 7:25am. Last call would be made at 7:30am. The last breakfast was quite good, though it was clear that the staff were eager to get everything wrapped up and finish the trip. Some of the large tour group seemed to be in no rush at all (despite there being a list of people waiting their turn), which appeared to be causing some frustration. One of the gentlemen from that group was seated with us briefly, then decided he wasn't hungry after all. He said he'd enjoyed the trip, but that it was a very long time to be on a train - and he wasn't sure he'd do it again; and he'd only been on since Jasper! Well, I guess it isn't for everyone. 

Last breakfast menu for the trip.

Final breakfast options.

Banana pecan pancakes. These were really, really good - but unfortunately had a few undercooked sections around the bananas. Still, a nice way to cap things off. 

After breakfast, we made our way back to our section, packed up our bags, and stepped off the train at 8:04am. It’s incredible just how fast the last 4 days went by – had we really been on the train that long? What a thoroughly enjoyable trip it had been.

As we left the train, we were of course excited to meet up with our sister, and to be spending the next four days in and around Vancouver. It also helped that we still had the return trip to look forward to, or it would have been much harder to say goodbye to the Canadian! That said, it was certainly sad to say goodbye to the new friends we had made along the way. The train can feel like a little self-contained community over those 4 days, which is part of what makes it so magical; but it also makes it bittersweet to arrive and all go your separate ways.

 

That's all she wrote...at least for now! Leaving the Canadian and making our way into the station.

Now, as we wrap up this post, let’s add on one little extra bit of information. Remember earlier in the trip, I said I was keeping track of how many freight trains we met across the trip? Well, here’s a tally! This is a count of every freight that we met during hours that I was awake and could note down. It doesn’t count meets overnight while I was asleep, of course, and it also doesn’t count trains that passed us while we were stopped in stations (e.g. Winnipeg, Saskatoon, and Jasper). Nor does it account for trains we passed during the directional running sections around Parry Sound and through the canyons. I haven't broken down the train types for those we overtook. 

Train Type	Total
Intermodal	34
Manifest	20
Grain (unit train)	7
Potash (unit train)	3
Tanks (unit train)	1
Coal (unit train)	2
Autoracks (unit train)	1
Continuous Welded Rail train	1
Maintenance of way train (weed sprayer)	1
Trains overtaken (i.e. passed by our train)	7
Rocky Mountaineer	1
The Canadian	2
TOTAL	80

 

Again, that’s just the trains I was awake for – there were certainly plenty more overnight!  So that gives you a bit of an idea of just how much traffic is moving across the country at any given time – and for the most part, this is just on the CN line.

On another note, I also made a tally of wildlife I saw on this trip. Funnily enough, the thing I saw the most of (in both directions) was beavers. They’re theoretically tricky to spot, but I was surprised how many I was able to see in the many lakes we passed by. A tip: watch for ripples and what looks like sticks of clumps of grass moving through the water! We also saw one moose, some elk near Jasper, a bunch of swans early in the trip, some prairie dogs, and a bunch of eagles through the canyons. Oh, and what we’re pretty sure was a salmon splashing its way upstream at one point in the Thompson! 

So with that, we wrap up this westbound trip. In the next post, we’ll shift gears and take a trip on a completely different train, trying out the much more frequent service offering from Vancouver heading south. Then, we’ll return to Canada, and make our way back east.

I hope you’ll come back and join us on board once again!

Pacific Central station. An impressive station building, and the western terminus of the Canadian. Also served much more frequently by the Amtrak Cascades, which we'll look at in the next post.