Trip Report: Halifax to Prince Rupert by Rail August to October 2024

[Phil Richards]

Hopefully some will find this of interest. First part of a report from a 7 week long trip which I did a couple of months ago. It was written for a UK based group (World Rail Gen) over on groups.io Bits will refer to a term we call "loco haulage" which is popular amongst some railfans in my country. However I fall very much into the "line traveller" category. Any prices quoted are in Canadian Dollars.

Post retirement treat which was basically a coast to coast trip by rail with time off in some cities for beer and sightseeing. I'll keep this report centered on rail travel plus moves by other forms of transport from city to city. This was primarily a track clearing trip, so no scratching of F40PHs or 'insect leaps' on GO Transit.

After flying out from Heathrow to Halifax and a day off in case of any flight mishaps, my first move was Friday 23 August on train 15, 11:30 Halifax to Ste-Foye. Booked sole use of a double sleeper with shower in one of the Renaissance cars which were of course supposed to be used for the ill fated Nightstar. Haulage was 6404 and 6409 couped with cabs at opposite ends with no track layout to turn the 20 or so car train at Halifax. So instead, a normal run round has to be done. Fare includes meals, though these are only reheated on board rather than cooked from scratch by chefs. Had lunch and dinner, and arrived at Ste Foye too early for breakfast. With both Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City on strike / lock out we had a good, on time run thanks to no freights. The good news was the strikes were over by Sunday meaning CPKC lines would reopen to passenger traffic as their controllers were also in dispute. CN Lines remained open as it was just their train crews. On arrival at Ste-Foye, VIA Rail provides a shuttle bus to Québec Gare du Palais as the station won't fit 20 plus cars.

Two nights in Québec and Sunday 25 August saw me do the tourist line from Chute Montmorency just on the outskirts of Québec through to La Malbaie and back. Nice run alongside the St Lawrence estuary, shame the trains are former DB 628 units.

Monday 26 August
2216 (new Venture set) train 35, 08:06 Québec to Montréal.
After getting into my room just after midday at the very good Best Western Europa near to Montréal Central and lunch, the afternoon peak was to cover the exo line to Hudson.
1366 16:27 Vendôme to Vaudreuil (note Lucien D'Allier was closed due to rebuilding, fully reopens in Spring 2025)
1364 17:45 Vaudreuil to Hudson
Bus (route 21) conveniently will connect from the first and just about with the 2nd PM train out to Hudson to get you back to Vaudreuil for a train to Montréal. 5 mins walk between station and bus stop.
1361 19:55 Vaudreuil to Vendôme

Tuesday 27 August
All day clearing off the track on three exo line routes. Bits not covered on exo are duplicated with VIA Rail.
1324 09:40 Vendôme to Candiac (with a platform only long enough for two sets of doors!) then back on the 10:30
Metro to Sauvé as off peak not all exo services run into the centre.
1345 12:30 Sauvé to Mascouche and 13:32 return
Metro Sauvé to Vendôme then:
1368 15:16 Vendôme to Montréal Ouest
1358 15:26 Montréal Ouest to St-Jérôme
1369 18:50 St-Jérôme to De La Concord
Metro back to Lucien D'Allier

Wednesday 28 to Friday 30 August were to cover the lines north of Montréal. These were ones I was a tad nervous about seeing as they have poor timekeeping and during hot weather revert to overnight running due to the track condition. However, all was good.
6452 07:30 Montréal to Senneterre with 6424 (not powering) detached at Hervey Jonction for Jonquière. Arrived around 30 minutes late at Senneterre and accommodation is limited to just 3 motels. All three can only be booked by phone. However La Bell'Villa was a 5 minutes phone call with English speaking staff, Door codes emailed as the front desk is closed at night and spotlessly clean. The train crew also are booked there too. Note these trains have limited catering coffee, beer, sandwiches but nothing cooked. Cash payment unless there's a phone signal. After La Tuque, the last town it is 7+ hours with no mobile coverage.
Thursday was re-tracing the route to Shawinigan with the same locos and the Jonquière portion attaches onto the back at Hervey so again then unpowered towards Montréal. 06:28 start, but a convenience store near the station did fresh croissants and coffee to warm me up. It was about 5C and foggy, a stark contrast to Tuesday in Montréal at 28C! Overnight at Shawinigan. Ended up walking to the hotel as the Uber app though there were vehicles, booked, charged me, then timed out after 10 minutes.
Friday was to complete the lines. 6452 on the Senneterre portion (powering) and two 6434 plus 6443 both powering on the Jonquière portion. Each portion was again one baggage car and one economy seat. Arrived in Jonquière over half an hour early. As with Senneterre, scenic forest and lakes, very much like Scandinavia. I booked an Airbnb in Jonquière simply because all three hotels near the station had a 21:00 check-in curfews.The Airbnb was about 15 mins away on a quiet residential road. A full sized self contained flat, door code to get in. Was paid for in GBP total £72 fees included.
As there are no trains back from Jonquière or Senneterre on Saturday, I took an Intercar bus, which took around 3 hours to Québec to rejoin the rail network.

And Québec was where it all started to go wrong. Had time for beers and lunch before train 39 at 14:57 to Ottawa. Whilst in the brewpub, I got an email alert from VIA Rail to say it was an hour late. The Siemens Venture set that was due to form 39 had developed an air pipe fault around midday between Montréal and Québec. Line blocked and attempts to move it took 8 hours. I did consider giving up and staying the night in Québec. But being a Saturday night on a holiday weekend in a popular tourist city, we were looking at £400+ VIA Rail said no accommodation would be provided or compensated for as they would get us to our destination. They fed us pizzas and around 22:00 two trains from the Montréal direction pulled in about 15 minutes apart. The failed one was left in a loop and passengers did a side to side evacuation onto another set after getting pulled to the loop a few Kms south of where it came to a stand. Train 39 left 22:30, arrived Montréal 02:00 and terminated there. VIA Rail laid on a coach with further food and water supplied and we pulled up outside of Ottawa 05:00, a mere 8 hours late. The incident reached national news and VIA Rail management were asked to explain at a meeting with the Transport Minister after being raised in Parliament.

 

[Phil Richards]

Sunday 1 September.
Fortunately I had the morning off in Ottawa. Plan was originally to cover the Commuter rail system there. Closed since 2020 for rebuilding plus a new extension. However it kept getting pushed back and as such still awaiting for it to start running. All being well it'll be open next spring. I'll need to do Montréal to Ottawa which will fit in before I head over to the US to start making coverage there.
Two VIA Rail moves:
900 train 55, 15:33 Ottawa to Brockville
6442 train 68, 20:09 Brockville to Dorval.
Overnight near Dorval as it is close to Montréal airport with a good choice of hotels.

Monday 2 September
6432 train 61, 07:13 Dorval to Toronto Union

The onward journey and stay to London was all planned around meeting a member of my extended family and staying at a hotel to have time together. But plans changed but I decided to keep my nights stay in London. Due to a big gap in train times (and the line from Toronto to Windsor not needed) I took Flixbus instead. Following day I again used a local community bus to Sarnia as VIA Rail didn't arrive there until around 22:30.

Wednesday 4 September
After a night in a very pleasant Sarnia I headed back to Toronto via London and Kitchener - 912 train 84, 08:40 Sarnia to Toronto. My last move on the Corridor and glad I got 4 classic HEP/LRC sets and just two Siemens sets.

About 20 minutes late into Toronto. My moves in the area would be using GO Transit and staying at the ends of the lines to save on accomodation costs. To save lugging my carry-on suitcase around, I used BagsAway for around $22, a convenience store a few minutes walk from Union to store it and had no problems on the two occasions.
Off to a good start with GO Transit with FP59 no. 560 on the 15:12 Toronto Union to Old Elm. Old Elm is one of several termini with trains only out in the evening and back in the morning. You can travel one way using a GO Transit bus to or from Union bus station. However I took the bus a few stops to my overnight stay in Stouffville. It was a Days Inn with a few places to eat nearby and a taproom (until 18:00) nearby.

Thursday 5 September
Not feeling great today. Uber to the station, headed back to Toronto from Stouffville. Next move was to and from the airport on UP Express, unfortunately only DMUs but at least the main airport is connected by rail. After figuring out replacement buses thanks to tram routes being shut, I headed to Sir Isaac Brock Bridge which offers a superb view of all lines to the west of Union and took a few photos. I cancelled my lunchtime taproom visit as I lost all appetite. Headed out to Allandale Waterfront (Barrie) earlier than planned:
Moves:
634 07:23 Stouffville to Toronto Union
659 13:06 Exhibition to Toronto Union
656 13:59 Toronto Union to Allandale Waterfront

Overnight in Barrie which has that typical North American feature of loads of hotels stuck outside the city near main roads and nothing in the centre. I used an Uber to get around as the app to buy local bus tickets online couldn't be downloaded onto a UK phone and each journey needed the right amount of change. So far it's been almost a 100% cash free trip.

Friday 6 to Sunday 8 September
Next goal was Sudbury to White River. Although it could be done by rail from Toronto to Sudbury Junction twice a week on 'The Canadian' to fit that in with White River three times a week, that really wasn't practical. So with Ontario Northland running three times a day from Toronto via Barrie to Sudbury, more convenient options open up. Outward bus to Sudbury hospital which has local buses every 15 minutes to the main Transit centre which ON don't use! Overnight in Sudbury centre.

Next day was the outbound leg of the RDC worked service to White River. Its main function is to serve numerous remote lodgings near rivers and lakes for fishing and canoeing. These are mainly inaccessible by roads. So our three car train (2 seated, one baggage) fills up with vast amounts of storage boxes, canoes and then unloaded along the way. A fascinating run, service manager and the two engineers (who share driving and assistance with loading/unloading baggage car) work the train the full length and stay over in White River. You've two motels on the main road about 15 minutes walk from the station. I used White River Motel which has online bookings. The Continental Motel across the road did a good evening dinner with a fast food chain A&W attached to a filling station supplying breakfast. Coffee and perhaps crisps and a bar of chocolate is all you'll get on the train. Cash payment only again due to no mobile signal.

Back to Sudbury on Sunday and arrived only a few minutes late making a local bus to a hotel outside the town next to Ontario Northland bus station. Dinner at a place on the other side of the main road and hotel did breakfast with plenty of time for the 07:30 bus to Toronto.

Monday 9 September
Ontario Northland bus from Sudbury Ontario Northland Terminal to Toronto Vaughan Hwy 407 which connects with TTC Metro. After breaking off at Spadina for beers and lunch, continued to Union. Did another BagsAway one night storage of my suitcase. Back then to GO Transit:
619 15:40 Toronto Union to Milton
As Milton is another AM to city, PM back out of the city line, I got an Uber to Bronte on the Lakeshore West line within seconds of stepping out of the station and it took around 25 minutes.
604 17:29 Bronte to Hamilton GO Centre.
Walk to my hotel about 20 minutes away.

Tuesday 10 September
Had to change my GO Transit plans for the day around as I intended to go out and back to Niagara Falls. However, very few trains and the ones I planned were cancelled that day to fit in engineering work. Still, will no doubt be covering that next year to cover both Amtrak routes between eastern Canada and the US. Moves for today:
622 08:25 West Harbour to Toronto Union
630 10:20 Toronto Union to Durham College Oshawa
630 11:40 Durham College Oshawa to Pickering
Good over bridge with clear view of GO Transit and CN lines in both directions
658 12:58 Pickering to Danforth (for lunch/taproom)
639 14:58 Danforth to Toronto Union
675 15:45 Toronto Union to Langstaff

Langstaff is part way along the Richmond Hill Line. There was a method in my madness as westbound 'Canadian' joins this line just to south having taken the route out of Toronto Union along the Barrie Line then reversing onto a freight line to continue and join up with the Richmond Hill Line. And from Langstaff back to central Toronto was a bus and TTC Subway via Finch. On arrival, I collected my suitcase and checked into my 'treat' hotel for the trip, the Novotel about 10 minutes away.

Wednesday 11 and Thursday 12 September
Part one of the cross Canada 'Canadian', as far as Winnipeg on VIA Rail's flagship service. Had a cabin for one which includes all meals, tea/coffee, fruit, biscuits all day. Head over to Seat 61 who details the service and facilities in more detail. Haulage was 6445 leading and 6440. Photography for the entire cross Canada trip was extremely limited and the only stop where you're allowed in front of the locos was Sioux Lookout on the first day. Timekeeping was good throughout despite many stops to be looped to cross over with freights. If anything, the eastbound run seems to be burdened with more delays. And we pulled into Winnipeg 5 early. Hotel (Humphry Inn and Suites) for the next three nights about 10 walk minutes away and used the same one on my return back from Churchill for four more. Used the hotel's on site coin operated laundry twice. My days off in Winnipeg were visiting a few touristy things and many taprooms. City has a good bus network.

 

[Phil Richards]

Sunday 15 to Thursday 20 September
To Churchill and back was the centrepiece of the trip. A two night move northbound with a 5 car train (baggage, 2 x economy seats, 1 x catering/dome and 1 x sleeper. Again I booked a compartment for one although on this service since the pandemic, the on-train chef has been done away with. Instead, there's a selection of microwave meals, sandwiches and drinks. Cash only once in any area where there is no phone signal. Haulage was 6415 and 6427 on 693 throughout. Two locos simply because of the remoteness of the line just in case one develops any fault etc. We lost about 90 minutes on the first night. However, that still gave a good two hours to wander down from the station to Thompson where the train is booked to wait for 5 hours. Plenty of places to eat and a couple of supermarkets to stock up. After a 2nd night with the train trundling along over tundra, we arrived at Churchill 55 minutes early. As with Thompson, the train is reversed (wye'd) before arriving. I left my suitcase with the station staff who are there to see the train in and reopen it at 18:30. So with nearly 12 hours, it was what to do next. With the warning not to stray off because of Polar Bears, there really is little to do or go. The town hall has a seated area and I made use of the library to use their internet facilities on a full size screen. The Seaport Hotel kept me fed and supplied with coffees during the day. Back to Thompson on 690, same locos, crew and stock. Because this train only went as The Pas, I originally planned to go through to there, night in a hotel then bus back to Winnipeg the next day. However, a couple of weeks before, the bus operator emailed me to advise they are ceasing running because of financial issues. They did refund me, but there was no alternative overland option. So the next best option was off at Thompson and a 10 hour wait for an overnight bus back to Winnipeg. The least said about that, the better. To pass the time in Thompson, I asked at several hotels for a room until the evening. Many were full, but a perfectly good Super 8 obliged and for a little over £50 I had a room with sofa, shower plus peace and quiet. I could of course had rescheduled to do the train to Churchill all the way there and back. But during late summer 2023 at short notice, one out of the two per were cancelled for construction work. So I built in the option of maybe having to reschedule factoring in allowing 24 hours plus for connections at Winnipeg in case of delays. There's also the option to fly between Winnipeg and Churchill but Calm Air has the monopoly and is extremely expensive. Plus would ideally need an overnight in Churchill extending the layover in a very much nothing to do place.

Monday 23 to Thursday 26 September
Winnipeg to Vancouver which was three nights, two full days. Haulage was 6440 and 6451. Long stops for refuelling at Saskatoon. Later on was Edmonton, after dark and either 15 minutes and back on or wait in the waiting room until reboarding around 2 hours later. After some communication issues from VIA Rail, it was confirmed that we would stop and be let off for an hour or so at Jasper. Back in late July, about a third the town was destroyed by forest fire that spread from the adjacent National Park. The 2nd full day was spoiled by rain and cloud cover, a shame as the section between Jasper and Kamloops is the most scenic bit covered in daytime. After a leg stretch at Kamloops where the locos are refuelled, it was pretty much dark. We had a good run overnight and after a reversal, backed into Vancouver Central Pacific at 05:05, almost three hours early. Breakfast was still served from 06:30 for sleeper passengers and passengers (including those in economy seating) can get off from around 07:00.

Thursday 26 and Friday 27 September
I did two moves on the West Coast Express out of Vancouver Waterfront.
Thursday 26 - 907 (their only F59PH) on E3, 16:50 Waterfront to Mission City
Before that, photos from an overbridge about 10 minutes walk from Waterfront of 906 on E1 (15:50) and 903 on E2 (16:20)
Next day haulage with 903 on E2 all the way to Mission City. 906 again on E1 with 907 on E3. There's a taproom opposite the station at Mission City and saw the last train of the day E5 (18:20 from Waterfront) which was double headed with 901 and 904. Took a bus back from Mission City to Coquitlam at 21:00 which takes an hour and then connects with the Skytrain. Bus is covered on the $11.50 one day all zones pass.

Monday 30 September and Tuesday 1 October
Two days on the Rocky Mountaineer from Vancouver to Banff. It's not cheap, but runs as a really well organised 'rail cruise' with meals and drinks plus overnight hotel stay in Kamloops included. It was a good way to see the full journey in daylight including the Fraser River gorge on the CP tracks (the Vancouver bound Canadian takes the CN lines mainly on the opposite side. Haulage was 8012 and 8019 from Vancouver with 8014 added on at Kamloops for day two due to steeper inclines. Both days we had good runs, plenty of commentary about the route, sights and wildlife seen from the train window. It's the only way to cover the very scenic route between Kamloops and Banff as VIA Rail abandoned the CP route in 1990.

A full day off in Banff which started off taking photos of the Rocky Mountaineer prior to departure on the return run to Kamloops and Vancouver and the next taking a one way road tour to Jasper. The road the tour took is regarded as one of the most scenic in the world and conveniently got me to Jasper. The fire in July destroyed about a third of the town, mainly homes but inevitably a major impact on the town. Residents couldn't return until early August, so before I set off, I abandoned the idea of getting there and then staying the night. So I booked a bus to Calgary, hotel for the night and was fortunate to get a cheap flight the next day to Prince George. From there I could pick up the 'Skeena' to Prince Rupert as Jasper station was closed until late September. However with the tour bus resuming, VIA Rail serving Jasper and hotels reopening, I reinstated them. The town was no way back to normal, loads of shops, places to eat etc closed. Several hotels were back open and I stayed the night at The Whistler's Inn opposite the station.

Friday 4 and Saturday 5 October
Leisurely start for part one of train 5 'Skeena' from Jasper to Prince Rupert. The train has an overnight stop in Prince George so as to see as much as possible in daylight. 6418 powered the train throughout and was 1 x baggage car, 1 x economy (spent very little time in it) plus a Park car which has a raised dome, seated lounge at the back plus snack counter for cold food, coffee etc. Leaving Jasper were 5 of us and all going beyond Prince George. Freight trains held us up at several places and we arrived at Prince George an hour late. Weather was pretty wet but still an enjoyable trip. The Service Manager sorted out cabs despite several hotels within a 10-15 minute walk. However, the town has high levels of street crime, drugs etc and it is probably prudent to use taxis. Taxi back to the station the next morning after breakfast which had all 6 members of the train crew for both trains, the opposite direction working also waited overnight there. 45 minutes late start due to CN sorting out freight movements, we had a few more join us but passenger numbers never exceeded 10. A much better day weather wise and scenery improved further west. A change of engineers at Smithers and we arrived in Prince Rupert again around an hour late. Taxis again organised as the station is around 3 Kms from most of the hotels in the town. So that marked the end of the trip as far as rail was concerned. I flew back to London with Air Canada from Prince Rupert via Vancouver and Calgary (24 hour layover).

Ticketing
VIA Rail: Booked all online through their website. Wise to book sleeper well ahead which I did as they sell out often months ahead in peak season. I signed up for Préférence points which allowed me to cancel off some full fare tickets for day trains, get a full refund then rebook using points. If I had gone West to East I may have saved more as the points gained on 'The Canadian' / Churchill which get credited after the end of the trip could have been used for buying tickets on the Corridor routes etc.
exo: 24 hour all modes day pass $17.25 which covers other public transport around Montréal
GO Transit/Toronto area: Worth doing some planning ahead. There's a mobile web day pass for two people (valid for one) for $30 and a one day pass valid Saturday or Sunday or Public Holidays for $10 for rail and bus. If you are doing fewer trips Monday to Friday it might be worth looking at Presto on Google/Apple Wallets and loading up with credit. That's cheaper than paying as you go with a physical credit card or mobile wallet. Valid for TTC in Toronto (though again there's a day pass) and there are free TTC transfers between TTC and other transport operators in the area.
West Coast Express: I used pay as you go using Google wallet but there's the option of buying a Compass Card loading with credit and using it on Translink on all other transport in the city and suburbs. Note the one day Vancouver all zones pass for $11.50 isn't valid on West Coast Express.

 

[danasgoodstuff]

You've now seen, or at least been through, more of Canada than I have and I used to live there!

 

[jiml]

Great report, Phil. I assume you used the Air Canada flight from LHR to YHZ?

 

[jiml]

You've now seen, or at least been through, more of Canada than I have and I used to live there!

I think that applies to a lot of people!

 

[Phil Richards]

Great report, Phil. I assume you used the Air Canada flight from LHR to YHZ?

Yes, all my flights were with Air Canada and was able to secure a good priced round trip deal

 

[jiml]

Yes, all my flights were with Air Canada and was able to secure a good priced round trip deal

I'm on the reverse flight next week and will send you a PM, rather than tie up space here. I'd be interested to hear what you thought of crossing the Atlantic in such a small plane, service, etc.

 

[Barb Stout]

What does "exo" mean?

 

[Phil Richards]

What does "exo" mean?

exo is the Montréal Commuter Rail and bus system - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exo_(public_transit)

Phil

 

[railiner]

What does "exo" mean?

Montreal transit system…

 

[PaTrainFan]

Montreal transit system…

Officially named Réseau de transport métropolitain (RTM) and once known as Agence métropolitaine de transport (ATM). Modern branding. Kinda like Comcast wants consumers to think Xfinity. Which I think is silly, but I digress...