I have just booked another ride on VIA Rail’s transcontinental train, The Canadian. As with most of my previous rides on this wonderful train, I’ll be boarding in Toronto for the ride to Vancouver. The rationale behind that choice is simple: the scenery keeps getting better as you go—first rich farmland, then the incredible wilderness…
As far as I know, these classic stainless steel beauties bring up the rear of the Hudson Bay (Winnipeg-Churchill), the Skeena (Jasper-Prince George-Prince Rupert), the Ocean (Halifax-Montreal) and, of course, VIA’s trains 1 and 2, The Canadian (Vancouver-Toronto). Depending on the time of year, a typical consist for either the westbound Train #1 (Toronto-Vancouver) or…
I carry a notebook when I travel. It’s 4×8-inches, but it opens the long way so it slips easily into my back pocket. I take it with me everywhere when I’m on the road. When I see something strange or curious or interesting, I jot it down for possible future use as an item in…
VIA Rail’s premier train, the Canadian, gets most of the press, and deservedly so, but there’s another VIA train that is almost always overlooked. The Skeena runs from Jasper in the Rocky Mountains to Prince Rupert, on the Pacific Ocean. There’s an overnight stop more or less halfway at Prince George, where everyone piles off…