Dog Day Afternoon

I was driving up the Perimeter late Monday morning (Nov 30) when I spied the regular CEMR freight just off the CN Rivers subdivision. I pulled off the highway up a rural road and parked. I shot them approaching the Perimeter.

The train had CCGX 4010 (GP9) and ANY 5232 (SD40) with about 20 cars.

They stopped just short of the crossing I had passed through. A taxi arrived, bearing the conductor. He had stayed behind to reline the switch on the CN Rivers south track. This appears to be typical practice for CEMR.

I walked a bit closer to get a better shot when they started moving again. Suddenly I was accosted by two barking dogs running from the nearby house.

I stood my ground, sensing from their wagging tails and the tone of their barks that they were not hostile. They came up to me, sniffing and wagging tails, and one of them kept jumping up on me to get me to pet him. They were certainly friendly dogs!

After a few minutes of affectionate mauling, and incidentally waiting for the train, I decided to pack up. I walked back to my car, accompanied by the larger of the two dogs, and put my stuff in the trunk. After a final pat on the dog's head, I drove up to the crossing and took another shot of CCGX 4010.


I went across the crossing, took one more shot, then the train started moving. Too bad I was on the wrong side of the sun! Here's the video I took:

I waited around a bit too long, as I saw the westbound Canadian roll by as I approached Wilkes Avenue. I believe it had the Operation Lifesaver unit leading and the Telus unit trailing. That would have made a nice picture. Oh well. :)