Smoking like an Alco

I went to St. James Junction in Winnipeg around noon on April 12 to shoot the Canadian, and as often happens I saw a couple of bonus trains.

As soon as I arrived, I noticed headlights to the east. The other railfans there told me that was CN 199 (seen above). It had CN 5762 and CN 5723 for power. I was going to say that this was the first time I'd seen a pair of SD75I engines on CN 199, but that's not true.

Anyway, VIA 1 came trundling along about 15 minutes later with VIA 6405 on point.


I want to point out two things about this photograph. First, VIA 1 is crossing over from the south to the north track in this photo. Second, note the headlight in the distance behind the Canadian.

After the Canadian passed, that headlight turned into the CEMR train heading toward their Carman subdivision. As they passed a CN maintenance truck, they opened it up and belched a cloud of smoke that would make an Alco proud.


I decided to give chase and headed down to Wilkes Avenue to catch them crossing the road. I beat them easily and had time to turn around, park well off the road, and wait for them to make their crossing.


Those old Geeps still look pretty good!