Five Minute Railfan Guide - Lethbridge

Take an Alberta Break... visit Lethbridge!

I've been to Lethbridge, Alberta several times for work and for pleasure. It's a lovely city in southern Alberta and I encourage you to visit the area if you can. In this post I'll describe some Lethbridge area railway highlights for the railfan visitor.

Lethbridge Overview

The city is split by the Old Man River, which runs north-south. The main highway through the city is #3 which comes from the west from Fort MacLeod and the Crowsnest Pass, and continues east past the city toward Coaldale, Taber etc. and eventually to Medicine Hat. The other major highway is #4 which heads southeast from Lethbridge through Stirling, Warner and Milk River to the border with Montana.

Lethbridge area rail map

Lethbridge is served by the Canadian Pacific Railway. There are four railway subdivisions that connect to Lethbridge.

• CP Crowsnest subdivision - Crowsnest to (Kipp Yard outside) Lethbridge, mostly along highway 3.
• CP Montana subdivision - Lethbridge down to Montana, mostly paralleled by highway 4.
• CP Taber subdivision - Lethbridge (Kipp Yard) to Medicine Hat
• CP Aldersyde subdivision - Lethbridge to Calgary (Alyth Yard)

There is also a large industrial area in Lethbridge that is well served by rail.

Here are some railfan "hot spots" in and around Lethbridge.

Kipp Yard

View of the Kipp Yard from the overpass

The major yard in the area is Kipp yard, located just northwest of Coalhurst, which is itself just northwest of Lethbridge. There used to be a large yard inside Lethbridge but this was removed in the mid 1980s. Kipp hosts several tracks for train storage and classification as well as a locomotive servicing facility.

The yard itself is of course off limits, but it is somewhat visible from highway 3 which runs parallel to the yard. There is an overpass over the southeast end of the yard which is a great spot to photograph trains from, and it is easily accessible from the highway. Range Road 225 runs parallel to the yard on the north side of the yard and provides some limited views into the yard.

Just north of the yard, the CP Aldersyde subdivision splits off and heads north.

The High Level Bridge

Canpotex potash cars on the High Level Bridge in Lethbridge, AB

Lethbridge's "High Level Bridge" is the largest conventional trestle railroad bridge in the world. I wrote a post about it already.

There are several angles to photograph the bridge from. You can get quite close to it on the Heritage Heights (northwest) end. There are plenty of paths in the valley below where you can get a side view of it, and the view from the oddly-named Whoop-Up Drive is quite good.

Obviously, trespassing is a bad idea and never, never go on the bridge.

Railway tracks inside Lethbridge

Inside Lethbridge

Railfanning inside Lethbridge itself is a bit more challenging. The majority of the main line through Lethbridge is not very accessible and there are only a few spots that are worth visiting. Parking can be a challenge, too.

There's one overpass at Stafford Drive that gives a good view down the tracks in either direction. The rest of the rail/road crossings are vehicle underpasses so you don't get any good views. There is one pedestrian overpass near 17th Street that has a decent view, although you have to work around a fence.

View from the pedestrian overpass, facing west. Parrish and Heimbecker elevator visible.

There are two level crossings near the giant Alberta Grain elevator that could be used, but again, parking is a challenge.

The CP Montana subdivision splits off from the main line by the elevator and heads southeast out of town. I did shoot at this location and it works OK. There is one level crossing on the Montana sub in town at 43rd Street South.

East of the crossings mentioned above, the main line track is buried between industries and you can't see much from public property. There is one turnabout at the intersection of 1st Avenue South and 36th Street South where you can see the track.

After that, there's the busy 43rd Street North crossing (not recommended) then you're out of Lethbridge. Between Lethbridge and Coaldale, the track parallels highway 3 and there are numerous opportunities to photograph trains there.

Industrial Tracks

Richardson Trackmobile

The other railfanning opportunities inside Lethbridge are the industrial tracks. There is an extensive industrial track network north of the main line. Driving along 2nd Avenue North, you will find numerous level crossings in the Anderson Industrial Park and Shackleford Industrial Park.

The major industrial rail customers in Lethbridge are:

• Richardson Pioneer, 2415 2A Ave N - has own trackmobiles
• Alberta Terminals, 2620 2nd Ave N
• Ring Container, 1820 31 St N
• ADM Alliance Nutrition, 1310 41 St N
• Parrish and Heimbecker, 1301 2 Ave S - has own trackmobile

Alberta Terminals elevator

I've seen one or two GP38s working the industrial spurs. As always, stay on public property and do not trespass.

CP 3051 working the industrial tracks in Lethbridge

Other Railway Attractions

CP 3651 in Lethbridge

Lethbridge's train station still exists on 1st Avenue South (801 1 Ave S) as a community health services building. Steam engine CP 3651 is on display behind it. This engine was built in July 1910.

You can visit the Galt Historic Railway Park in Stirling, not far out of Lethbridge on highway 4.

The new Forty Mile Railway shortline is near the Galt park - read more!

Rail Traffic

I don't know the exact number of trains, but I would say "several" trains pass through Lethbridge every day. It is not a super busy line but there is almost always a train in Kipp Yard, either arriving, departing, or shunting, and the industrial track is being served throughout the day.

Read More

• Ottawa Five Minute Railfan Guide
• Winnipeg 360

Thanks to Jason Paul Sailer for reviewing my maps and industrial locations!

Lethbridge's High Level Bridge

Potash train crossing Lethbridge's High Level Bridge

Lethbridge, Alberta hosts the largest conventional trestle railroad bridge ever built, the High Level Bridge. This bridge was started during 1908 and was completed in 1909, and is just over a mile long at 5,331 feet (1,624m) and rises 314' (95.7m) over the Oldman River.

This colossal structure crossing the Oldman River replaced the more circuitous original route over the St. Mary's River. The bridge was built by the CPR with 12,200 tons of steel and 17,090 cubic yards of concrete, among other materials.

Train crossing the Lethbridge trestle

The bridge was built with the use of a "traveller". This large device was basically a large crane on rails, and it was used to build each section of the bridge.

As that was completed, it was rolled forward on the newly-constructed piece to begin the next section.

The traveller was built on site and placed the last girder in June 1909.

I suppose this method would require a lot of confidence in the bridge piece that you had just completed! (image at right from the Crowsnest Pass Railway Route site)

Looking through

It's interesting to compare this bridge with the Salmon River trestle, the second longest railway bridge in Canada.

• Length: Lethbridge - 5,331' (1,624m); Salmon River - 3,920' (1,194m)
• Height: Lethbridge - 314' (95.7m); Salmon River - 195' (59.4m)
• Towers: Lethbridge - 33; Salmon River - 51

It's notable that the Lethbridge viaduct has 35% less towers yet is 35% longer.

Lethbridge's towers are much wider than most (67' / 20m) and the spans between towers are also longer than most (97' / 30m).

Everyone likes to look at this bridge

The bridge dominates the area and is easily accessible by foot. I've walked under it on the public paths along the river and you can easily see the western end by parking in the Heritage Heights area of western Lethbridge and walking over. It casts an impressive shadow on Google Maps.

I first visited Lethbridge in August 2013. I was lucky to spot a train crossing the bridge but didn't get the head end. You can see that photo above in black-and-white.

I visited again in May 2016 and spent several hours around the bridge one beautiful evening. I parked in Heritage Heights and clambered down to the Oldman river. It's quite a long trip down!

The bridge is quite impressive from all angles. It's difficult to capture the entirety of the bridge without being very far off. I took a little break and just sat and took it in.

Just taking it in

After quite a while, I started back. I heard a thrum in the distance and it turned out to be a potash train, led by a trio of Union Pacific locomotives. They looked tiny way up there on the viaduct.

UP 5522, 5374 and 5546 crossing the Lethbridge viaduct

The train went on and on and on. I think the speed limit is 30 MPH on the bridge but it could be less.

Canpotex cars on the Lethbridge viaduct

Unfortunately this bridge appears to be popular for suicides. I noticed prominent "no trespassing" signs at the end along with a large "LIFE IS WORTH LIVING" sign with a phone number for the Suicide Crisis Line (1-888-787-2880).

If you're ever in the area, I highly encourage you to check this bridge out. It's very impressive.

Videos

I found a few videos of the bridge that you might like.

• Crossing the bridge on CP 8765
• CP 2816 crossing the bridge
• Manifest freight train crossing

For More Information

• Construction of the Lethbridge Viaduct
• Alberta's Largest Railway Bridges
• The Bridge, Then and Now
• In Search of Haneyville, history of the line

Other Bridge-Related Posts

• CN's Salmon River Trestle in New Brunswick
• BNSF's High Line Bridge in North Dakota
• CN's Fraser River bridge outside Prince George, British Columbia
• Ex CN Hiram Creek trestle in New Brunswick
• Book review: North American Railroad Bridges