CP 4563 at night in McAdam

Isaac Greenlaw and a few other people from Maine came up to photograph CP 4563 when it was at McAdam. He was kind enough to send me a shot... quite remarkable.

New railway blog

Dave Dineen, a frequent contributor here, is now blogging his own train chases. Check it out!

He has a nice easy URL too: nbsrfan.blogspot.com

NB Southern and CN YouTube videos

Dave Dineen has an excellent video on YouTube showing the NB Southern transfer train from Island Yard crossing the Reversing Falls bridge and then heading to through Bayshore to the Port of Saint John - with a caboose no less! Very nice work.

The power was NBSR 9801, NBSR 3701, and NBSR 2610.

Joel Scott has a nice video at Parker Ridge, NB showing CN 149 at 11:47 on Saturday October 6. CN 5706, 2582, 4762, and 4774 are pulling 77 cars.


Joel has another video at the same location of CN 305 at 09:35 with CN 8800, 8803 and 2532 with 125 cars.


Thanks, guys!

Velocipeding in Style

Ron Grant has spent a lot of time restoring an Intercolonial Railway velocipede he purchased. What's a velocipede, you ask?

That's a velocipede. It's a rail vehicle you pedal, or pump, to roll along the tracks. They were used in the early days of railroading to take maintenance workers to different places. It is obviously a one-person vehicle, and requires a fair bit of effort to use.


I've used the velocipede at the New Brunswick Railway Museum. It is a hand-operated version and it reminds me of a rowing machine.

See the rest of the photos of Ron on a velocipede.

NB Southern in McAdam

Gary Lee posted a couple of videos of NBSR in McAdam.

First is NBSR 2319 pulling some ballast cars off the St. Stephen subdivision. At first I assumed they were gypsum cars but they are NBSR ballast cars.


And here's NBSR 2318 with two other units pulling up to the McAdam station.

Aroostook Station

To complete my little tour of old railway stations, here is the station at Aroostook. I first visited this station on July 1, 2005. The grass around it was starting to get long but the station itself appeared to be in good shape.


Here is the same view from August 12, 2007.

You can see the weeds are taking over, especially in the next shot.


However, the roof is intact, a major difference from the Fredericton station. As it happens, when I was there in August one of the plywood panels covering a door was missing, so it was easy to look inside.

The previous and the next shot are of the main floor. You can see that the station has been visited inside quite a few times, but it is essentially intact and there is no water damage.


The next shot shows the basement, again confirming there is no water inside.


So far Aroostook looks very salvagable, if someone would take an interest.

EDIT: Here is a photo from July 3, 1980 showing the Aroostook station, looking north. Photo by Art Clowes.

Fredericton Station

Peter Gough suggested I should post about the Fredericton railway station next after my posts on the Kedgwick and St. Quentin stations. Great idea!

July 10, 2002:


December 11, 2002:


A few people penetrated the building and took a bunch of photographs in January 2005. No, I was not one of them. Guess what this is?

That's the second floor, as viewed from below. Basically there is no second floor any more.



I don't have any recent photos of the station because I haven't the heart to photograph it any more.

I heard yesterday that there were two large holes in the fence around the station, and three doors were unlocked and open. I haven't gone to look at it but I have seen photos from today and they make me very sad.

The basement has had standing water in it for years, and things are very bad inside.

I'll have to post some photos of the Aroostook station so you can see an abandoned station that has some life left in it. I'm afraid the Fredericton station is doomed and is just waiting to die. It is very, very sad.

St. Quentin Station

David Morris and I had a chance to stop at the replica St. Quentin station back in August. This is a beautiful structure, built to replace the original. ACOA invested just over $600,000 in this structure.

It has a number of tenants in it, including the Chamber of Commerce, Le Festival Western, the local MLA (Percy Mockler), and the visitor information center.

They have a little room set aside as an interpretation center, as well as a few display cases of railway memorabilia.

The interior is very well done.


You can see my Kedgwick station post for information on the railway line that used to run through there. Back when it was the CN St. Quentin sub, St. Quentin itself was mile 65.07 and had a 13-car siding and had 28 cars of "other" trackage. There is still a large railway warehouse beside the station.

Kedgwick Railway Station

Returning from our August Gaspe adventure, David Morris and I stopped at a few railway-related places on highway 17. One of those was the old CN station in Kedgwick. The station is now privately owned, and is shared by a natural food co-op (with the sign "le Chemin Vers la Sante" / the way towards health) and the office of Dr. J.G. Bouchard.


The station and grounds are very nicely kept and it was a pleasure to visit it. Unfortunately we visited on a Sunday so the businesses were closed, so all we could do was walk around the outside. They have a railway crossing sign and an old switch on the grounds, together with a few dozen feet of track in the brush.



This is the back (track side) of the station.


There are also a couple of small outbuildings that I doubt were original railway buildings.


Kedgwick was mile 49.66 of the St. Quentin Subdivision, which ran from Tide Head outside Campbellton to the I.N.R. Junction near St. Leonard. In the 1953/04/26 CN employee timetable it shows that Kedgwick had a 20 car siding and 38 cars' worth of other tracks. In 1953 a mixed train (216/217) ran three days a week. The whole subdivision had a maximum speed of 20 MPH for freight trains, showing how lightly built it was.

The St. Quentin sub was originally going to be the Restigouche and Victoria Colonization Railway Company, and after some misadventures it became known as the International Railway Company (INR). It eventually became part of CN in 1923. CN applied to abandon the line in 1983, and it was finally permitted to abandon the line in 1989.

We also visited the new St. Quentin station, a recently built replica of the previous station. That's a post for another time.

It's All About The Bridge

After our long Chaleur chase on August 11, we decided to railfan the Napadogan subdivision on Sunday August 12.

First, we went to the NBEC yard in Campbellton to see the eastbound Ocean aka VIA 14. It was headed by VIA 6416 and VIA 6432.

There were a few NBEC units getting the eastbound freight train NBEC 402 ready. The power was two SD40s (CFMG 6907 and NBEC 6900), RS18-3 CFQC 3000, and RS18 NBEC 1819.


Here's the Ocean on the straightaway leaving Campellton.


After the Ocean left, we headed down highway 17 toward St. Leonard. We stopped at the stations in Kedgwick and St. Quentin before arriving at St. Leonard. There was no activity on the scanner and the signals were red at the siding by the border crossing, so we decided to head to Edmundston to see what was going on there.

At 11:30 CN 4760 and another GP38 were in the yard, and I happened to spot MMA 8553 working the Fraser mill across the river in Maine. This was the best shot I could get from across the river.


After some discussion with Bill Linley, we decided that CN 305 would be coming into Edmundston soon, so we headed out to the west end of the St. Basil siding and waited. At noon on the dot CN 305 rolled by with CN 2433 (Dash 8-40CM), CN 5250 (SD40-2W), and IC 6202 (SD40) with 108 cars.




We grabbed a quick lunch and headed for the Salmon River trestle near New Denmark to wait for the next train, CN 149. We had a long, hot wait here. Thank goodness for lawn chairs and sunscreen.

Finally, we heard CN 149 call out the New Denmark station sign (I think) and at 14:50 they rolled across the bridge. They had Dash-9s CN 2570 and CN 2526, with GP38-2 CN 4730 trailing.






We packed up and headed east after that, stopping in Bristol to check out the new station before continuing on to Fredericton. It was a fantastic railfan weekend, one to remember for a long time.

NB Southern Unicef Excursion

NBSR had their UNICEF excursion yesterday, from McAdam to St. Stephen. NBSR 2317 provided the power for the usual business train.

Gary Lee has a short video of the runaround in St. Stephen up on YouTube.

NB Southern videos from YouTube

Gary from McAdam has some new videos up on YouTube.

Apparently there was a robbery on board an NB Southern excursion train. What is the world coming to? ;)


Gary got the St. Stephen train with NBSR 2319 returning to McAdam with 9 cars.


This shows the NB Southern crane driving (on dirt) through the McAdam yard.


Here's NBSR 9801 running light in the McAdam yard.


And finally, NBSR 2319 and 2612 pulling up to the McAdam station as they arrive from Maine.


Thanks for posting those, Gary!

Photos from May derailment

I love that this blog inspires people to contact me with photos and videos. :) I had an email from Mr. Georges Long, who was looking at my web site. He was at the May 10 St. Andre derailment of CN 308 for his work and took a number of amazing photos.

It looks like this tank car slid for a while before stopping.


Here they are draining the fluids from a damaged Honda before destroying it.


Check the whole album out! And while you're there, look at all Georges Long's work. He has some great photographs there.

Kevin's photos from August

Kevin G sent me some photos from a chase of VIA 14 and 15 he did back in August. I'm embarrassed to say I haven't moved them from my inbox since then. I'm way behind on email. That being said, here are what I think are the best of them. Thanks for sending them! I understand Kevin's friend Mario took these photos while Kevin was taping the trains.

First, VIA 6427 leading Operation Lifesaver VIA 6411 and VIA 14 somewhere between Moncton and Amherst.


Next, CN 4724 and another unit in Gordon Yard at Moncton.


Finally, VIA 6400 leads VIA 15 out of Moncton. I quite like this one.

VIA Videos

David Chiasson has posted two new VIA videos online.

Here's VIA crossing the Tetagouche River with 6400 in the lead.


And VIA 15 with 6400 leading at Valle Lourdes Drive in Bathurst.


Good to see you posting videos again, David!

CP 29

As you may know, CP 29 is currently stuffed and mounted outside the Canadian Pacific headquarters in downtown Calgary, Alberta.

CP 29 was famous for being one of the last three CP steam locomotives in regular freight service, the other two being 136 and 144. They worked between Chipman and Norton on the CP line, and they continued working because of the very light bridges on the line. They were eventually replaced in 1959, I think.

CP 29 eventually came to the Salem and Hillsborough Railroad where it was returned to service and used on the passenger runs. It always ran in company with another engine (except for one time). Tragically it was damaged in the 1994 fire, and after a few years it was returned to CP, who cosmetically restored it and put it on display.

Brian Barchard sent me these two photos of CP 29 in Calgary.




More details on CP 29 are available at the New Brunswick Railway Museum website.

Update on Saint John wallboard spur

Ron Grant reported on Sunday (Sept 23) that the road crossing is done.




It's not connected at the wallboard plant end, and the end nearest Irving Paper needs more ballast and bolts but it is physically connected.

Irving Wallboard Plant Spur Crosses Bayside Drive

Alert Ron Grant noticed that NB Southern put the rail line across Bayside Drive in Saint John on Saturday, September 22.

As he told me: "They routed all traffic through the south side of the Dry Dock property. I came home tonight and it's all paved. The crew is still there cleaning the street before opening Bayside Drive to traffic. When they are done they will still need to join the road track to the track in the Dry Dock property where the traffic was rerouted. A lady spokesperson stated arms and lights will be in place within 2-3 weeks."







The smokestacks in the background are NB Power's Courtenay Bay generating station.

The crossing is right about in the middle of this map.

Thanks, Ron!

New blog online

Check out the shiny new blog called As I chase trains I wonder if I'll ever get that perfect shot. I've posted his YouTube videos here before. Good to see you online!

Miramichi Model Train Show September 22

The Miramichi Crime Stoppers are holding their 4th Anuual Model Train Show on my birthday, Saturday, September 22, 2007 at the Northumberland Square Mall (in Douglastown). The event is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with many layouts and sales tables. For more information contract W Blake Johnstone at 773-6859.

I went to the 2006 show and I liked it. It's one of the smaller shows but still good. Model train photos

Self-Doubt and "Oh, Crap!"

Every railfan has their moments of self-doubt, and their "oh, crap!" moments. I had both tonight in Bathurst.

New Brunswick East Coast Railway's ore train 586 from Bathurst to Brunswick Mines comes on duty at 18:00. I was at the NBEC yard at 16:10 and nothing was going on. Two NBEC MLW RS-18s were down in the yard and NBEC 1851 was dead by the station. I figured I had some time, so I went over to East Bathurst to look at the Smurfit Stone facility. While I was there, I heard train 586's crew bring their train out onto the main and then call the RTC. "Oh, crap! I'm out of position!"

I had hoped to get them at the iron bridge near highway 11, but that was clearly out of the question. I decided to head for Nepisiguit Junction, as I knew they would have to stop to line the switch for the Nepisiguit Subdivision. I headed to the end of Smith? Court and jogged the last few feet into the wye at the Junction. Soon I heard them rumble around the corner and pull up to the switch. Give the conductor credit, he lined that switch so fast that the train stopped for a mere 25 seconds.


At 18:56 train 586 rolled onto the Nepisiguit Subdivision with NBEC 1868 and 1821 leading 14 CN covered gondolas and 5 AOK covered hoppers.

I resolved to try different locations than last Thursday's chase. I did get him at the first highway 430 crossing at 19:03, albeit only with video.

I took a side video shot at 19:07 to show some of the pretty colours coming out.

I decided to go behind the Blue Mountain? racetrack and get him coming around the corner there, rather than take the second highway 430 crossing. It was a pretty good location but there's not a lot of room to step back from the train there. The light was really starting to fail at 19:14.


I took one more side video shot a few minutes later just before the track went away from the road. I decided to give up the chase, as the light was getting pretty bad, and go to Nepisiguit Junction to wait for VIA 15.

I got to the overpass over the Junction by 19:40 and set up my tripod on the overpass. There is lots of room to shoot westbound trains there without fear of cars. I waited.. as the light went away. Soon I snapped the "night shot" feature on my video camera to have some hope of shooting anything, and waited..

Here was my moment of self doubt. Did I miss the train? Was it early coming into Bathurst? No, that couldn't be, because I heard nothing on the scanner. But where was it? I hate those moments.

After 40 minutes of waiting, VIA 15 showed up at 20:16 in the near dark. I taped them coming, and used my Canon S3 to record them going away:


They had to stop to reline the switch at the west end of the junction, so I got to the VIA station ahead of them. They rolled in at 20:29. I went to the head end and tried a few time exposures of the engine. I think I did it a bit too long. What do you think?


They rolled on out at 20:35 with 6415, Operation Lifesaver 6411 and 16 Renaissance cars with Assiniboine Park at the end.

Oh, and this morning VIA 14 arrived in Miramichi at 10:09 and left at 10:16 with 6400, 6417, 7011, 7223 and 14 other Renaissance cars plus ReveLstoKe Park.

NBEC 402 videos

YouTuber clam502 has posted a couple of videos of NBEC mainline freight train 403 on YouTube.

Here it is in Charlo. Be patient - the train shows up around 00:50.


And a close view of the train coming into Campbellton.