CN on Vancouver Island

Here's where anyone who has pictures of CNR motive power or rolling stock that was taken on Vancouver Island can put 'em. I'll start. Here's CNR 2-8-0 2141 switching the Point Ellice Yards in Victoria.

 

This one is of 2-8-0 2141 steaming over the Colquitz River bridge, photo by Bob Walker.

 

Have you heard of Dave Manzer...might have asked you before...He has astounding collection of goodies on E&N.

 

No I haven't heard of Dave Manzer. Those photos aren't of the E&N, they are of the now abandoned CNR line.

 

This picture is of GMD-1 1003 switching the barge at the once busy Point Ellice Yards. Only three years before it was abandoned, in 1990. The picture was taken by Robert Turner. As I was only three years old at the time.




[ 16 February 2001: Message edited by: E&NRailway ]

 

There are a couple of GMD-1's kicking around Vancouver still. They were in the North Vancouver yard up until about 4 months ago. I was wondering how CN ended up on the E&N...lol. I should have guessed.

 

CN had it's own rail network on Vancouver Island until 1990. Which ran in Victoria, on the Saanich Penninsula, through Sooke, and in the Cowichan Valley. Totalling some 100 miles at the line's peak in the 1930's. First to go was the Pat Bay Sub that ran up the Penninsula in 1931. In 1958 the steam locomotives, all 2-8-0' including 2141 and 2149 were replaced by MLW RCS-3's, the MLW's were replaced a few months later by the GMD-1's and GE switchers. Initially GMD-1's 1000-1003, 1010 and 1030 worked on the Island, but by 1960 the four GE switchers were removed and one SW1200 replaced them. Two GMD-1's remained in service 1000, and 1003. In the 1960's the Colquitz River bridge needed replacement(see one of the above photos) with the Concrete abutments in place and the steel spans ready to go in CN decied not to replace it. Instead opting to send traffic bound for the rest of the line to go via railbarge. GMD-1 1000 was based out of Deerholme, the junction between the Cowichan and Tidewater Subdivisions and worked all traffic to Youbou and the occasional wayfreight south to Colwood. In 1979 traffic south of Deerholme was put on an "as required" basis. Until there was so little traffic that the CN had no choice but to abandon the line south of Deerholme to Victoria. In 1987 the Ogden Point yards were abandoned and the SW1200 was reassigned somewhere else. 1003 continued to run out of Victoria and switch the industries in Victoria.

By 1986 traffic on the remainder of the Cowichan Sub(Youbou-Deerholme) and the Tidewater Sub(Deerholme to Cowichan Bay)dropped from 300 carloads per year to 70 per year! CN ended up loosing $885,000 in 1986 for service to the Timberwest mill in Youbou. CN Petitioned the CTA to abandon the Youbou-Cowichan Bay section, permission was granted for 1988. By 1989 the only part of this once great railway was the trackage in Victoria. Ferry service(the only connection with the mainland) was cancelled in 1989. All traffic to the CNR Victoria trackage arrived at the E&N barge slip in Nanaimo via the CPR and was interchanged witht the CNR in Victoria at the Johnson Street Bridge. In 1989 1003 was rebuilt into a GMD1u and 1070 was temporarily assigned to Victoria. In 1990 GMD-1 1070 switched the last grain car at Borden Mercantile and the line was abandoned.

Today the old right of way and locomotive 2141 are being restored. The right of way has become part of the Trans Canada trail and 2141 went to the city of Kamloops.

[ 16 February 2001: Message edited by: E&NRailway ]

 

Like Alan I do not know that much about Steam Engines , even though I am a Engineer .

Those are some nice pictures by the way . I have always wanted to visit the Pacific Northwest .

 

Shame on you Dave. The "Pacific Northwest" is an American term. For my friends in the state of Washington, I tell them I live on the South Coast, even though I live North of them.

The term has never made any sense to me; I debated it on the Atlas Forum. Alaska should be the Pacific Northwest. The occassional Vancouverite gets it wrong and says he or she lives in the Pacific Northwest (the influence of American TV).

This is meant to be all in good fun. By the way, if you look at a map, Victoria is down the Washington Coast an amazing distance, but not as far as Pt. Pellie in Ontario (the answer to the trivia pursuit question - what part of Canada is the furthest south?) And the American border does a weird jag around the Tawwassen (sp) terminals where you get on the Ferries to Victoria from the mainland. If you walk to the back of the ferry, when it is docked taking on cars, you are actually standing on american waters.

And another weird point of geography: there is a place most americans don't know about, but you can only get to it through Canada, here in greater Vancouver... It is called Point Roberts in USA (Washington). Lots of American sports stars who play in Vancouver on Grizzlies and Canucks live there to avoid Canadian taxes. It is about the size of a university campus, but you access it through British Columbia.

This is all meant in fun...lol. You can still say Pacific Northwest if you want.

 

RSM48. You are talking about my old stomping grounds. I was born and raised in Bellingham Wa and had made many trips to Vancouver. It is all beautiful and I consider it all Pacific Northwest. I left the area in 1955 for California becasue half the town was full of my relatives and I couldn't take all the infighting. I still go up there about once a year or two.

 

Yeh. To get to Point Roberts you have to go through the Blain Wa.customs and turn left and go a short distance to get there. Correct rsn48??????

 

To get to Point Roberts, if you are living in the State of Washington, lets say in Bellingham, you go through customs in Blaine, but then another customs at Pt Roberts. You really need to look at a map to understand it. Although you can see Pt. Roberts from Blaine, you have to drive in BC for about 40 minutes to get there.

When no bars or pubs were allowed to be open on Sundays, Pt Roberts is were many went to drink from Greater Vancouver (the lower mainland). I haven't been there for over 25 years. Then with gas prices it had an unusually large number of pumps were Canadians went to fill up and get a savings. You can imagine what a boring job being a customs officer would be there....lol.

Reminds me of an old joke.

Johnie Mc Ferrson used to show up at the border in Blaine everyday with a wheel barrow carrying dirt. He was going from Canada to the USA. Everyday the border guards would search him in an attempt to figure out what he was bootlegging in illegally.

Eventually they decided to test the dirt. They analyized it, tested it, sifted it, waited for stuff to grow in it... but never could they find anything. Then they did the same with the wheel barrows, searching every cavity, x-raying the metal...any test they could think of..and still nothing.

Well, eventually old Johny retired. As you can imagine, crossing the border almost everyday, you got to know some of the border guards pretty good. So one of the guards finally asked old Johnie: "You know, you've pulled the wool over our eyes. We never could figure out what you were sneaking into our country. Since you don't come down here any more with your wheel barrows filled with dirt, I won't tell anyone...you have my word. So what where you smuggling...Johnie?"

And Johnie's reply: "Wheel barrows!"

[ 19 February 2001: Message edited by: rsn48 ]

 

Sorry man but the way I have always looked at it was like this . The Pacific Ocean is near Seattle & Vancouver and it is northwest from me , so I always look at it out there as the Pacific Northwest .

So yes I am a Yankee But not a redneck
I do know that the BN is huge out there in Washington state . Do any of those BN trains get up into Canada . I think it would be safe to say that some CN traffic gets into Washington state as well ???

 

This is the last train to leave Youbou, pulled by GMD1 1000, rebuilt to GMD1u 1423 a year later. This picture was taken by the late Dave Wilkie on March 27, 1988.

 

20 years after the last train in 1978. Here's the ROW as a Rail-Trail near Leechtown just north of Sooke.


[ 27 February 2001: Message edited by: E&NRailway ]

 

Great photos there E&N

Is that your mountain bike there on the bottom of that photo ??

I am going to tell you something that I am really interested in and I HOPE you CAN HELP ME out .

I would really like to see photos of CN locomotives in British Columbia , that would really make my day

Especially any kind of diesels , let me know will ya please , thanks!!

 

Here ya go Dave