Spiral Tunnels info?

I have heard of this, but have no pictures or info. It is like a double Tehachapi loop except it is all underground. It was built for the same reason, to gain the altitude to get over the Rocky Mountains.

Also, there was a major grain train derailment inside the tunnels a few years ago. What a mess that must have been!!

 

Description and history of the pass and tunnels
(there is an audio clip you can play as well)

Picture and info - includes info on other tunnels in the area

Information on the tunnel viewpoint

 

I have a pic but I didn't have time to look for a good view. I took a trip to the area last June, but we had to get to some half-arsed, god forsaken, abominable hotel only because we had reservations. That is the lame reason why I couldn't railfan in BC. My family obviously didn't care if I got to railfan there except for my dad. Yet that would've been my highlight of the trip.

I did, however, get some good photos east of the mountains on the trip.

 

Try these two sites. I know the second has photos of the area. I can't find another one I've got somewhere that has photos as well. I'll post it if I can find it.

http://stewart.railfan.net/rail/TRAINS.htm

http://www.mountainrailway.com/

Also, if you'll go to the Atlas forum (only for a second, and then promise to shower afterwards), on page two there's a post for Mike Hagarty's Laggan Sub on which he models the spiral tunnels. You could also do a search and look at his other posts which have additional pictures. Hope these are some help.

 

I have a good book on the tunnels. It's called 'The Spiral Tunnels and The Big Hill' by Graeme Pole. It's available from the pubisher's web site http://www.altitudepublishing.com/catalog.htmclick 'historical books' and then scroll down almost to the bottom. It's full of black and white photos and has some modern photos (in b&w) - there's even a few words about the 1995 potash train derailment that closed the line for 9 days