Canadian Pacific steam locomotive number 2816 "The Empress" - Date/Photographer unknown.

14 July 2011

CP Rail Heritage Train Pays Homage to the Past

Kamloops British Columbia - It's been decades since these rail cars were in regular service, which makes CP Rail's heritage train trip through Western Canada all the more special for railway buffs.
 
CP Rail's train rolled into Kamloops from Ashcroft on Wednesday evening and departed again for Salmon Arm on Thursday. The train continued through to Revelstoke and will eventually make its way east into Alberta and Saskatchewan.
 
The train has been picking up passengers along the way, charging them $30 to $40 for each leg of the journey. All proceeds from the trips will go to the Children's Wish Foundation.
 
Mike LoVecchio, CP Rail's senior manager of media relations, said the company has raised more than $50,000 this year for the charity through the heritage rail program.
 
"It's a great cause," LoVecchio said.
 
The heritage train, decked out in CP Rail's heritage colours, features several passenger cars from different eras. One of the cars is from the 1920s, while others rode the rails in the '50s and '60s.
 
The train was supposed to be pulled by a steam engine but it broke down. A 1960s vintage diesel-powered locomotive was pressed into last-minute service instead, he said.
 
The heritage train pays homage to CP Rail's part in the formation of Canada, he said, and the importance of the railway to a growing nation.
 
"It's a history we are proud to have played a part in," LoVecchio said.
 
Jim Macdonald, from Vancouver, rode the train through to Revelstoke. He got on the train in Vancouver and took the scenic journey through the Fraser Canyon to Ashcroft and then on to Kamloops.
 
A train buff, he said the trip has been a thrill for a couple of reasons. First, the train travels on CP Rail tracks, which does not normally see passenger service.
 
As well, VIA Rail passenger service through the Fraser Canyon runs at night, meaning people don't usually get a good look at the scenery.
 
As a result, he has been able to see a part of the country by rail most people will not normally see.
 
"It's been a thrill," he said. "All of it. The heritage part of it just makes it better. It's been a fantastic trip."
 
Robert Koopmans.