Bonzer Words!: Riding The Skeena
Rodney Gascoyne rides the scenic rail route in North-Western Canada.
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...The Skeena train travels 1,160 km between the Rockies and the north Pacific coast through remarkable and varied landscapes.
Great stretches of wilderness, lakes and rivers punctuated by settlements, farms and sawmills span this section of Canada’s northern transcontinental rail lines, completed in 1914 by the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway.
The ancient traditions of the native peoples, the not-too-distant pioneer days of sternwheelers and panning for gold and modern history have all left their mark alongside the tracks. Important industries across the region include forestry, agriculture, mining, tourism and commercial fishing.
Wildlife such as grizzly and black bears, moose, elk, deer, wolves, coyotes, bald eagles, hawks and seals may be seen during the trip, depending on season and chance....
These are the introductory words in a brochure from Via Rail about their train. As suggested, this is a truly remarkable and beautiful opportunity to see a vast region of Canada that is far less travelled than the well-publicised sights. It is a great mixture of spectacular views and mountainous country, wild and desolate places and a visual replaying of settlement and evolution before your eyes. One minute you are passing close to large glaciers and next are witnessing the opening up of the northern Pacific interior—increasing trade with China and Asia will require bigger harbours and docks to supplement the near-capacity Vancouver—the obvious choice is Prince Rupert, the western end of The Skeena’s run. All that freight will then have to travel inland on the same rail system.
I was very lucky on my four-day, return journey: the weather was perfect for late autumn; warm, bright sunshine most of the time; and also hit the peak of the foliage turning, first yellow and then brilliant gold. It was a fantastic combination I tried to capture in many photographs.
The full trip goes from Jasper, on the eastern slopes of the Rockies in Alberta, terminating at Prince Rupert, on the British Columbia coast, forty miles south of the Alaska border. Because Via Rail offers no overnight travel or accommodation on this train, make your own plans for bed and breakfast en route in Prince George—each train arrives there in mid evening and leaves again early next morning. There are currently just three trains a week in either direction, year round, using famous Park cars, with observation lounge and Domed viewing area aloft, bring up the rear. In summer, they offer three classes of travel, including full service with meals, but I was unimpressed with that carriage, using extensive wraparound glass, almost like a sunbaked fish bowl.
Despite the beautiful and outstanding scenery, there are problems that can be frustrating. But, as I found on many train journeys, their main splendours are best viewed in hindsight, through your pictures, when the few annoyances have faded from memory. With The Skeena, this centres around the relationship between Via Rail and Canadian National, the railway that owns and maintains the tracks.
Both CN and Via were government owned, until the freight company was privatised in the 90s. Via’s passenger trains were rerouted just before that—they previously also used routes owned and run by the private Canadian Pacific. The biggest change was to the famous Canadian, from its old run through Calgary and the Rogers pass in the Rockies, to the present trip through Edmonton, Jasper and the Yellowhead pass, shared briefly with The Skeena. It was thought the change came because CP wanted too much rent for use of their lines, whereas CN could be ordered to take the extra traffic, although extorting a hefty subsidy for so doing. They insisted that freight would always have priority and that passenger trains were bottom of the list.
This still continues and so we often waited ages in sidings, while long freight trains rumbled past, slowly and undelayed. Other times, maintenance crews blocked passage until they would get out of our way. This led to numerous hold-ups and mostly, lost time that could not be made up, so we simply arrived late at our destinations. Added to this, the rude, surly attendant who dispensed a very dismal array of snacks and drinks, and the sometimes-disengaged Train Manager, became minor irritations. Somehow the word Service just doesn't really apply, but then you remember to look around you and put it all in perspective. It is a really remarkable and rare experience and, dare I say, an ultimate, great set of memories for a lifetime.
© Rodney Gascoyne
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Rodney writes for Bonzer! magazine. Please visit www.bonzer.org.au
