Autumn at the Station, November 2019

A gloomy but snow-free early November got me trackside to further record the transition from VIA 40 Years/Ans (F) wraps to 'love the way' and Remembrance Day poppies. I think it's fairly safe to say that I simply cannot get me enough 'love the way' (L) wrap photos. This three-word (four words in French) slogan is like photographic potato chips to me - I can always enjoy one more! On November 5, VIA No 60/50 pulled in to Kingston station with 910L leading five cars, then 904L-919L nose-to nose (top photo)! Pass the dip!

Three days earlier on November 2, VIA No 53 was punctuated by baggage car 8623. I noticed a darker shade of blue on the 'letter band'. Compare with the more usual blue hue seen on the top of the baggage door! Also on the same train was roller-painted darker-blue band LRC car 3368. Who says VIA trainwatching is boring? The VIAriety is where you find it. I found some further examples two days earlier on November 3. I was trackside waiting for the passage of CN No 305 with its roaming Centurion tank, and in the preceding 15 minutes, two VIA trains were headed by assorted locomotives.

First, at 1345 was poppy-bearing 916, having lost its Forty wrap, got the poppy logo as VIA 906 and 913 did the previous year, between their Canada 150 and F wraps! Five minutes later, 6436F headed west, interestingly the last of five wrapped 6400's in the silver scheme to receive its L wrap, having been in Manitoba service for quite awhile:

Heading east on Kingston's Taylor-Kidd Boulevard, I stopped at this wide-open spot just west of the Princess Street overpass to catch this westbound, with 918L leading and poppy-wearing 900 bringing up the paddle:

Back to November 5 and that breeding pair of P42's, shown here with their location showing:

Just one more chip! A view from the west:

Fifteen minutes later, lounge car Glenfraser (F) trailed this westbound:

CN was a little skimpy with freights this morning, sending No 305 west with 3801-Citirail CREX 1505 west at 0948, then an hour later No 148 with 2343-5291-5770:

Trackside at Queens East, a welcome text from Malcolm Peakman in Napanee alerted me to eastbound grain train CN No 874. CN 2340-8842 led an amazing amalgam of grain covered hoppers: CC, WC, GTW, IC ex-Rock, CNA and more east at 1423:

Best and brightest was a new one to me, ex-Lake Erie, Franklin & Clarion patched DWC 384971! Late afternoon southern exposure, slow speed and the valuably varied variety of this consist made photography a plethoric pleasure!

As the sun sank into the autumn cloud bank, VIA 917 led train 644 east at Queens East at 1555:

On November 6, a serious but not fatal MVC at Bath Road near Vista Drive was being dealt with by emergency services while CN No 368 Eng 8016 plodded east at 0925:

At 1439, CN No 369 was setting out cars (or possibly a bad-ordered car) at Queens. Having put its train back together, it marched west across John Counter Boulevard crossing being bridged by an overpass project, with five cars of aluminum ingots on the head-end behind CN 8815-5759-2178, meeting VIA 6416L on an eastbound just departing after completing a wheelchair lift:

The bag is almost empty, but one more chip comprises stopped poppy-emblazoned 916 leading this VIA westbound at 1330:

As the sun set again, on November 6th, a surprise trailing this VIA eastbound at 1557 was Skyline 8509 behind 6410-3469-4117-4104-4122 at Queens East. It is NOT headed for service on the Ocean out of Montreal.

Snow and the first daytime minus-temperature would come on November 7th, the 134th anniversary of the Driving of the Last Spike of the CPR at Craigellachie, BC.

IT WAS AN HONOUR JUST TO BE NOMINATED...

...that is the sound-bite from nominees who don't win the big award heard on televised award ceremonies. It's a means of saving face and keeping a career alive. When I received a call from the ever-genial Bob Fallowfield, asking me to participate in the Platforum Christmas Special podcast this December, taped adjacent to CN's Kingston Sub, it really was an honour!

When I then found out who I'll be sharing the Platforum platform with, a huge 'wow' factor flourished: VIA locomotive engineer Jordan "Hollywood" McCallum, uberVIAphile Jason "Edmunston" Shron, and our holidays-host, Bob "No Trackplan" Fallowfield. Sipping cocoa, swapping stories of Christmas trains and memories, and wallowing knee-deep in nostalgia (if not snow) with these three will be a blast (hoping not an icy one) from the past.

Bob, as well as passing CN and VIA trains, will keep us on track and...it's an honour just to be on the same platform!