VIA Ex-CP Cars East to Montreal - Part 2

Another pop-up post photographically portraying the movement en masse of VIA's ex-CP Budd fleet from Western Canada to Toronto and Montreal. Part 1 covered the first train which passed through Winnipeg on May 17, arriving at VIA's Toronto Maintenance Centre (TMC) and moving in small cuts on VIA's nightly train No 66 down CN's Kingston Sub between Toronto and Montreal - right past your humble blogger and other railfans here in Kingston. 

Here's the 22-car consist of a second VIA No 12 (CN's symbol = P01251 12) which arrived at the TMC on May 23, ex Winnipeg on May 21. These cars were formerly at the Winnipeg Maintenance Centre. Each unit is followed by the bracketed date it headed east from Toronto as pictured below: VIA 6428-6421-6451-Chateau Lasalle-8510(24)-Chateau Closse(24)-Mackenzie Manor (24)-8600-8125-Chateau Latour-Kokanee Park-Chateau Radisson-Princess-8612-8103-8119-8504-Chateau Vercheres-8620-8120-8505-Chateau Argenson-8122-Evangeline Park-Waterton Park.

VIA No 66 on May 24 (below and top photo) carried the first three deadhead cars from this second VIA No 12 that had arrived in Toronto on May 23: 6410-5 LRC cars-903L-Mackenzie Manor (open vestibule door!)-Chateau Closse-8510 (open vestibule door too!). 

Here's a view at Prescott.

This train was about 40 minutes late, accounting for the slightly longer shadows along beautiful Collins Bay at Mi 180 Kingston Sub - water level along Lake Ontario! Of course, it's rare to see these Canadian cars coupled to VIA P42's, normally Corridor power not accustomed to these transcontinental cousins.

Also on May 24, VIA No 63 had seven HEPII 4100-series coaches on the tail-end.

May 25's No 66 included lots of power -  from the second No 12, remarshalled in reverse order as the three F40's from the first No 12 had been, and four more Canadian cars on the tail-end. VIA No 66 at 1739 at Collins Bay: 6451-6421-6428-900Love the way-3456-3304Ren-3310-3359Future-3316F-911L-Princess-Chateau Radisson-Chateau Latour-8125. Thanks to Mark Sampson, Matt Soknacki and Malcolm Peakman for the heads-up.

May 26 - boring ol' No 66 with no stainless steel. No photo here.

May 27 - almost no stainless steel - just VIA 4122 tacked on the tail-end (below). The TMC tap has been turned off, with no further movements east.

A second VIA train No 12 from Vancouver (CN's symbol is P01251 25) departed on the evening of May 25, arriving Jasper around midday on May 26. VIA 6438-6458-Hearne Manor-Jarvis Manor-8130-8133-Prestige Class Chateau Lauzon-Prestige Class Chateau Cadillac-Butler Manor-Craig Manor-Rogers Manor-Bell Manor-Wolfe Manor-Blair Manor- Cameron Manor-Stuart Manor- Thompson Manor-Lorne Manor. Baggage car 8615 was lifted at Winnipeg and put on the tail-end. Blog partner Steve Boyko photographed this train as it passed through Winnipeg.

June 6 -  VIA No 63 took the following cars back west from Montreal: Chateau Maisonneuve, Chateau Joliette, Acadian, 8104, 8105, Tweedsmuir Park!(Thanks to Paul Hunter and Andrew Ferguson)

June 10 - VIA No 66 brought four cars east (Thanks to Paul Hunter)

June 13 - VIA No 66 brought four cars east (Thanks to Paul Hunter)

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Currently, waiting to see if further movements of stainless steel cars will pass by on their way to the MMC. If there are more movements, this post will be updated. I'm not ready to close the barn door just yet, as there may be some more VIA horses that are ready to run along the CN Kingston Sub! Rumour has it the MMC is too full and they want to send cars once more west. Stay tuned! One so far:

June 17 - VIA No 11 headed slightly east from the TMC, then north and left Toronto for Vancouver with five locomotives and 25 cars: 6442-6457-6441-6449-6455-8600-8122-8103-Assiniboine Park-Evangeline Park-8606-8509-8504-8120-Abbott Manor-8130-Fraser Manor-Hunter Manor-Monck Manor-Fairholme-8133-Alexandra-Cornwall Manor-Chateau Dollard-Imperial-Chateau Maisonneuve-Chateau Jolliet-Acadian-8105-Tweedsmuir Park. Cars have been inspected and will be staged for returns to service in Jasper and Vancouver.

NOTE: (Ex Toronto: Abbott Manor-8503 and 8129 were shown in a shared consist after 8130. Haven't seen any photos or other shared consists to substantiate this. Perhaps 8129 was removed at Winnipeg. At Winnipeg, 8130 was remarshalled farther back in the consist ahead of 8133 and there was a power change. Ex Winnipeg, 6442-6441-6454 (la voie qu'on aime wrap on Engineer's side)-6449-6455 with 6457 left in Winnipeg. 

At Jasper, the last two units, 6449-6455, and the first five cars: 8600-8122-8103-Assiniboine Park-Evangeline Park were set out and this consist continued into Vancouver, arriving June 21 with: 6442-6441-6454L-8606-8509-8504-8120-Abbott Manor-Fraser Manor-Hunter Manor-Monck Manor-Fairholme-8130-8133-Alexandra-Cornwall Manor-Chateau Dollard-Imperial-Chateau Maisonneuve-Chateau Jolliet-Acadian-8105-Tweedsmuir Park, 20 cars.

July 2: VIA No 63 had Brock Manor, Butler Manor**, Cameron Manor** and 8510* on the tail-end (Thanks to Andrew Ferguson) (*from first No 12,** from second No 12).

July 5: VIA No 63 with three more Manors heading west (Thanks to Paul Hunter).

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Meanwhile, VIA has returned some services in the Corridor, though long-distance Ocean and Canadian service will not return until November or even January, 2021. A temporary pdf format timetable can be found here. Though the pdf cover is dated June 3, various schedule blocks show other dates like March 23, March 30, when service reductions were instituted.

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Quarantinewhile*, at 'Pacific Central Station' (I still can't get used to that title - I remember when 'large CANADIAN NATIONAL' letters adorned the Vancouver station roofline). Faithful Trackside Treasure reader Terry Muirhead kindly shared these photos showing Canada geese filling the vacuum where the Canadian has flown east:

Tickets, please?

(*thank you, Stephen Colbert!)

SEPTEMBER 13, 2020 UPDATE: Westbound ex Toronto at 0715: 6429-6428-8104-8613-Waterton Park-8102 ("D&H" scheme)- 8109 ("D&H" scheme)-Draper Manor-Chateau Varennes (Prestige)-Tremblant Park-Kokanee Park-Prince Albert Park (Prestige). Cars for Jasper and Vancouver. (Thanks to Mark Sampson)

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 UPDATE: Arriving Jasper, the consist was 6429-6428-8613-Waterton Park-8143-8621-then 8102 and the rest of the consist unchanged. Tim Stevens kindly shared consist information plus his photo taken at Henry House (below) VIA 8104 was left behind and 8143-8621 added at Winnipeg. 

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER UPDATE: Departing Vancouver November 30 to Winnipeg, Toronto and Montreal VIA No 12, in preparation for Dec. 11 start-up of the Winnipeg-Vancouver Canadian service: 6441-6442-6449*-6455*-8143-8120-8126-8105-8130-8134-8501-Kootenay Park(Prestige Class)-8621-8509-Imperial-Hudson Manor-Dawson Manor-Amherst Manor-Allan Manor-Chateau Viger-Prince Albert Park(Prestige Class).

[*Added in Jasper]

[VIA 6441-6442-6449 were set out in Winnipeg]

Departing Winnipeg December 3: 6433*-6436L*-6457-6455-8106*-8127*-8126-8105-8130-8134-8501-Kootenay Park.[*added in Winnipeg for Toronto/Montreal.]

December 6 - Kootenay Park (backwards) and 8501 on tail-end of VIA No 64 heading for Montreal. 

December 7 -  8130-8134 were on the tail-end of No 64.

December 8 - the drip-drip-trip continues. 8106-8127 on the tail-end of No 64.

December 9 - 6457-6455 on the tail-end of No 64.

(No consist data - VIA seems to have run four "D&H-scheme" coaches (including 8100) west as a VIA No 11 to Winnipeg arriving around Nov. 26, and sending two locomotives and one Park car from Vancouver to Jasper after a tree fell on a locomotive on the run to Prince Rupert.)

DECEMBER 11 UPDATE - Closing the loop, VIA No 2 becomes the first Canadian to operate, albeit truncated Vancouver-Winnipeg: 6428-6454-8600-8102-8109-8517-Acadian-Laird Manor-Fraser Manor-Chateau Levis-Laurentide Park (Prestige Class).

Part 3 begins here, with 2021 movements taking place in anticipation of the resumption of the Canadian. 

Running extra...

Also on the pavement, another faithful Trackside Treasure reader, Randy O'Brien, kindly shared these homegrown graphics to promote ethical sharing online including watermarking of photos to stymie bad actors:

This week's June Associated Railroaders of Kingston meeting was held as a Zoom meeting. These lack the infield banter usually associated with our meetings - only one person can talk at a time. Inaudible heckling! Guest presenter Jason Shron gave a layout tour of his CN Kingston Sub, which features linear 40 feet of Brockville but 30 feet of Kingston, if I heard him correctly. Jason fired up his fine-tuned Turbo and ran it through the subdued scenery of Brockville: