I enjoyed two railfanning visits to the Kingston VIA station on August 8 and 9, 2022. The afternoon and midday visits were uplifting as were the two loads on CN No 305 shown in the top photo! I parked in the 'cell phone' lot to the west of the station, though I did make one trip to the 'long term' lot to the east. Both are as spacious as they are capacious. An earlier visitor was the CN weed-spray train, apparently CN's replacement for bushwhacking sectionmen (long gone) or the brushcutter track machine (hidden somewhere). Most trackside weeds have turned brown, and sumac have been put into positively premature autumn colours. The results to the west with Mi 177 Kingston Subdivision up the hill:
Observed trains are shown by time, direction and details:
1530 EB: One of a new pair of intermodal/auto rack trains, CN No 122 with 2282-2202 has export double-stack containers like UASC and HL, plus 50 loaded autoracks:
VIA wraps are denoted as R=Renaissance; L=Love the Way; F=The Future is on board or F/40 if still bedecked with VIA 40th anniversary circular red logo. The refurbished stainess steel cars with the green/yellow or Business Class grey/yellow are denoted as "D&H" or D for reasons known only unto me (oh, and the Delaware & Hudson's blue and yellow broad stripes).
1620 WB: VIA No 67: 6413-3326R-3340-3347R-3370-3360-3470-6427L. Passenger loads were healthy, and mask-wearing on board was intended to keep it that way:
Almost as many VIA P42's are unwrapped as VIA F40's are wrapped.
An eastbound is lined to the south at Queens East, with the signals just visible under the newish John Counter Boulevard overpass. Crossing gates are activated for the old, unused Counter Street crossing:
VIA No 44 was the one lined on the north track 1632 EB: 918L-3471-3355F-3350F-3371. After its station stop, it was engaged in a winnable race with the dumpster dumper. This was my last train of the day, but I would return the next day.
August 9 - 1110 EB VIA No 62/52: 903L-4000"D&H"-4004D-4114D-4122-4108-4115D-915-4008D-4116-8102D-4104-8108D (no photos).
1143 WB VIA No 63: 910L-3469-3464-3338F-3345R-3353F/VIA40 stopping just west of the station on the north track. New taxi area in foreground:
1253 EB No 40: 911L-4003D-4112D-4119-4117-4111D:
1300 WB CN No 369 with 2974-exCitirail 3924 running wrong main behind the above VIA, so no photos. I decided to get my subsequent treasure right at trackside. I deployed the Mark I Lawnchair.
1325 WB CN No 305 approaches:
CN 2999 in the lead, running on the south track:
AIMX scrap gons 19172-19193-19134-20172:
DPU 3061 is bracketed by IC and ATW gons with bagged loads of nickel.
Belgium-built Sarens cranes on HTTX 93443 and 92913 had arrived through the Port of Halifax, a frequent path of heavy equipment passing through Ontario from Europe destined Western Canada.
If it's 305, there has to be Irving lumber on board. Pun intended.
Decelerating while ascending the hill to Mi 177:
1330 EB CN No 372 just a couple of minutes later, led by CN 3136 but two minutes too late for a meet at the station. :
TCMX 12417, formerly JAIX 96115 aluminum Johnstown America Grainporter:
DPU 2997 followed by about 60 loaded auto racks. The microprocessor chips must have come in!
Can opener conclusion:
Fellow Kingston railfan, photographer and aerial image-maker Andre Gerow kindly shared this fresh drone view of the station. You'll note the broad expanse of marshland in which the station was built, surrounding the Little Cataraqui Creek on its way to Lake Ontario. Princess Street overpass is at top of photo. The former Cataraqui level crossing, replaced by the overpass in 1968 was where the grove of trees is. The Ambassador Hotel is at top centre. The expansive concrete pad around the station and the renewed, enlarged parking lot (with lots of medians!) are also visible.
Running extra...
As Trackside Treasure begins its quindecennial year, roofers are pounding on our roof like a squadron of caffeinated woodpeckers. While railfans and railways may think they're the only ones about cool paint schemes, this Roofmart delivery truck literally wrapped itself in the flag, and I don't see a shingle thing wrong with that!
My much younger (not quite four years old) but also more active other blog concerns Kingston's Hanley Spur. This post on modelling the 1895 addition to the Kingston Outer Station inevitably leads readers to lament the current state of the prototype. Alone, unused, dejected and undergoing demolition by apathy, it lives on in HO scale.
I've spent much of the summer doing urban planning on one 2x8-foot stretch of that layout, and much of that time has been spent under a roof, be it a sunroom roof or even an umbrella or front porch. But I'm technically outside! A slight re-jig of the track made room for the I.Cohen scrapyard and CP spur extension, Davis tannery and CN spur, an ex-industry, the CN telegraph repeater station, CN Express shed and spur and the above-mentioned CN Outer Station. Though some august experts say modelling season begins in September, I don't fall for that one!
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