Wintertime at Mile 174, January 2019

On  January 18, I managed to temporarily escape from a shopping junket to the north-end outlets in Kingston - Dalton Avenue near Highway 401. One-dollar coffee and the signal gantry at Queens East interlocking, at the end of Rigney Street, set the scene on this snowy Friday afternoon (top photo). The first train through at 1155 was VIA No 63: 6404-3475-3308-3359F (F=Future wrap)-3367-3354R (R=Ren):

Then at 1212, CN No 309 was running late, emerging from under the Division Street overpass led by CN 2895-new 3168:

Second unit CN 3168 sports the Aboriginal nose logo:

IC 3810 has spray-painted reporting marks, one of four IC, ATW and COER cars carrying bagged nickel loads for Fort Saskatchewan, AB (above) and pressure-unloading cars including CAIX 323042-TILX 31463-31425:

 A long way from Meh-hee-co, it's Ferromex gondola FXE 912801 on the tail-end:

Eight minutes later, VIA No 45 trundles by trailing snow: 916F-3365F-33xxR-3366F-3361F-3453-6425. Out of focus maybe, but I'd seen this consist with three Future wraps and no photo twice already, and this was my opportunity to get a photo before the consist is broken up!

Six minutes later, at 1226, it was CN No 305 with 2801-2231-8943:

Three colourful potash cars pass under the westward-facing signals: CEFX 302005-POTX 1575 and 2643:

Carbon anyone? CABX 4705601-CCX 1089-ECQX 57511, followed shortly thereafter by more empty ACF carbon-carrying covered hoppers CABX 80020 and TILX 487199:

Mid-train DPU 2249 passes as the train starts to slow for a signal at Queens West:

Stopped by a signal for about five minutes, this rusty ACFX covered hopper patiently posed, preceded some centre-beam bulkhead flat cars of lumber and twenty autoracks on the tail-end. Rusty? I'll go call Jerome!

Running extra...

Being trackside in this winter weather always reminds me of my railfanning roots. The cold didn't settle in your toes or frigidize your fingers. Or maybe it did and it just wasn't important. Cold weather in February, 1976? Low temperature time trackside:

 L.C. Gagnon photo:

But it's OK to stay inside, too. Working on my HO scale Hanley Spur layout:

 Paving Montreal Street.