British Columbia 2026

[Colonel]

Recently had two weeks in BC, retracing old haunts from previous trips out there. Stunning scenery and amazing railways, but a lesser known gem has to be the BC Forest Museum, near Duncan, on Vancouver Island. Everything to do with the logging industry, there are preserved examples of Shay & Climax geared locos, including the only working Shay in Canada. Three foot gauge at that - so almost qualifies as Irish narrow gauge, but will climb 1 in 10 slopes with ease. Sound like it is doing 50mph, when actually only doing ten.

 Anyway, a few pics that may be of interest & more to follow. They are quite large files, so can only post a couple at a time.

[Colonel]

The track is laid in a figure of eight & takes you past most of the exhibits and also out on a trestle over a lake.

 A detail picture below shows the verbal cylinders which drive two bogie trucks, via gears and shafts. As a result the boiler was off set, which is why they were known as "sidewinders".

 Bachmann used to do a 7mm NG model of something similar.

 

A standard gauge Shay.

[Colonel]

Also on Vancouver Island, at nearby Port Alberni, was delighted to find another logging engine, this time a 2-8-2T, on duty on a standard gauge tourist line.

 Meanwhile, back on the mainland, at Squamish [north of Vancouver] is the BC Railway Museum, a splendid collection of locos, stock and ephemera, telling the history of railways in the province. Star of the show is the Royal Hudson, a 4-6-4 that was used to haul the royal train across Canada. in the 1940s. I first came across in 1968, when visiting my grandparents. It was stored in the roundhouse at Vancouver & on the last day of that trip, they took me to see it. Imagine my delight when the friendly shed crew fetched a diesel switcher to haul it out on to the turntable for photographs!

 Later it was restored to full working order to haul tourist trains from Vancouver to Squamish. These ran for about ten years, but the loco is now retired to the museum and very splendid she is too.