I live on the west coast of Canada and they did a great job with this one. Only thing missing is dirt and grime on the train and graffiti on nearly every rail car.
theslimeylimey unfortunately, these engines are also missing the engine sounds (or, more specifically, the generator/fan sounds) when dynamic braking is active. :( Also, when going down that grade? Never accelerate under power... you're so heavy, and the grade is steep, so just let your consist weight do that for you... eco-driving FTW... :)
I'm doing a backpacking tour in the Rockies and I'm in lake Louise right now... This is probably one of the most accurate representations of the western rookies and the spiral tunnels
Oh, and to address another question you asked, about knowing when your tail end has passed a speed board... When your head end passes the speed board, you start a counter in the cab (built-in)... that counter shows # of feet... and your paperwork will show how long your train is in feet... (give or take 1% depending on if you're running bunched or slack... with rear DPU's, you're probably bunched... no DPU's? you're slacked up-grade, and probably bunched down-grade... unless you're stretch-braking)... when that counter reaches your train length, your tail has passed the board.
I find this rather entertaining considering that trains of this size and sometimes even larger are very common. I've seen trains with a total of six engines, with two in front, two in the middle and two at the back. You get stuck at a rail crossing with one of those going by, you can effectively turn off the vehicle and have a short nap.
@@residentevil742 197 isnt anything. I work for the railroad here in the midwest. The Union Pacific runs 300 car trains all the time. 17000-18000 feet.
Before they built the Spiral Tunnels there was a massive 6% grade there. They tunneled into the mountains and made the two spirals to level out the gradient there. I've been to the actual place. It's very, very cool seeing the train go in and then spiral up on top of itself.
I came here many times with my dad when I was younger. I once saw a train so long, it looped itself through both tunnels, and could be seen in 4 different places at the same time.
13:30 its called a slide detector fence, that will detect when a slide comes down and obstructs the tracts, and then broadcasts on the radio that the slide fence is tripped
Your dynamic brake is your first brake you use. If it is still not slowing down you use your train brake which is the red handle. If you go to quick into your dynamic brake on a real train you can actually kick a car out. By the way we know where our rear is because we have a distance counter on the locomotive screen and our dispatcher bulletins tell us how long and heavy our train is. By the way a speed restriction starts at the milepost as soon as the head end reaches where the restriction starts. If you wait until your rear hits the restrictions you will be fired haha. I'm a railroad conductor by the way.
I laughed when you talked about how long the train was. That is about average if not slightly below average for a North American freight train. Everything over here is so spread out that just about everything is shipped by train as its by far the most efficient way of moving it.
From Canada (Alberta) know the area well....that is how she looks!...Beautiful...If you get a chance get over and see the Spiral Tunnels near Field BC. Very very impressive!
I've driven through that area (Kicking Horse Pass) ans it looks really accurate! I applaud your enthusiasm for the spiral tunnels. In Canadian history, it plays a very integral part in connecting western Canada to the rest of the country. There is a viewpoint of the lower spiral tunnel that is very popular with tourists and I was lucky enough to be there and to imagine what the construction crews had to do to build them. Amazing place. Thanks for featuring this route.
Lol in case no ones answered it, the white line on the windshield is the window defroster. Its just an electric strip that obviously heats the window to stop ice/frost and fogging up, nothing to special but it works wonders. Note the wires for it right above the strip coming out of the ceiling. When I was a student conductor it took me a long time to figure out what it was till one day i burnt my finger on it lol. Thumbs up to the TS guys for actually putting that there, a nice touch of accuracy. Also when youre wondering about how you know when the rear of your train has cleared a certain point, the engineer and conductor has a counter, you activate it once you get to say the 35, and you know your train length, you watched the counter and itll count the number of feet youve gone sine you activated it. So if your train is 5000 feet long, once the counter gets to 5000 feet youre clear.
Squirrel, I live in Alberta, Canada and I can tell you that this video literally resembles the tracks that go through the Rockies! It's beautiful, isn't it?
The 2-Volume definitive book on the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway were written in the early 1970's by famous Canadian Historian Pierre Berton, titled "The National Dream" & "The Last Spike", they were bestsellers and were adapted into a 10-part (each 1 hour long) Canadian Broadcasting Corporation TV Special which was shown nationally many times, it was an excellent production. There was a companion and very large photo-book by Berton titled "The Great Railway".
About 200yrs ago, when my dad was an old man, my uncle was posted to Canada for some reason. I don’t mean, actually posted, like in an envelope or a box, I think he was in some kind of army or other. Point I’m skirting around is whilst travelling somewhere with his fellow soldiery in Kanuckistan, they came to a level crossing which had a giant freight like this passing through. Story is the CO told them to pitch camp, and that they’d be stopping where they were for the night. Not worth waiting for two weeks for the train to pass...
These Canadian Pacific trains are my childhood. We used to spend the Victoria Day long weekend and two weeks in the summer in Sicamous, BC, at Shuswap Lake. About a block away from our house there were train tracks and we'd see 8 or 10 of these long trains go through a day. I absolutely loved it, they are great memories that always put a smile on my face whenever I think about those days and I smiled through this entire video!
Just a heads up the engine lights have to be on all the time as well as the ditchlights (the 2 lights along the bottom) in North America. And the railroads I know all have to blow the horn heading into the tunnel (Long blast, long blast, short blast, & long) the same as at a level crossing, and the bell rings as the first engine passes though.
That fence is a rock slide detection system if I recall, so if a wire breaks on the fence it trips the signals I think, and our locos have the lights on all the time, day and night. the longest train I've seen had 5 diesels in the front and took 45 minutes to pass the crossing
I'm a bit late, but at 21:42 you ask the question about engine and load limits, well I saw one of those trains in a valley in Canada, and it had 3 additional locomotives pushing the load in the middle, the end and pulling the load. This train took 20 minutes just to pass one point [where I was sitting]
I worked on the Rocky Mountaineer luxury passenger train a few years ago. The only passenger train that passes through the Spiral Tunnels, an amazing Swiss engineering feat if I remember correctly. We usually got priority to pass freights in the sidings but sometimes we could be waiting for over an hour to have multiple freights pass by. The scenary from Vancouver, BC to Lake Louise/Banff (Alberta) was absolutely amazing and people would travel from all around the world to experience this. Unfortunately you can not see Lake Louise from the tracks but there is a multitude of turquoise lakes and rivers throughout the journey in The Rockies. Fun fact: they filmed Dr. Zhivago at a retired station/platform just outside Banff which is now a restaurant. *Field is a small town on the way to Banff thru The Rockies.
The Canadian Pacific has the spiral tunnels as one of the most famous engineering feats in history. The Spiral Tunnels The old and the new line Lower portal of "Number Two" tunnel, Spiral Tunnels, Field, British Columbia. The locomotives are passing under the train they are pulling. The Big Hill "temporary" line was to remain the main line for twenty-five years, until the famous Spiral Tunnels were opened on September 1, 1909. The improvement project was started in 1906, under the supervision of John Edward Schwitzer, the senior engineer of CPR’s western lines. The first proposal had been to extend the length of the climb, and thus reduce the gradient, by bypassing the town of Field at a higher level, on the south side of the Kicking Horse river valley. This idea had quickly been abandoned because of the severe risk of avalanches and landslips on the valley side. Also under consideration was the extension of the route in a loop northwards, using both sides of the valley of the Yoho river to increase the distance, but again the valley sides were found to be prone to avalanches. It was the experience of severe disruption and delay caused by avalanches on other parts of the line (such as at the Rogers Pass station, which was destroyed by an avalanche in 1899) that persuaded Schwitzer that the expensive solution of digging spiral tunnels was the only practical way forward. The route decided upon called for two tunnels driven in three-quarter circles into the valley walls. The higher tunnel, "number one," was about one thousand yards in length and ran under Cathedral Mountain, to the south of the original track. When the new line emerged from this tunnel it had doubled back, running beneath itself and 50 feet (15 m) lower. It then descended the valley side in almost the opposite direction to its previous course before crossing the Kicking Horse River and entering Mount Ogden to the north. This lower tunnel, "number two," was a few yards shorter than "number one" and the descent was again about fifty feet. From the exit of this tunnel the line continued down the valley in the original direction, towards Field. The constructions and extra track would effectively double the length of the climb and reduce the ruling gradient to 2.2%. The new distance between Field and Wapta Lake, where the track levels out, is 11 1⁄2 miles (18.5 km). The contract was awarded to the Vancouver engineering firm of MacDonnell, Gzowski and Company and work started in 1907. The labor force amounted to about a thousand and the cost was about 1.5 million Canadian dollars. Even after the opening of the spiral tunnels, Field Hill remained a significant challenge and it was necessary to retain the powerful locomotives at Field locomotive depot
I worked on the running trains for CPR and it;s too bad that you couldn't have started from Revelstoke to field the rogers pass and the pushers would be awesome to see not to mention Stoney Mountain and the Canaught Tunnel, it would be a great trip you would love, they did a great job with Field spent many a night and days in that old bunkhouse
That grain train was probably the grain runner that runs from some grain elevator in Saskatchewan to the coast in BC to be shipped to international markets (just an assumption). Also a lot of CP trains can get up to 2 km+ long.
I travelled this Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) route many times in the 1970's when the CPR still ran a passenger train over it, then the Gov't agency Via Rail did it for about 10 years in the 1980's, Via Rail still operates on the Canadian National Railway (CNR) line 150 miles north through the Yellowhead Pass. I also lived for 20 years in this whole region, and this computer program is extremely accurate, I know all the mountain peaks and even the shapes of the mountains were fairly accurate on the program, except at the very, very end, where the high and steep Mt Temple was missed on the right. The CPR crosses 2 major passes in the Canadian Rockies, this one, the Kicking Horse Pass, climbs 3000 feet in 50 miles eastward from the town of Golden BC to Wapta Lake (the lake at 27:30, this program starts halfway at the village of Field BC) and the Rogers Pass through the Selkirk Range of the adjacent Columbia River Mountains which climbs west from Golden to the Connaught and McDonald tunnels under the pass, a climb of about 1500 feet, the old track to the top of Rogers Pass climbed 500 more feet through (snow) "avalanche alley". From Rogers Pass the track then descends 2500 feet (3000 feet from the top of the old track) to the town of Revelstoke in about 50 miles. After crossing the British Columbia interior plateau through deep and arid valleys, both the CPR and the CNR negotiate the Fraser and Thompson River Canyons for 100 miles on the east side of the Coast-Cascade Mountains, this range is crossed by the Great Northern Railway a hundred miles south in Washington State USA by the difficult Stevens Pass, and the old BC Railway followed a tough route near Whistler Ski Resort. There are lots of real railway, travel and tourism videos of these regions on YT, all of this video takes place in Banff and Yoho National Parks, the Canadian Glacier National Park is around the Rogers Pass, and huge Jasper National Park is around the Yellowhead Pass. If you have money, the daylight luxury tourist train "Rocky Mountaineer" goes between Vancouver and Banff and Vancouver and Jasper on these routes every day all summer long, prior to Co-Vid 19.
There are about 20,000 Grizzly Bears and 200,000 Black Bears in British Columbia and Alberta Provinces, Canada, where this video takes place. A person gets killed only about once every 5 - 10 years by one.
12,000 tons is a normal consist in North America. I read a comment thread on another video a week ago where a British guy was dogging American railroads because they’re “50 years behind British railroads” simply because British rail is all electric. But a guy pointed out to him that the consist in that video had 4 locos on it which are generating around 16.7 megawatts of power to move that tonnage and that’s just one train, not to mention the train 30 minutes behind him and in front of him and so on. Could you imagine the strain on the power grid to electrify the whole US rail network? Also not to mention the extra infrastructure to install to make that happen.
those loops you saw on your map are known as the Spiral Mountain Tunnels which is a very intresting design, the engines you have i belive have 5k horsepower each, before you go through the rogers pass before revelstoke you get pusher locomotives usually 2-3 to help you get throught the mountains, then they get removed usually in glacier bc or field bc, providing if the train still needs them or not
Hi squirrel! I worked with Maintenance of Way in the area you covered in this sim. I chuckled with enjoyment listening to you discover this piece of track. Sorry if I'm repeating other comments but prior to the building of the spiral tunnels (1909) this climb was called the Big Hill. You actually saw a remnant of the old 4.4 percent grade when you commented about the old school iron bridge which was an old rail bridge. The old line actually had 3 safety switches with uphill grades to prevent runaway trains. The scenery is actually quite accurate. Thanks for sharing. Cheers!
A wonderful part of our country, Wapta Lake is at the summit (5200 feet ASL), I have a couple of passenger and freight consists proper videos, pure sound. Spectacular scenery. Been traveling it for 36 years, never tire of it.
I was actually in Banff this July, while I was traveling around the Pacific Northwest, and I went Whitewater Rafting down the Kicking Horse River, and I encountered several CP trains. Throughout my journey, I came across UP, BNSF, CN, and CP. And, my dad and I went to see the Kicking Horse Pass. Also, Squirrel, I want to thank you for showing me this.
This double loop was built to replace a series of switchbacks and locomotive stops through the pass. Trains would often have to double or even triple to get over the pass, and there'd been several accidents over the years before CP finally built the two spiral tunnels. This CP container train is probably bound for the Vanterm container port in Vancouver proper.
It does look very similar to near Hope (I'm from Chilliwack, btw). This track though runs between Field and Banff as I could tell by the signs. BC does has interesting a scenic routes all around.
I enjoyed how philosophical you got about the engineering of train line construction. When you ponder a subject Paul, it makes us all think about it. Cheers, Jibba
I live in Canada I there is a lot of farming land followed by some city skape my cousin has a farm I go there some me times for birthday partys and stuff like that
+Squirrel Canadian Pacific runs through my town in Minnesota, I have seen trains as long if not longer than that, with 5 engines placed throughout, always mixed cargo. Containers, cars, grain, oil, propane, a little bit of everything. I have also seen those trains go 40 - 50mph in parts
Oh we've got rocks and trees and trees and rocks and rocks and trees and trees and rocks and rocks and trees and trees and rocks and rocks and trees and trees and rocks and... water!
To the question when they know when to speed up to 35 mph, is SUPER easy answer. If they know how long the train is, and they keep the same speed, they just calculate the time it takes to pass the 35mph sign...
there ts a rail pass called EL CAJON PASS witch has a 2.2% gradiant wich is the site of 3 runaway trains one on 1989 another in 1994 and the final one in 1996!
@Squirrel, someone may have commented this already, but we know the rear of our train is clear of lower speeds due to the distance counter on our screen. You hit the start button and it begins to count up in metres(Australia). You have to know how long your train is in metres to know when you are clear. You can also preset your counter, lets say 1250metres. When passing the speedboard hit 'count down', once the counter reaches 0 it will give you an audible warning to let you know your train is clear. But if you drive the same trains over the same route all the time you can usually remember a landmark to know you are clear. eg loco passing a bridge, river, station, tree, crossing, points, signal and so on
Here in the US, the longest train I have seen is like three engines in the front, and two in the middleish, and a couple handfuls of cars after the two engines
Also those tunnels are called spiral tunnels, they built them because the main line used to run down where the trans Canada highway is now that runs between the tunnels, and a big problem was the trains would derail coming down into field. So they built the upper and lower spiral tunnels to get down the steep grade safely and efficiently without any problems, I've stopped there many times as it is a tourist site. You can only see the lower tunnel as the upper is above us in the trees. Always busy with tourists because it truly is a sight to see
I think I should explain if no one hasn't. I am a real railroader here in America. So with that being said, let me start by saying that every railroad is different. Yes there is a mathematical equation as to how much power you can use to pull a train. So for Canadian Pacific I don't know. I work for a competing railroad. For my railroad you can't have to much power on the headend as as you will pull it apart. That's why your train has what's call and distributed power unit or DPU. That's the locomotive at the rear. Our headlights stay on day and night as to protect the public. A rear marker is always necessary as to warn trains approaching from the rear. Trains are built by weight and how much the locomotives can push and pull. If you want to know more, ask a railroader. But for now that's lesson 1
When I was about 10 or so, the family made a run all around the southern interior of BC. There's a pull-off the Trans-Canada Highway in the pass where you can watch the trains go through the loops. I was spell-bound. "Dad, you mean that train down there, is the same train that's coming out there?" Most amazing thing ever.
Squirrel - re your question about train lengths at 21:30. Yes they are at the length limit depending on how they are configured. Having engines spread out through the chain to distribute power instead of just front middle and back for example reduces chances of derailments. Trains have been pushed passed the limit of the tracks and trains and derailments do occur. In 2005 40,000 liters of caustic soda were dumped into a BC salmon river because of a derailment caused by the accordion pressures of a long heavy train. CN Rail's longest train is 12,000 feet.
theslimeylimey One big limit is how much your couplings can take. If you're pulling it from the front then the front couplings are pulling a lot of weight. That can be eliminated if you can carefully spread power throughout the train though. Of course if you fuck up and one engine falls behind/pushes ahead too much it could rip apart the train.
theslimeylimey So in other words, the consist on this route of about 60 cars (?) is probably limited by the simulation engine and not the actual route being modeled.
LilMan1993 Actually each loco is controlled remotely except for the lead one. The crew knows the length of their train, and has a counter that counts down the length of their train when they pass a sign post or pull into a siding.
LilMan1993 The crew (conductor and engineer) stay in the lead unit. The rest are connected up and are all computer controlled according to the inputs from the lead unit.
Been on The Rocky Mountaineer from Calgary to Vancouver over two days. These freight trains take forever to pass. It's so hard to imagine how long they are. Slow going but the scenery is stunning.
The Elevation of the Kicking Horse tunnels are 1,500m above sea level and the Yard in Field is 1,245. Lived for 26 years 100m,s from the main CP line coming west out of Medicine Hat Alberta. Seen a LOT of trains headed by up to 6 loco's with another pair 100 car's back with a final pair 100 cars back even farther. Them boys are LOOONG.
That “shimmering Lake” at the top of the climb is actually situated right on the continental divide of North America. The rivers running out of the lake on the East and West shores are moving away from each other. I drive that highway every year when I travel to B.C. from Alberta. Seen the spiral tunnels many times. Great video. Not having mountains where I live now (Originally from B.C.) makes me a little homesick. Ok, a LOT homesick.
Yeah, my dad told me that some trains like the ES44AC Canadian Pacific can pull large consist, usually around three or four kilometers of consist. Yeah, trains here can be pretty insane (except the TTC one).
I live in WA and we have massive coal and oil trains that come through several times a day heading up to Canada. Those trains can be almost 2 miles long. I've see 7 locomotives on one. Very awesome
8:13 WESTERN canada looks like that (BC and Alberta). I heard a Saskatchewan joke about s farmer’s dog running away, and they saw it running away for 3 days because its so flat. Eh you know what, ima just go through the vid and explain canada to you... In western Canada like all of BC and Southwestern Alberta is mostly mountainous. The mountains yes are very caked in snow. We ski on them with about 2 meters of a snow pack. The little shed you drove through at 13:46 is an avalanche shed, so that if it avalanches in that spot, it’ll land on the shed and protect the tracks. Normally (from what ive seen) the trains here do drive with their lights on. The spiral tunnel is to climb up without going straight at too steep of a gradient. Makes it easier on the train. Going through that tunnel, you see it very often in NA because we have VERY long trains. Over a mile long some of them are. The cars at the front of Bob’s train was grain cars. Grain cars, oil tankers, and cargo liners (i think thats what they’re called) The dynamic brake uses the engine to slow the train. Its almost like a jake brake in a truck
