Monthly Archive: January 2013

CNR maintenance shed

Nordegg revisited (or 2001 a Nordegg Odyssey)

Back in the fall of 1997 we were passing through the area and so paid a brief visit to Nordegg Alberta with intentions to explore the old CNR rail line located nearby. Fast forward a few years to 2001 and we are in the area again and have a bit...

Nacmine coal cars

Commander Mine (Nacmine)

Nacmine is a former coal town in the bad lands of Alberta, only a few kilometres west of Drumheller. At one time there were many mines here and in fact the town was even named after one of them (North American Collieries Mine), but the subject of this report however...

Tiny Boler trailer

The tiniest Boler yet

The tiniest Boler yet! You’ve heard these trailers were cramped but this one takes that to the extreme and in fact is the smallest one we’ve seen. A rare sub-sub-sub-compact model, we caught this one pulling into a gas station. Actually…it was seen at a local train show in September...

Budget time lapse rig

Time lapse on a budget

If you’d like to experiment with time lapse photography but don’t want to invest a lot of money into it you might want to consider the home-brew rig described here. It’s proven, simple, dirt cheap and produces pretty respectable results. The parts needed can be purchased cheaply online, in a...

Coleman Miners' Hospital

Coleman then and now

This post has been retired and a new version can be found here: Coleman Miners’ Hospital 100 Years Apart. They’re saying… “OTBPwC&C is a brilliant concept. Thank you for enriching our lives with so many engaging and entertaining posts. Five stars all the way.” Erin Bay. Random awesomeness… The Sidewalks...

CNR locomotive 1158

Canadian National Railway 1158

Canadian National Railway #1158 is a fairly workaday engine most at home on branchlines or in local service None the less she and her many sisters played a very important role and they could be seen up and down the entire CNR system working hard every day, doing the mundane...

Ft MacLeod Turntable remains

Fort MacLeod turntable and roundhouse remains

At one time nearly every medium to large sized town had a rail yard and often located nearby or within it was a turntable and roundhouse. These were needed to turn steam engines around and as a place where they could be inspected, maintained or stored. Nowadays few of these...

Stavely AB Grain Elevator

Stavely Alberta

This post has been revised with new info and pictures, here: A Few Minutes in Stavely Alberta. The old pictures here have been retained for your enjoyment, but please refer to the new post for all esle. Grain elevator time… Prairie Sentinels: Bulwark Alberta. Grain Elevators of DeWinton. Providence Grain...

Diamond T

More old trucks of the Crowsnest Pass

Before anything: I really enjoy old trucks but I am by no means an expert or even remotely good at identifying them. With that said, even though I got some help from those in the know I am certain I’ve made some mistakes in this post. If you see where...

Coleman Collieries loadout

Loading coal in Coleman

They’re loading coal trains in Coleman! Hurray, hurray, coal mining has returned to The Pass and prosperity will soon follow! They are so eager to get going that cars are already being lined up at the old Coleman Collieries plant and it won’t be long before they’re filled and headed...

Studebaker logo

Studebaker, Canada’s Own Car

“Connie…is that a Studebaker?”, asking like I expected her to know. “Damn, I think it is and it’s a later one too…a 1964 or 1965 maybe.” “I’ve got to get a picture of this.” So here are and without even trying we come across a seldom seen car. Not a...

Walking railway tracks

Calgary to Okotoks

I guess you could say this was a weird choice for a hike, trekking along the rail line from south Calgary into Okotoks. Yea it’s odd, but we’re strange anyway. Not a terribly challenging undertaking, even given the long distances, it was less than pleasant in places given the hot...

Alberta/Sask border sign

Empress Alberta – 1998

For this trip we set the time machine back to 1998 and we find ourselves exploring the barren and dry prairies in the eastern part of the province. For this report we’ll make a brief stop in Empress Alberta, a tiny little hamlet right on the Alberta – Saskatchewan border...

Coleman Polish Hall

Coleman then and now

This post has been retired but a similar post can be found here: Polish Hall Coleman Alberta (1927). They’re saying… “Thank you for all the engaging write ups and pictures…you two are a national treasure!” Bonnie & Gerald McDonald. Check out these… Marblehead Underground Quarry. Downtown Bassano. Rocky Mountain House...

Marshall diesel roller

1930s Marshall Road Roller

It’s old, cold and gold! No lightweight, this massive mellow yellow coloured Marshall road roller is a long way from its birthplace in the UK and can be found in a small town on the Alberta prairies. Seen on a cold winter’s day, it sure makes one wonder how it...

Coleman Alberta locomotive

Biggest Piggy Bank in the World

While a sign proudly proclaims it to be The Biggest Piggy Bank in the World, instead it’s actually a small underground mining locomotive. Looking much like a miniature steam engine, this “dinky” operates under the same principles, except it actually runs on compressed air instead of steam. This makes it...

CPR train Glenbow AB

Calgary to Cochrane

Okay, here’s an odd choice for a hiking trail – let’s follow access roads that parallel the CPR”s rail line along Bow River, travelling from the Bearspaw Dam on the west edge of Calgary all the way to Cochrane. Sounds like a interesting idea and in spite of being close...

Lyalta grain elevator

Buffalo 2000 grain elevator Lyalta Alberta

Known as a “Buffalo 2000” the elevator seen here in Lyalta Alberta was an innovative and advanced design for its time and was to help usher in a new and exciting era in the Canadian grain handling industry. It was the future! However, in spite of such lofty aspirations, in...

CPR Red Barn 9005

A Big Red Barn, CPR SD40-2F 9005

The locomotive seen here, CPR 9005, is known as a “Red Barn” and while to the uninitiated it looks like any other engine out there, it’s unique and fascinating in a number of ways. It’s rare in that it was made with non-standard body style (called a cowl), and it...

International R200 truck

The notorious American Hotel

The notorious American Hotel doesn’t look so menacing today. Vacant, sombre and forgotten, in the not too distant past it was ground zero, a place for trouble, BIG TROUBLE, and not a weekend went by without seeing it in the news. Fact is you would not want to be standing...

Greenhill Hotel Blairmore

Blairmore then and now

In this then and now series we take a look at the Greenhill Hotel, a prominent Blairmore landmark for over ninety years. In the early days this distinctive barn shaped structure was a watering hole for coal miners, locals and visitors and it today it serves in much that same...

Cowley AB train tracks

Cowley then and now

Almost forty years separate the two images seen here and while the mountains in the back help line up the pictures, otherwise one would be hard pressed to know this is the same location. Seen in Cowley Alberta, the elevators, the train station, the oil shed are all gone and...

Coleman AB Museum

Coleman then and now

Once again I line up the shot pretty good but mess up on some angles a wee bit. However, it’s pretty close and given the conditions at the time of my photograph it was amazing I could get it at all. Let me elaborate – try to shoot one handed,...

You cannot copy content of this page

Please log-in to continue...
This allows unrestricted access to every post @BIGDoer.com, popups are eliminated,
commenting is on and the "contact us" page is enabled.

Esc to close this box.

Lost Password?

Or...

Your social site may send you a routine notice of login.

Or signup, here: Subscriber Register
___
BIGDoer.com: Serving up POP HISTORY & other McFun!…(Mmmm, yummy bite-sized pieces.)
One million plus words & tens of thousands of photos!