Monthly Archive: February 2013

CNR Calgary station

Silver Streak movie then and now – boarded up train station

In this, our forth Silver Streak movie then and now post, we take a look at the derelict boarded up station seen in the movie, actually Calgary’s old CNR train depot. While made up to look abandoned it really didn’t need much help at that time as it had sat...

CPR Elbow River bridge

Silver Streak movie then and now – bridge jump

Here’s yet another then and now from the 1976 movie Silver Streak, a fun little tale of mystery and intrigue on board a transcontinental passenger train. In this scene two of the main characters leap from the moving train, landing in the waters below. This view (hard to believe) is...

CNR Bow River bridge

Silver Streak movie then and now – cop chase

In our second Silver Streak movie then and now series we pick a very obscure location. Situated within the bowels of CPR’s huge Alyth yard complex in Calgary, in this view the highjacked train hurtles by on the tracks above with the police in hot pursuit. Interesting, where we shot...

Okotoks Alberta train station

Silver Streak movie then and now – small town station

Being a train buff, the 1976 movie Silver Streak has always been a favourite of mine and while I knew it was filmed in and around Alberta, I never really paid much attention to that aspect of it. Until recently that is when we manged to come across a DVD...

24 hour video on site

Farmer Jones Carz

Farmer Jones Carz was a Calgary institution for decades, a used car lot selling well worn el-cheap-o transportation and doing it with a quirky style. The lot was always brimming with old beaters and the iconic sign with its slow-witted looking chubby farmer in coveralls with a sprig of grass...

GMC Fishbowl bus

More GMC Fishbowls

My recent article on the ex-Lethbridge Transit GMC Fishbowl bus had me thinking, how many of these are left in Calgary? If any? I do know the city has been operating Fishbowls up until recently, as I have seen them occasionally pass by on a busy street near us. However...

Boler trailer Calgary

Red, White and Boler

Here is the second Boler Trailer we found in the Calgary neighbourhood of Bowness. Mere minutes from the other we stumbled across (report link below) like that one this example is looking a bit haggard. It has an interesting red and white paint job, but it’s not clear if this...

Boler camper

Bow-ness Bow-ler Bow-nanza

Here’s our first Boler of 2013 and one of two we’d see this day, both within minutes of each other. This somewhat ragged looking example was found in February in the Calgary neighbourhood of Bowness, as was the other which will appear in a follow up report. It looks like...

Emmanuel Chruch Carmangay

Little Church on the Prairie

Stealing a title from a syrupy sweet TV show from the 1970s, it’s not the little house but rather The Little Church on the Prairie. Located in a charming little village, the Emmanuel Anglican Church seen here is a few years into its second century and while it appears that...

After the storm

Winter hiking though a gritty urban landscape

This city hike has everything! Urban blight, a dull overcast day, gritty industrial areas, noisy highways, airways and rail yards, funny smells, neglected city parks, icy pathways and an unexpected and intense snow storm to round it all off. What more could one ask for? In winter our hiking options...

Lethbridge Transit 116

The GMC Fishbowl

Here we see a ubiquitous GMC “Fishbowl” bus. If you live in a town with a transit system it’s likely you’ve seen one these, although maybe not that recently. Officially named The New Look by its maker, it seems that it’s often refereed to by it’s more endearing nickname instead....

Fargo pickup interior

A trio of old trucks

Old trucks are like a magnet drawing me in and in our travels we come across a great number of them. In this pass we see a couple old GMCs and a real gem, an ancient Fargo. All of these appear to be old farm trucks, not surprising given our...

Monarch AB train viaduct

Bridge hunting – Monarch Alberta

The Lethbridge Viaduct, also known as the High Level Bridge, is of course a well known landmark and the longest and the highest steel rail trestle in the world. Towering over the Oldman River it’s located right in the middle of the city and can be easily seen from any...

Carmangay bridge pier

Bridge hunting – Carmangay Alberta

When one thinks of large train bridges in Alberta or even Canada for that matter, the Lethbridge Viaduct instantly comes to mind for most. Its massive size means an equally massive notoriety and it’s clearly the most famous of its type. However scatted nearby throughout the southern half of the...

National Hotel Calgary

The Nash aka The National Hotel

Calgary’s National Hotel is being reborn. Forgotten and neglected for many years it rises like a phoenix from the ashes. Most recently a haven for the downtrodden it will find a new life, being converted to condominiums and retail space. Now over 100 years old it’s nice to see that...

Truck Dodge Bighorn

Big and orange Dodge Bighorn

In August of 2012 I did a report about a yard I found that was full of all sorts of interesting big tucks. There were old Macks, an REO, a gaggle of old farm trucks from the 1940s and 50s and lots of other interesting bits. And then there is...

Trillium travel trailer

Not a Boler – a Trillium travel trailer through the trees

At this time of year, here in the cold wilds of Alberta, spotting a Boler or even a Boler look alike trailer is pretty rare. Most of them are nicely tucked away for the winter in back yards, alleys, garages or in other obscure or hard to access spots and...

Moto Ski Mirage II

Moto Ski

By the early 1980s the snowmobile industry was on the decline. The years prior saw a huge shakedown with maker after maker closing their doors. None the less there were still lots of models being offered by those companies who managed to tough it out, including examples from an early...

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