Rockies Railroad
In which we ride the rails across the continental divide. While on the book research side I uncover a Texan connection in the Brabazon story.
We continued our recent Canadian excursion with a two-day ride on the magic carpet that was the Rocky Mountaineer railway journey through the Rockies and across the continental divide as we made our way from the shores of Vancouver to the snow-bound frozen Lake Louise a mere 5,249 feet above sea-level.
Day 1
We were up and out early to check in for the Rocky Mountaineer train in the hotel, then a short bus ride to the station. I was surprised to see that the service had its own separate terminus as I thought it would be part of the national rail network and we’d embark at a regular station.
There were lots of nice little touches at departure to make you feel that this was something special, with red carpets, flags, and even a Canadian pipe player to welcome you on board.
We were glad we decided to spend a few extra $$ and get seats on the top of the double decked dome coach. Excellent views with the large windows and curving glass roof panels. The seats were very comfortable with personal controls and more than enough leg room to stretch out.
Breakfast was served in the dining room on the lower level. We ended up sitting across from a couple from Melbourne and had a good conversation about a lot of subjects - helped by the fact that he was a fellow car and motorsports geek. An interesting side note is that there was an unspoken pack of mutual anonymity, in that despite spending two days in close proximity the forty of so passengers in our carriage no last names were ever used, and even though there was many conversations happening no one exchanged any information about who they were professionally or personally.
We were back in our seats just as the train started to roll out of the city and joined the main rail network and into the surrounding farmland. The train was modern with amazing smooth ride that you felt just like you were gliding through the surroundings with hardly a jolt to remind you that you were on board a long train.
Fascinating first day on the train as we climbed through changing scenery and topology over a 280 mile stretch. The scenery just unfolded like a travelogue movie as we rolled by, enlivened by a few wildlife encounters on the way. Staff on the train very knowledgeable about what we were seeing en-route and willing to answer all sorts of questions.
Lunch was good - a relaxing two hours, and free flowing drinks service in the main viewing cabin made for a pleasant afternoon.
We made an overnight stop in the town of Kamlooops. Really just enough time to grab a meal at a local pub and do a little bit of exploring before heading to bed as we had another early start the next day.
Day 2
Up early as the bus left the hotel at 6:00 am - we’ll it would have done if one couple had not been late, and some lady suddenly realizing she’d left her purse (containing her passport) in her room. - still we made the train with a little bit of time to spare before roll out.
Another excellent day on the train as we really started to climb into the Rockies. Spectacular scenery, and some amazing engineering to marvel at along the line including some gravity defying trestle bridges and spiral tunnels.
The food was once again excellent and the staff attentive. Each carriage had its own dedicated staff of four hosts and there were all full of good information, and practiced story-tellers.
Our magnificent train ride came to an end at Lake Louise just over the continental divide in Alberta, after around 300 miles and 12 hours of train travel.
We were lucky enough to stay at the Fairmont Chateau in Lake Louise. A spectacular hotel situated at the head of the frozen lake with amazing views down the valley between snow capped mountains - including this view from our room.
Day 3
It was nice not to have to wake to an alarm this morning. We enjoyed one of the best hotel buffets we’ve had in a long time for breakfast (the hotel is too far out of town to walk to a local diner).
We started to head out for a stroll around the frozen lake but quickly discovered that the 5,000 ft altitude wasn’t good for Gill’s lungs. Instead we spent the rest of the morning sat on a pair of Adirondacks with a hot coffee enjoying the spectacular view and talking through a bunch of stuff. Being away from home without having to worry about getting everyday stuff done is very liberating and provided us space to really discuss a few things about what we want to do in the near future.
Then it was time to catch the bus to Banff…
Other Stuff
Thanks to the new subscribers who have joined since last week. I really appreciate your interest and support. If you would like to join them you can subscribe below.
I’ve already made an initial foray into Substack’s new NOTES function, which you can now access directly from the Notes tab on my Substack webpage. Not sure exactly how I’ll be using it yet, but my first thoughts are that I’ll be posting more books and movie reviews, quotes, and the occasional bit of personal stuff not covered in the main newsletter.
Dinner And A Show
Like Beatles history? Want to try a unique food experience? Love Rock-n-Roll?
Join us for a special event in Austin, Texas on the evening of June 2nd.
“Stereo Dinner and Pershing present “Before They Were Beatles” a one-night-only celebration of the Fab Four’s early days with historian and author Alan J Porter. The event on June 2 will feature an intimate multi-course ticketed dinner followed by access to the after-dinner concert with Liverpool’s The Savage Young Beatles.”
Full details at https://www.stereodinner.com/events/beforetheywerebeatles
Forest Comics Returns
We recently made the tough decision that’s it’s time to start thinning the herd in our overflowing library.
So we decided it was time to brush the cobwebs of our old Forest Comics & Books business and do the eBay online store thing. The first few books and CDs are listed with lots more to come. Just search for “forestcomics” on eBay or click the link HERE.
Brabazon Bits
I was delighted this week to find a Texas connection with the Brabazon story. Six months before he was scheduled to take the giant Bristol Brabazon airliner on her maiden flight, company chief test pilot A.J. “Bill” Pegg decided that he needed to find out what the handling of a giant aeroplane felt like before he would take the Brabazon up. The only real aircraft of comparable size at the time was the US Air Force Strategic Air Command’s “Peacemaker” bomber, or the Convair B-36 to give its correct type designation.
The B-36 had a comparable 230-foot wingspan, and was powered by six engines producing an impressive 22,800 hp. Pegg was invited by Convair to Fort Worth, Texas to fly the B-36. After flying it several times, including one eight-hour hop, he was surprised by the relative ease with which the B-36 could be flown. His verdict “It flies beautifully.” With that experience behind him, he returned to Bristol with new confidence in what he was soon to do with the Brabazon.
Word slinging
This week I signed on to contribute an essay to upcoming anthology on childhood memories of first contact with the “Wagon Train to the Stars.” Should be fun to trek back to those days.
More on this project as things develop over the next few months.
Pages and Screens
Books Read in 2023 - “Johnny Cash: The Life” by Robert Hilburn
A heavy (literally and figuratively) read about an enigmatic, complex, and conflicted man. A man of deep faith who fell to temptation. A man who used his position to champion the underdog even to the point of wrecking his career, while still striving for commercial success. A man who lived constantly with the shadow of death, and the disapproval of many of those close to him.
To quote a New York Times review included in these pages:
“Man in Black, outlaw of justice, friend to the downtrodden, Mr. Cash had always been poised on the cusp between right and wrong, shadow and light; he walks the line between country sincerity and rock and roll autonomy.”
This excellent read doesn’t pull any punches about Cash or the decisions he made. Naturally it parallels his career being at its strongest at the beginning (the 50s and 60s) and the end (90s and 2000s) while dragging a bit through the wilderness years in between.
Overall this is a powerful account of a man who just saw himself as “a singer of songs.”
Podcast Procrastinations
The Before They Were Beatles podcast continues to show continuous growth in listener numbers with a steady stream of new folks starting at the beginning and starting to work their way through the story of the Fab Four’s early days.
And talking of Before They Were Beatles, just a reminder that if you’d like to keep up with the progress of the work on the 20th Anniversary edition of the Before They Were Beatles book you can sign up for a subscription to the dedicated Substack monthly newsletter HERE. -
Thanks to the folks who have already subscribed
If you enjoy the early rock-n-roll years and the music that inspired the Fab Four you can now enjoy a great selection of songs from the period on the new Before They Were Beatles playlist on Spotify -
Weekly Web Round-Up
Batman On The Cover - The journey through Batman’s comics publishing history continues this week as we continue our look at the comics from January 1968 published in Brazil, Denmark, Italy, and Lebanon.
As always, thanks for joining me for this week’s rambles through the Forest. And don’t forget to sign up for a FREE subscription so you don’t miss future updates.
See you next time
Alan J. Porter